Spiritual Life Coaching

Osama Where Are You?

Osama Where Are You?

On this day in 2011 Osama (whose name I will not type) was killed by US Special Forces. How has the world changed since then? Vengeance or judgment was served perhaps. A warning to terrorists was given. An evil hated filled criminal was taken from the world stage. Yet, are we safer – are we better off? The families of the victims of 9/11 surely wanted their loved ones death…

Ascension Day is Coming

Ascension Day is Coming The observance of the Feast of the Ascension – Ascension Day is May 1o, 2018. Bethany Church, where I serve will celebrate with St Paul’s Episcopal Church that evening at Bethany as a part of our exchange worship opportunities. We are inviting the whole community of LaPorte, Indiana to join us. This is an ancient “feast day” of the church.   Eusebius seems to hint at the…

THINK One of the things I’ve noticed lately is that many in the media believe that people should all think alike. If you do not think a certain way you do not fit in to the way Media-America thinks you should think. The problem stems from a lack of humility. There is a saying that goes… “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it’s thinking of yourself less.” Humility allows us to think about…

Eastern Sky On the slopes of the Kidron Valley in Israel across from the Eastern Gate of the old city are tombs, graves, crypts where thousands are buried. The understanding is that on “That Day,” the day of resurrection, the day of the Messiah’s coming or return, as we Christians understand it – the Christ will come from the East. This Sunday, once again the folks from my congregation will…

Kids Walking “And a little child shall lead them…” Do kids have a right to demand that their schools are safe? Yes. We may not all agree how that should be done and these kids may be used by adults and politicians to make a point but let’s be clear – kids everywhere have a right to expect (even demand) that they be safe in school. When you go to learn you should not have to fear. We have passed…

BEGINNINGS When I think of Jesus ministry and the beginnings of his impact on the world, I think of the Beatitudes. The practices of his followers become the fruit of the Christ Follower’s Life – this is the Church that was built on the site. It is a beautiful amphitheater like hillside where Jesus could speak to a crowd from the shore or a boat and cast a vision instead of a net. Faith built not…

Decadence Herod the great was a show off for his Roman Sponsors. He wasn’t great because he was a great man or great leader but instead he was Herod the “Great Builder.” In Caesarea he built a port, a palace, and a playground for himself and his Roman bosses. He even built a twelve mile aqueduct to bring fresh water to fill his pool (next to the Mediterranean – which evidently wasn’t good enough)…

Not Just the Hight and Mighty

Not Just the Hight and Mighty As the early days of the Jesus movement were unfolding many things were happening to convince people about Jesus as the “One.” In Acts chapter nine there is the raising of Tabitha, a woman who cared for the poor, and the gossip about Saul of Tarsus changing sides, and then there is that little aside in Acts 9:43, “And Peter stayed a long time in Joppa, living with…

What Moves Me As I stood on the beech at Tel Aviv this mid-February I could hardly imagine that I was here. A city that two decades ago was not nearly as spectacular and beautiful. Tel Aviv is a city near the historic Joppa which was part of the Biblical narrative that I know so well. It is a resort and business hub for Israel and it is where I arrived with colleagues from all over the US to…

Sharing a few images from my pilgrimage. The internet connection for uploading is poor. More to come…

When You Can’t Solve It

When You Can’t Solve It There have been a couple of instances this past week that have just stumped me in the relationship department. Both involved phones, texts, and in general the lack of person to person communication to solve relationship issues. The tendency we all have when relationships break down is we blame someone. There is a failure in relating to the other. At times it results in…

Invasion It was February 7, 1964 and the British Invasion began with the arrival of The Beatles at JFK airport in New York City. There were over 25,000 fans there to greet them. What a change began that February and it seems that things have been changing rapidly ever since. I was young and did not understand why the girls swooned so much over these long haired smart aleck Liverpool musicians.…

Bowls for What? Did you know that the term “bowl” originated from the Rose Bowl stadium? It was the site of the first post-season college football game. The Rose Bowl Stadium, in turn, takes its name and bowl-shaped design from the Yale Bowl, which became the design of many football stadiums in the United States. But there is another bowl I’d like you to think about. How about considering how…

Super Blue Blood Moon According to NASA today, Jan. 31, the full moon is special for three reasons: it’s the third in a series of “supermoons,” when the Moon is closer to Earth in its orbit — known as perigee — and about 14 percent brighter than usual. It’s also the second full moon of the month, commonly known as a “blue moon.” The super blue moon will pass through Earth’s shadow to give viewers…

State of the Union Ken Burns, in his now famous series The Civil War, pointed out that before the war typically you would hear “the Untied States are…” and after the Civil war you would hear “the United States is…” United but separate, then divided, and then reunited as one. We are still struggling for the dream of equality and opportunity. We have not learned how to define that. How do we care…

Indianapolis and Amazon Could it be? Might it be? Does it have the right infrastructure, workforce, and cool vibe to be the next HQ for Amazon? The NCAA is there, right? Will there be drones delivering packages all over the city? Will Bezos have a second, third or fourth home in Carmel? (And how do you pronounce that anyway?) The Irish betting site Paddy Power gives it 20 to 1 odds – that’s not…

160 Women How can a doctor who’s oath is “To Do No Harm,” harm so many women emotionally and physically? I an age where we seek equality and the rights of women to be displayed more clearly, we have to ask why this kind of abuse could take place for so long under the “watchful” eyes of Michigan State officials and the Olympic Gymnastics program. Dr. (I hesitate to use that title) Larry Nassar…