The greatest commandments are these: Love the LORD with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself (Mark 12:30-31). I used to think that hate was the opposite of love, but I've since learned that hate is the absence of...
We often face circumstances that don't make sense - situations that challenge both our faith and our rationality. The longer I live, the more often I find myself confronted with these types of things. One might think that this would leave me discouraged and broken,...
My husband Josiah, a cheerful, relational sort of person, loves to comment on “that good old Nakamura pessimism.” I, of course, prefer to think of myself as a realist than a pessimist… but I’ll definitely own up to being a “prepper.” Not quite to the...
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us.” – Hebrews 12:1 Picture a church running...
A few months ago as vaccines were becoming widely available, one of my biggest encouragers in the faith community I pastor, suggested I make some time to go away and rest. Pretty soon, she imagined, “we will hit the ground running.” On the one hand, she...
“Here am I Lord; send me!” Isaiah’s call, one of the lectionary readings for Trinity Sunday, captured my attention again when invited to preach on that Sunday. We will not go into the heaviness of his call – I will save you from the sermon...
Then Jesus summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to cure every disease and every sickness. ….These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: …. As you go, proclaim the good news, ‘The kingdom of heaven has...
One of the great paradoxes of our age is that while we’ve never been more connected to one another on social media, we’ve also never felt more alone. More than a third of Americans over 45 report being lonely. Feelings of isolation are especially acute with...
“The rush back to normalcy is aggressive. Give us a minute.” Unknown This morning as I began my day and clicked onto Instagram, this was the quote that greeted me. I couldn’t comment “Amen” fast enough and I wasn’t alone. Within an hour hundreds of people...