Awash in bad news about the world around us, we are proclaiming good news – God’s Good News – as our Lenten journey to the Cross moves forward. Here’s what our Sunday Scripture lessons have declared already: God’s good news is so good that it catches us by surprise! And God’s good news is greatContinue reading “More Than Enough”
Author Archives: First Presbyterian Church
Great Forgiveness, Great Love
This morning’s Lenten Good News from the Gospel of Luke fundamentally connects the loving of God and the loving of neighbor: You simply can’t have one without the other. The Word that God has spoken begins with a member of the self-righteous religious elite inviting Jesus over for supper. Customarily, such a host would greetContinue reading “Great Forgiveness, Great Love”
And There’s Still More
In the early Church, Lent was the season when fresh converts to faith prepared for baptism on Easter Sunday. Their lesson plans throughout those 40 days arose from the cornerstone of Christianity – Jesus Christ: his life and ministry, his death and resurrection; his widespread hospitality and his care for the vulnerable; his nourishment forContinue reading “And There’s Still More”
Coming Soon
“Coming soon!” The phrase, though timeworn, feels timeless in generating excitement. “See, I am coming soon,” begins this morning’s Scripture lesson. “Let everyone who is thirsty come,” echoes from its ending. Come, Lord Jesus! “Surely I am coming soon. Amen!” That’s a haunting truth to consider – maybe not so much because you doubt thatContinue reading “Coming Soon”
Until Then
Among Minnesota’s supposed 10,000 lakes is the one named Itasca. Its glacially formed, finger-like geography pokes the forested wilderness in rough form of a lowercase “H.” Sandwiched between the city of Bemidji and reservation of the White Earth Nation, the otherwise-ordinary Lake Itasca holds a grand distinction: headwater of the mighty Mississippi River. At itsContinue reading “Until Then”
All Things New
When you’re flying at 30,000 feet, you look out the jetliner window and catch the general contours of the earth below. The details are lost to altitude, but you still get the lay of the land – a general sense of where you are. Even if the navigational aids are small, you nonetheless sense thatContinue reading “All Things New”
Bitter Then Sweet
Perhaps it’s a human symptom of troubled times: Hearts and minds more and more wrapped in thoughts and feelings of nostalgia – sentimental and often-romanticized yearning for the past. When you’re nostalgic, the fond pleasure of precious memory mixes with twinges of sadness for times, places, or people that cannot be recovered. When the termContinue reading “Bitter Then Sweet”
Unsealing the Scroll
If you are-now or ever-were a little kid, do you ever get so excited about telling a story that your words tumble from your mouth like an endless string of run-on sentences? And every one of them begins with “and”?! “And I was walking home from school, and I saw this big fire truck, andContinue reading “Unsealing the Scroll”
He Drew the Line
If you asked me to rank my favorite Church holidays, last week’s Feast of Epiphany would be toward the top of my list. Part of my love for Epiphany is its excuse to keep the holiday lights burning just a little longer. The VanderVelden household has never been too quick to take down the ChristmasContinue reading “He Drew the Line”
A Rejoicing Heart
To celebrate my 40th birthday, Julie and I did what we always do to mark such occasions: enjoying a nice meal at a cozy supper club. With our little Mary (at the time our only child) left behind in the good care of a trusted babysitter, “me and the missus” were jazzed to be footlooseContinue reading “A Rejoicing Heart”