Claimed, gathered and sent

Last week felt like fall. It was in the air with the cooler days. We had to wear sweaters to enjoy our patio on those mornings. This week however is quite another story. It's been in the 90s nearly every day. Today it reached 97 degrees. As the seasons and the weather change, so do the seasons of our lives. For the past couple of weeks I have been struggling with fatigue--even when I've had a quiet and peaceful day off and plenty of sleep. I couldn't tell if I was coming down with something or what was going on. I'd make a few calls, do a little visitation and my energy was sapped. I knew it couldn't be my thyroid because I was taking my thyroid medicine. Well, it seems that thyroid levels ebb and flow also and now I'm on a higher dose of medicine. This all leads up to the time I had with my spiritual director this week. I was frustrated that during the times of extreme fatigue, I seemed to accomplish very little. My spiritual director reminded me that those...

The parable of the dishonest manager Luke16:1-13 is a tough one. This is what I came up with. It was preached this morning at my internship site, Grace Lutheran Church, Petersburg, WV. This parable is one of the continuing series in Luke where Jesus seems to be messing with our minds. It has been likened to a watermelon coated in Crisco being used as a football. It can be played with, but you just can’t get a hold of it. Like that slippery watermelon, parables are meant to keep us on our toes. Let’s see if together we can see what God is saying to us through this passage. The parable of the dishonest steward or manager is familiar and puzzling to most of us. It makes us think. You heard me read the story. How many of you were puzzled? You’re not alone. You should have seen all the comments on Facebook as my classmates and pastors were preparing their sermonsAnd what do we do with phrases like, “ I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of dishonest wealth so that when i...