Author Archives: reallifepastor

Last night, I attended a candlelight vigil and memorial service for homeless people who died in Cobb and Cherokee Counties in 2011.  A national organization that advocates for people who are homeless encourages local communities to have memorial services on … Continue reading →

            She said yes.  I wonder why?  A young woman, engaged, but not married, minding her own business, trying to be a good Jewish girl…then a person claiming to be an angel shows up, tells her God has chosen her, … Continue reading →

An amazing prayer…  for a sung version, check out Kate Campbell’s rendition.   Thoughts in Solitude (Thomas Merton) My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot … Continue reading →

Two days ago, I was reading a spiritual memoir called “take this bread,” by Sara Miles.  A die hard atheist (or maybe agnostic), this liberal-as-they-come-lesbian-journalist wandered into a church one day and received communion.  It changed her life. The part … Continue reading →

Isaiah 64:1-9 Here’s a news item you might have missed.  “The folks at Star Provisions in Midtown are eagerly praying for the return of Jesus.  Sometime on Wednesday, a thief…swiped the Christ Child from a manger scene set up in … Continue reading →

            Okay.  Let’s just get this out of the way:  Everyone here is a sheep.  Not a goat in sight!  I say that because often when we read this “least of these” text from Matthew, we get stuck on the … Continue reading →

           We’ve heard the Gospel lesson and a great spiritual written about it.  Before you get anxious about that going “straight to hell” part, let me assure you that this story is not about the afterlife.  When Jesus told this … Continue reading →

The table.  It’s not by chance that the primary symbol of our faith is the table.  Jesus knew what he was doing when he invited his disciples to remember him at the table…           This place of nourishment…           This … Continue reading →

Koinoinia.  When I chose this year’s theme—A Year of Koinonia—here’s what I imagined.  I imagined that we’d all learn about the Koinonia community started by Clarence Jordan in south Georgia and, so inspired by the story of people living Christian … Continue reading →

The more I read about the history of Koinonia, the more I wonder if it has anything to teach a contemporary congregation about living in community.  As we saw in the last chapter, Koinonia really struggled with the reality of living in … Continue reading →