Claimed, gathered and sent

Tomorrow I'm supplying for a friend. I'll be preaching on the first lesson, Isaiah 55:1-9 , which has been deeply meaningful for me. The sermon is still just in my mind, but this morning, working on other assignments, I was listening to internet radio and the following song came on: Whether the hunger and thirst are physical or spiritual, it can be a scary place to be in. And yet God keeps on calling us to come to the feast, to not be afraid. Those are just some of the thoughts that are swirling through my head as I prepare to proclaim God's Word of plenteous food and drink for God's people. When it has come together and been preached, I'll post it.

I posted this article on Facebook yesterday and got some great feedback from fellow seminarians and recent grads. What do those of you think who are pastors and lay people in the churches? Features February 23, 2010 Enough about me There is no 'I' in preach by William Brosend The combination is toxic, a perfect homiletical storm. A recent seminary graduate comes to her first parish, moving halfway across the country with her fiancé soon to follow. Sermon after sermon includes a story about a seminary classmate, about how much she loves the place where she used to live and how different "home" is from her new community and, inevitably, about how her wedding plans remind her of something in the epistle. In another pulpit, a preacher approaching retirement has disc...

This morning I thought I'd be on my way to Deep Creek Lake, MD to preach tomorrow. At least that was the plan. I was very excited about having Ray with me so I could show him around Garrett County where I spent the Jan. term. That was my plan. However, I got sick and I am just beginning to feel better. So, a classmate will be spending the time at Deep Creek Lake. Our plans and God's are not always the same. Proverbs says this so well, "The human mind may devise many plans,but it is the purpose of the Lord that will be established" (Prov 19:21). I think I'm beginning to get the idea. Thursday I had my final interview for next year's internship. Prior to the beginning of the whole interview process, I was quite nervous. I knew where I wanted to go and hoped I would go there. I had eight interviews. Of the eight, I would be happy to go to six of the eight sites and can see how God could both use me and work on me in those circumstances. The great thing about th...

After two back to back snowstorms and the campus not being completely dug out, we wondered what would be happening with the Internship Matching Workshop, aka Speed Dating. It is a time for prospective interns to interview with numerous pastors and lay people over a day and a half. Well, that's normally the way it works. But with the weather and many flights canceled, we are having an extended version of internship matching interviews for those that were unable to make it. When all the results are in from pastors and students, it is then worked out who will go where next year for internship. Pastors and students each have input, but neither makes the match. That's up to the wisdom of the Field Education Office and the Holy Spirit. So please keep all of us prospective interns in your prayers as well as the folks that will be collating all the info and finally making the decisions. LTSG pictures http://www.ltsg.edu/campus/blizzardsof2010.htm