Month: October 2019

Celebrate with Me!

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Today I am celebrating 15 years of ordained ministry.

On this day 15 years ago, I was surrounded by family and friends and colleagues in ministry in one of the churches that raised me. After years of hard work, education, and training, we gathered together to worship and give thanks to God for my call to ministry. While I planned the service (including music and Scripture I love), the service was a time of worship with a focus on God.

In the fifteen years since that day, I have served three churches in three different states and now am serving as a hospice chaplain. I have led confirmation retreats, stayed up too late during youth lock-ins, laughed with children, preached countless sermons, served communion while reminding each person present that each one is welcome at the table and a beloved child of God, taught many Sunday School and youth group lessons, listened to so many stories and kept confidences, been invited into people’s homes where I was treated like family, and also participated in more than a few meetings. How do you sum up 15 years? I have been privileged to watch children grow into youth and now into adults. I have cried with you when loved ones have died. I have baptized children and youth and officiated wedding and funerals. I have been inspired by the faith I have witnessed in people of faith of all ages.

And despite that long list, so many things and events went unmentioned. I could talk for hours about mission trips or games of sardines or most memorable memorial services. Instead, I will thank you for whatever part you have played in this journey I have been on for these past fifteen years. Thank you!

God, I am grateful for my call to ordained ministry. It has been a challenge and a joy to serve so many different people over these past fifteen years. Thank you for the strength to continue on and to follow where you lead. Thank you for the surprises that meet me each day. Continue to be with those you love who have been part of my journey. With gratitude for all that has happened that has made me who I am today, I look forward to the next fifteen years knowing you, Gracious God, will be sustaining and equipping me. Amen.

Praying for Sleep

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For as long as I can remember, I have been a great sleeper. Not just good, a great sleeper. I would fall asleep quickly when the lights went out and sleep until morning. I could take a nap on the weekend and still sleep at night. I could sleep in the car, on a train, or an airplane. Sleeping came easy to me.
Now I find myself in a season of life where this is not the norm for me anymore. I am up in the middle of the night most nights lately. Sometimes only for a short while and other nights for hours. While I hope this is a passing phase, I am missing my identity as a great sleeper. 


In the middle of the night while I am awake, I alternate between trying to go back to sleep and attempting to be productive. I read. I write. I pray. I worry about things outside my control. I ponder how to fix major and minor problems. I get up for a drink of water or cup of tea. And I hope for the time when a full night of sleep will become a regular occurrence again.


God of all hours, you hear our prayers no matter what time they come to you. Bring precious sleep to all in need of it. Soothe our worries and calm our fears. Fill us with the peace that passes all understanding. Hold us in the palm of your hand until rest returns and when morning comes may we wake feeling refreshed and ready for the new day. Amen.

Prayer of Confession (Luke 17: 11-19)

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Call to Confession-Like the ten with leprosy, let us cry out to Jesus to notice us and have mercy on us.

Prayer of Confession (in unison)-Jesus, we need you today. We need you to see us. We need you to recognize the real us. You know our faults and our failures. You know the things we did that we wish we had not done and the things we neglected to do that may have lightened the load for another. See us as we are. And then, Jesus, we cry out to you “have mercy on us”. As we pray for your mercy, hear now the silent confessions of our own hearts. (time of silent prayer). Jesus, you hear us and you see us. You hear what we are willing to say out loud and the prayers that we hold in our hearts to afraid to let anyone else know. You see and hear and you love us still. Have mercy on us, Loving Savior. Amen.

Words of Assurance-Like the ones who were healed, we have a choice. We can return to Jesus and say thank you for the gift we have been given or not. The good news I share with you is this-you are a beloved child of God who is seen and heard and forgiven. The mercy of Jesus has been poured out upon you. And now, it is your time to decide how you will respond to that gift. Using the example of the one leper who returned, you too can lead a life steeped in thanksgiving and gratitude for God’s love and forgiveness in your life.

Queen of Tarts (from David’s Teas)

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One recent morning I needed a cup of tea to jump start my morning. It seemed a good morning to try a new tea. I made myself a cup of Organic Queen of Tarts. What a fun new tea. A strong fruity smell woke me up quickly and made me smile. Next I enjoyed the delicious fruit-filled taste. Yum.

I love this tea. It is fun and fruity and a great way to get one’s morning started. So, try something new it just might brighten your day!