Jesus holding my hand

He Will Hold Me Fast

He Will Hold Me Fast He will hold me fast is the title of an old hymn, copyrighted in 1906 by Charles Alexander, music director for Evangelist R.A. Torrey.  The music was composed by Robert Harkness, a pianist who took words provided…

Proclaiming Hope for Hopeless People

Proclaiming Hope for Hopeless People We have been looking at how to preach in a pandemic.  Here's the first in the series of posts.  In this post we will consider that proclaiming hope for hopeless people as they face the trauma of this time…

A Crisis of Faith

A Crisis of Faith One of the people I came to appreciate in my life is named Brennan Manning.  His best-known book is Ragamuffin Gospel, in which he makes the point that we all appear as ragamuffins before God.  In other words, we are…
if God loves me book

If God Loves Me, Why

If God Loves Me Why? If God loves me why can’t I get my locker open?  That’s the title of a book that was published many years ago, but the title has stuck with me.  It brings up the practical and repeating question of Why?   When things…

A Theology of Suffering

A Theology of Suffering I'm continuing a series of posts on how to preach in a pandemic.  The first of these posts is here.  During World War II all of Europe went through great suffering as a result of the war.  Christians  found that…
question does God care?

When It Seems God Doesn't Care

When It Seems That God Doesn't Care In the last post we saw that people need a sense of security, that God is in control, during a pandemic.  But what about when it seems that God doesn't care about my pain?  Beyond security, however, people…

The Need for Security in a Pandemic

The Need for Security in a Pandemic In the last post we began looking at how to preach in a pandemic.  Today we look at this fact: there is a need for security in a pandemic for most people.  Let me explain. Why Conservative Churches Are…

Preaching in a Pandemic

Preaching in a Pandemic In this post I begin a series on recommendations on how to go about preaching in a pandemic such as we are experiencing right now.  When we, as human beings, engage in things that cause us loss, it can easily become…
image of orchestra director

The Sermon is a Symphony

The Sermon is a Symphony In Shakespeare's play, Hamlet, there is a scene in which the main character, Hamlet, is walking down the corridor of the palace reading.  Someone asked him, as he walked, what he was reading.  His response was,…

Walk The Talk

Walk the Talk In the past few posts we have been looking at organizing your sermon well, with the hearer in mind.  There is more to say in that regard, but an article I read recently sets me off on a different path.  Let's think for a few…