By Chaplain Mike Text for Advent I—Isaiah 2:1-5 On each Sunday of Advent, we light a candle on the Advent Wreath, gradually turning darkness to light to mark the coming of Jesus. There is no universal liturgy attached to the candlelighting, but this year we will follow a common way of expressing its significance. The [...]
Christ the King Sunday
21 Nov by
By Chaplain Mike Today is “The Feast of Christ the King” the final Sunday in the church year. This feast of worship is not some relic from medieval times, when kings ruled the earth. No, “Christ the King” Sunday is one of most recent additions to the church calendar. It was introduced in 1925 by [...]
Jonathan Fisk on Luke 21
14 Nov by
Today’s Gospel • Luke 21:5-19 I had a busy day Saturday on call for my work, so I did not get to hunker down and deal with the text satisfactorily to give you a decent message this Sunday. So… Here’s a message by Rev. Jonathan Fisk of St. John Evangelical Lutheran Church in Springfield, PA, [...]
God’s Way of Blessing the World
7 Nov by
By Chaplain Mike Gospel for All Saints’ Day • Luke 6:20-31 “All Saints Day is a witness to God’s way of blessing the world…” (David Thiede) Listen to me, dear brothers and sisters. Hasn’t God chosen the poor in this world to be rich in faith? Aren’t they the ones who will inherit the Kingdom [...]
Reformation Sunday
31 Oct by
By Chaplain Mike The Festival of the Reformation Reformation Day is a liturgical festival celebrated by Lutheran and Reformed churches on the final Sunday in October. It commemorates Martin Luther nailing his 95 theses on door of Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany on Oct 31, 1517. This act, calling for debate on issues of corruption [...]
The Real Test of Being in God’s Presence
24 Oct by
By Chaplain Mike Sunday’s Gospel • Luke 18:9-14 OK, let’s be honest. What are you thinking after you read this famous parable about the Pharisee and the publican? I would guess that many of us who have accepted the Gospel read this straightforward story and say in our hearts: “Thank God I’ve escaped the sin [...]
An Army of SLJW’s
17 Oct by
By Chaplain Mike Sunday’s Gospel • Luke 18:1-8 Many of the chapter divisions in our Bible were unfortunately placed. We come upon a good example of this in our Gospel reading today. In Luke 17:20-37, Jesus spoke to the Pharisees and his disciples about “the coming of the days of the Son of Man.” He [...]
From “Kyrie” to “Eucharist”
10 Oct by
By Chaplain Mike Sunday’s Gospel • Luke 17:11-19 Early in the traditional worship service of the church, the congregation says, chants, or sings the Kyrie: “Lord, have mercy; Christ, have mercy; Lord, have mercy.” The climax of the service occurs when God’s people celebrate the Eucharist, partaking of the body and blood of Christ. At [...]
Lord, Increase Our Faith
3 Oct by
I’m an editor by trade. Ok, that’s one of the things I do. I have waded through hundreds of manuscripts, fiction and non-fiction, trying to use the right words to help the author say what he really means to say. It’s not that authors are dumb. Well, it’s not that all authors are dumb. Sometimes [...]
“Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your heartâ€
26 Sep by
By Chaplain Mike Today’s Gospel— Luke 16:19-31 This story is the climax of a series of pericopes that represent a prominent theme in Luke’s Gospel. Many have called it “The Great Reversal.” This theme is introduced in Mary’s Magnificat (1:46-55) and finds its most succinct expression in Jesus’ Sermon on the Plain (6:20-21, 24-25): Blessed [...]
