Adam Hamilton’s book Unafraid was published in 2018, two years before the COVID-19 pandemic.  Its subtitle,” Living with Courage and Hope in Uncertain Times,” captures a message that resonates with this summer of discontent.  Hamilton, pastor of the largest Methodist...

Prompted by recent racial demonstrations, Juneteenth, and a discussion led by Daniel Johnson, I have been thinking of my own race relations journey through the years. Early Years From my childhood through my first two years at a denominational college, the only black...

As I reflect on the past weeks a few insights come to mind.  It was March 24, 2020, that Jim Strickland, Memphis mayor, declared a “shelter in place” policy for Memphis.  At that time I think I was like most people.  What will this mean?  How long will it last?  I had...

On May 25 in Minneapolis, George Floyd, a black man, died because a white police officer’s restraining technique cut off his air supply.  For over eight minutes, the police officer’s knee pressed directly onto the back of Floyd’s neck while Floyd lay handcuffed on his...

In his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus lists a series of beatitudes: “Blessed are...for....”  The second beatitude reads, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted” (Matthew 5:4).  The word rendered as “comforted” comes from the same root word that serves as...

For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost. Luke 19:10 As many people are these days, I am in a book club.  Of course, these days we find ourselves meeting in Zoom sessions and waiting until we determine that we can once again meet in person!  My book club...

“I have my books and my poetry to protect me I am shielded in my armor hiding in my room, safe within my womb I touch no one and no one touches me. I am a rock; I am an island.” from “I am a Rock,” Paul Simon  It’s been a strange Spring; a gross understatement, I...

I have been thinking a lot about butterflies lately.  During this pandemic, my 5-year-old has been attending online class each morning for thirty minutes. One morning, her teachers mentioned that they were going to be learning about butterflies, so I went online and...

When the COVID-19 virus first hit the United States, it ushered in a new vocabulary.  Commonly heard words and phrases are: masks, PPEs, social distancing, and essential people and items. The most obvious essential people are the doctors and nurses who are treating...

As the COVID-19 epidemic tightens its grip on Memphis, it is helpful to think about God and His involvement in human affairs.  Our young adult Sunday School class had just started reviewing the book The Will of God by Leslie Weatherhead when Covid-19 struck. ...

As I am writing this, our country and the world at large are going through an unsettling and disorienting time of dealing with COVID-19. Perhaps the idea of writing about connection and belonging may seem a bit untimely, as we are now in the midst of learning the...

The first time I recall truly thinking about what the future held for me was during the summer of 1961 as I was about to enter the fourth grade. My older sister graduated from high school earlier that spring. She made several trips visiting colleges across the...

Last Sunday one of our class members mentioned his child’s tendency to respond to new information by declaring, “I know.”  He also pointed out that, as adults, we often still struggle with the same desire to hide our ignorance and pretend we already know something...

Our church recently celebrated Ash Wednesday as the beginning day of Lent, the 40 days prior to Easter.  After the choir and congregation sang, our pastor led us in devotional thoughts preparatory to receiving our crosses made of ash. Near the end of the service, a...

Every day as I drive to work, I pass by a church where the minister stands outside in all kinds of weather, waving to the traffic. Even though I pass by on the opposite side of the road, the minister and I usually wave to each other. This past year, though, I have...

How do we age gracefully?  Perhaps we need to look at our pets to get the answer.  We own Abigail, a 14-year-old cocker spaniel pictured above.  Abigail has always been a trip whose adolescence caused us consternation.  As a young dog, she disdained pleasing us....

I first heard “three chords and the truth” in a song by U2 from their Rattle and Hum album (1988), as lead singer Bono added the phrase to Bob Dylan’s  “All Along the Watchtower” declaring, “All I got is a red guitar, three chords and the truth.” This line followed...

A rabbi, a Baptist pastor and a Muslim walk into a ………theater. No, not the start of a joke but certainly an invitation to an evening of humor! I recently attended the Laugh in Peace Comedy Tour that was held in the theater at the Crosstown Concourse. As soon as I...

How do you greet a family member, good friend, or fellow church member? Do you greet them  with a smile or hug? Often we in the south inquire either sincerely or by rote, "How are you doing?" (How ya doin?) or "Doing OK"? If you are sincerely interested in them, we...

When my daughter was born, I felt like my community was changing. We had been a part of an amazing Sunday School class filled with other young couples with young children, but three of the couples soon moved away and my husband took a position at a different church. I...

On July 1, my wife and I made an emergency trip to a small community in Arkansas to relocate my sister who had become a victim of elder abuse. The short story is that my sister required living assistance following the death of her husband three years ago. She suffered...

Christmas is certainly the time of year when giving is uppermost in our minds. We have our lists of names consisting of family, friends, school teachers, music teachers, soccer coaches, yardmen, babysitters, etc. We want to remember everyone who has contributed to our...

In a recent New York Times article, Linda Ronstadt talks about why we sing. “For the same reasons birds do,” she says, “for a mate, to claim their territory or simply give voice to being alive in the midst of a beautiful day. They sing so coming generations won’t...

Recently our church has experienced in-depth discussions about other religions.  One of the most important religions for us to understand is Islam.  Internationally the number of Muslims will be about the same as the number of Christians after 2050.  Islam is the...

“To do anything, you have to resist being entertained.” -Pete Dunlap, author of The Digital Detangler: A Guide to Mindful Technology Use. For my work, I am a librarian and technology specialist for a PK-5th grade school. Recently, I attended a professional development...

I recently spent a unique weekend at a "reunion" of people who are Georgia Tann babies.  If you do not know, for three decades Ms. Tann ran an orphanage/clearing house that placed babies for adoption in the Memphis area and all over the United States.  The downside of...

There are times when you get a wake-up call.  It was December 5, 2018, and we were in the Rehab Hospital where Mary Jo was recovering from a fall and two cracked bones in her neck.  She got a call from her brother to tell her that her sister-in-law Jo Anne had died. ...

  “Man plans and God laughs."  We’ve all heard that and chuckled (somewhat ruefully) over the statement. Personally, I very much like to have a plan, and I enjoy “getting all my ducks in a row.” For me, it’s important to know what my purpose is and then line up the...

In 1999, novelist Paul Auster and the hosts of National Public Radio’s All Things Considered asked listeners to send in true stories to be read on-air as part of the National Story Project. Auster received more than 4,000 submissions; the 180 best were published in I Thought My Father Was God, the title coming from one of the submissions. I was always struck by the title, for I always thought my father was God: I had no idea anyone else had the same perception of his or her father…

When I was a young man (twenty-something) and wrestling with my faith and belief, I found myself occasionally abstaining from communion. Unfit, I thought, passing the plate. This is a common practice for many congregants. And we, the church, are probably not helping…