So much has been written about the stages of life. Erik Erikson described 8 beginning with the most basic developed as an infant of trust or distrust then through the later period of establishing identity or confusion and then the challenge of middle age in deciding whether we become stagnant or continue to be generative. The final stage is whether we retain our integrity or give in to despair.  Shakespeare gave us seven memorable stages in “As You Like It.” The. puking infant, the whining schoolboy, the lover sighing like a furnace, the soldier seeking the bubble of reputation in the mouth of the cannon, the justice full of wise…

This morning we are reading the account of Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 19. Of course, the names of these cities have become synonymous with sin and wickedness of all kinds and God’s ultimate fiery judgment. Even today, some cities are described as modern Sodom’s and when they experience disasters some attribute that to their sinfulness. For instance, you may remember Franklin Graham’s words on why Katrina struck New Orleans: At a speech in Virginia, he said, “This is one wicked city, OK?  It’s known for Mardi Gras, for Satan worship.  It’s known for sex perversion.  It’s known for every type of drugs and alcohol and the orgies and all…

“As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham  for I have made you a father of many nations. I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. The whole land of Canaan, where you now reside as a foreigner, I will give as an everlasting…

Leo Tolstoy was right when he said, “All happy families are alike. Every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” In other words, there are some basic principles that are always present in happy families. No matter what their circumstances and differences there are a few things that mark them and allow them to be happy. A friend of mine told me those two principles are trust and communication. People talk with each other and there is a basic trust in their relationship even when it is strained or the family is in conflict. On the other hand, unhappy families are those that seem to find any number of…

One of Flannery O’Connor’s short stories is about a grandfather who takes his grandson, Nelson, to Atlanta to show him by comparison how good it is in the country.  A visit to the city will cure him of his boredom with rural Georgia.  Arriving on the train, they begin to walk and are soon lost.  For the whole day they try to find their way back to the station but walk around in circles confused and no closer to the station.  The grandfather’s “moral mission” to show the boy how evil, dark and unwelcoming the city is takes an unexpected turn but in the end they find the train home…

Noah leaves the ark and immediately builds an altar and offers a sacrifice that is pleasing to the Lord. However, there is no sacrifice that can reinstate mankind into a state of innocence or peace with God. The sacrifice is pleasing and the result is God’s promise that he will no longer curse the ground because of man but the cat is out of the bag and the horse is out of the barn so to speak. There is no retooling the heart of man and God recognizes the permanent inclination of every heart is evil from childhood. There will be no new creation. At least not for now. The…

It’s quite a statement to say that there is only one man and his family that is worth saving as we read in Chapter 6. “The Lord saw how great man’s wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was evil all the time. The Lord was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain.” It would be easy to think that Noah was completely righteous on his own but that is not the case. Noah was part of a line of righteous people. It does not say he was perfect but it does…

Many Christians around the world celebrate Epiphany on January 6th or the Sunday following – which would be today. It is also known as the Three Kings Day to honor the three Magi who traveled from the East to bring gifts to the baby Jesus. For Eastern Orthodox Christians it is called Theophany and also celebrated as the Blessing of the Waters to honor the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan and the wedding at Cana when Jesus turned water into wine. In Bulgaria and other European countries a crucifix is blessed by the priest and then thrown into the nearest body of water where swimmers dive in to find…

This morning we are going to look at all four of the accounts of the Triumphal Entry and the three accounts of Jesus clearing the Temple. I say three because the Gospel of John does not include that in his account – only the Triumphal Entry. First, look at the way each one describes the way Jesus is met when he enters the city. In Mark and Matthew, the crowds of those who followed him go before him laying down their garments, palm leaves and even branches from trees. In Luke it is a little different in that it is a multitude of disciples – not just crowds. They are…

Peter’s declaration of Jesus as Messiah in Mark 8 is our lesson this morning but I want us to look at it from the perspective of Peter’s vision in Joppa in Acts 10. The revelation is similar because it forces Peter to change in spite of everything he has been taught up to this point. It forces him to question his deepest beliefs about God. It is not only a revelation but an earthquake. When President Obama renewed diplomatic and trade relations with Cuba he said, “the United States will not be imprisoned by the past.” As I remembered and thought about the lesson this morning, I realized there is…