Painfully Hopeful

What lessons does the Gospel teach us about life?

A Meditation on Matthew 27:32-54 What is the Gospel? A traditional low-church protestant response to that question would be something like, “It’s about having your sins forgiven so you can go to Heaven when you die.” Which is a response with which I have huge issues. I mean, if the Gospel is just about “going to Heaven when you die” then what’s it mean for the rest of our lives? Some folks…

I am a Christian, a pastor, whose native culture is “geek.” And both the religious and geek communities of which I am a part are filled “rules lawyers.”

I have an odd existence. I understand most folks who know me would rephrase that statement as “I am odd,” which is true, but hear me out. I am a Christian, a pastor, whose native culture is “geek.” My cultural touchstones are Star Trek, Lord of the Rings, Dragonlance, Discworld, Role-Playing Games, and Star Wars. And both the religious and cultural communities of which I am part are filled…

What does the Gospel look like? It’s not a question we often think to ask ourselves, but it’s a rather important question to ponder. Because how we describe what the Gospel looks like will emerge from our expectations.

What does the Gospel look like? It’s not a question we often think to ask ourselves, but it’s a rather important question to ponder. Because how we describe what the Gospel looks like will emerge from our expectations, and that’s what we see in play in Matthew 11:2-6. John had come proclaiming to people to “Make straight the path of the Lord!” He called people to repentance so they would…

Well it’s a grey Wednesday. I’ve had coffee, but allergies are making it more hard to focus than normal. I guess it’s time for some random thoughts. It’s the allergy edition!

Well it’s a grey Wednesday. I’ve had coffee, but allergies are making it more hard to focus than normal. I guess it’s time for some random thoughts. It’s the allergy edition! People will sometimes convey to me “what a help you’ve been.” Folks, most times I just stand in the midst of a crisis feeling useless. I don’t enjoy most social media. To me the feed is depressing because I’m not as…

In the wake of my town’s recent tragedy I was asked to lead a prayer at the candlelight vigil. I was honored by the invitation, since I’d been the chaplain on-scene after the accident and wanted to continue to walk with folks in those first stages of grief. I was also cognizant that this was a non-sectarian event. I’m a Christian pastor. Folks in the crowd may not have been religious at all, much…

Sometimes the randomness is just me trying to process some things.

Writing is how I process my emotions, it always has been. So, given what the last week has been like, here are some random thoughts as I try to process things. Any time I see the or hear the light rail, I have a sharp intake of breath. My sympathetic nervous system has been hovering near “fight or flight” since Thursday. I’m shocked I can sleep at all. If you’re anxious or amped up and you…

The world seems to be intent on imploding for…reasons…and I’m pretty much done with it. I’m winding up vacation, I’ve had coffee, and I’ve not gotten enough sleep. These are random thoughts. If you want to make an IT-minded person really angry, mess with their network equipment. More and more I’m seeing a lack of hope being equated with “maturity.” This is a lie. A lack of hope isn’t mature,…

There’s a choice to make this year.

To my readers in the United States. This blog’s been fallow for a while, but I could never bring myself to shutter it. What’s happening right now is the reason why. Please understand, this year you have a choice between Dictatorship and Representative Democracy. That’s your vote. One choice keeps the American Experiment alive. This means there will be things like drag story time. THIS IS NOT A…

In times of turmoil prayers that we might find a better way forward than violence or oppression are important.

Lord, in a time of division, we come to you in prayer. For those who have sunk so deep into despair they believe violence is the only way to bring about change. Jesus, give them hope that they might see a better way. Lord, in your Mercy.Hear our Prayer. For those who are so overwhelmed by change, they embrace rage in order to feel strong. Jesus, send your spirit to grant them peace in their…

I haven’t written here in a while, but with school about to start and Bump about to begin kindergarten I’m feeling introspective. Here’s the thing, as a kid I hated school. I felt trapped, I didn’t understand the social dynamics of the playground, my brain would often wander off into its own worlds to escape the hours of anxiety which school fed me. I had good teachers, and I learned, but…

Random Thoughts 155 #thoughts #randomness

It’s Friday, my psyche is misfiring, and my brain is out wandering. These are random thoughts. The Eagles are in the Super Bowl! Wednesday began with me thinking the fund raiser I’m running this week was about to collapse. It ended with me having all three tables at near capacity. I feel better. I have a ton of TTRPG books I need to read and review. This is fun for me. I saw an interview with…

Random Thoughts 154 #thoughts #randomness

It’s Saturday, the world is full of stress, and my brain is out wandering. These are random thoughts. I got a cold two weeks before Christmas. I only got my voice back this past week. It was not fun. As a life long Philly sports fan, I have no idea how I’m supposed to act when two major teams have stellar off-seasons. Central has two fund raisers going on for our “raise the roof” campaign.…

I took a week off for vacation, but I’m back with another edition of leaky brain syndrome. These are random thoughts. WordPress makes it a pain to remove a domain name from a site. I’m a tad annoyed. The GOP couldn’t even get a simple majority for Speaker of the House with a supposed majority. This is what you get when you court people who’s only goal is chaos because you think it’ll keep you…

Random Thoughts 152 #thoughts #randomness

A special Friday random thoughts, because my brain was Swiss Cheese on Wednesday. This is what’s leaking out of my cognitive center at the moment, these are random thoughts. I was not a good week for multiple plagues to hit our household. So, of course, they did. I’m really glad I worked ahead last week, wow 1. I’m looking forward to Monday. Pink eye is no fun. 13 and 1??? Wow. My YouTube…

Random Thoughts 150 #thoughts #randomness

It’s not Wednesday, but the misfires of my brain never end. These are random thoughts. Central Baptist Church is a special group of folks. I’ve still not recovered from my time at PAXU. I have no idea how people stay all day there. Though I think it would make more sense to me if I were away at the convention and didn’t have to get back home so I didn’t feel like I was abandoning my…

Random Thoughts 149 #thoughts #randomness

The “holiday season” is upon us, and I’m already over it. So as my social anxiety erupts I will unleash the full fury of my randomness into the void. These are random thoughts. This weekend I am heading to a gaming convention in Philly. This is the first time I’ve ever going to a convention of any sort, so I’m a tad overwhelmed. I got a media pass, though, so that’s cool. I spent 45 minutes…

Random Thoughts 148 #thoughts #randomness

It’s turkey day and our feast has ended. So I thought I’d let you see some of the thoughts which spring from my food coma. These are random thoughts. This week I took the time to set up my web site for DM Tales and made it live. That means I’ll be sunsetting Painfully Hopeful as my regular blog, but I’ll pop in from time to time. It’s bitter sweet, but it’s time, and I’m proud of what I’ve…