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Lectionary Blog

Lectionary blog: God’s kingdom includes all

Lectionary blog for Aug. 20 Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost Isaiah 56:1, 6-8; Psalm 67; Romans 11:1-2a, 29-32; Matthew 15: (10-20) 21-28 It’s disconcerting to read about Jesus behaving in what…

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Lectionary Blog

Lectionary blog: Sinking with Peter

Lectionary blog for Aug. 13 Tenth Sunday after Pentecost 1 Kings 19:9-18; Psalm 85:8-13; Romans 10:5-15; Matthew 14:22-33 About 20 years ago, the WWJD—“What would Jesus do?”—bracelets were all the…

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Lectionary Blog

Lectionary blog: ‘And he had compassion’

Lectionary blog for Aug. 6 Ninth Sunday after Pentecost Isaiah 55:1-5; Psalm 145:8-9, 14-21; Romans 9:1-5; Matthew 14:13-21 The first line of our Gospel lesson is “when Jesus heard this.” “This”…

Lectionary blog: The kingdom of heaven is like …
Lectionary Blog

Lectionary blog: The kingdom of heaven is like …

Lectionary blog for July 30 Eighth Sunday after Pentecost 1 Kings 3:5-12, Psalm 119:129-136; Romans 8:26-39; Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52 Understanding what Jesus is getting at in all these short parables…

Lectionary blog: The bad runs through us
Lectionary Blog

Lectionary blog: The bad runs through us

Lectionary blog for July 23 Seventh Sunday after Pentecost Isaiah 44:6-8, Psalm 86:11-17, Romans 8:12-25; Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43 My late father-in-law liked to tell the story of a man who…

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Lectionary Blog

Lectionary blog: Sowing the seed

Lectionary blog for July 16 Sixth Sunday after Pentecost Isaiah 55:10-13; Psalm 65:9-13; Romans 8:1-11; Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23 My Aunt Mildred was a farmer. She lived her whole life on…

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Lectionary Blog

Lectionary blog: Prisoners of hope

Lectionary blog for July 9 Fifth Sunday after Pentecost Zechariah 9:9-12; Psalm 145:8-14; Romans 7:15-25a; Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30 “Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope …” (Zechariah 9:12) I…

Lectionary blog: It’s not about us
Lectionary Blog

Lectionary blog: It’s not about us

Lectionary blog for July 2 Fourth Sunday after Pentecost Genesis 22:1-4; Jeremiah 28:5-9; Psalm 13, Psalm 89:1-4, 15-18; Romans 6:12-23; Matthew 10:40-42 Some things ought to be obvious, but, apparently,…

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Lectionary Blog

Lectionary blog: Getting ‘right with God’

Lectionary blog for June 25 Third Sunday after Pentecost Jeremiah 20:7-13; Psalm 69:7-10, 16-18; Romans 6:1b-11; Matthew 10:24-39 For if we have been united with him in a death like…

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Lectionary Blog

Lectionary blog: Facing up to our deadly sins

Lectionary blog for June 18 Second Sunday after Pentecost Exodus 19:2-8a; Psalm 100; Romans 5:1-8; Matthew 9:35-10:8 “But God proves his love for us in that while we still were…

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Lectionary Blog

Lectionary blog: What difference does it make?

Lectionary blog for June 11 Holy Trinity Genesis 1:1-2:4a; Psalm 8; 2 Corinthians 13:11-13; Matthew 28:16-20 When I was little, I was a bit of a know-it-all. I was a…

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Lectionary Blog

Lectionary blog: The miracle of hearing

Lectionary blog for June 4 Pentecost Sunday Acts 2:1-21; Psalm 104:24-34; 1 Corinthians 12:3-13; John 20:19-23 In his book When I Relax I Feel Guilty, wilderness ministry pioneer and motivational…