I'll Have The Curry.

In the Foundations of Faith: Christian Spiritual Practices Sunday school class, we’ve been exploring different spiritual practices that help us connect to God.   Throughout the 12 weeks of the class, we will explore solitude, lectio divina, honoring the body, centering prayer, experiencing beauty, the Examen, discernment, worship, and sabbath.   With each different practice, we will engage a different way to experience God with the expectation that one or two of the practices will inevitably fit for each of us. (I know I am absolutely terrible at sabbath…which may mean God is calling me to investigate how I can incorporate sabbath into my spiritual life). For some of us, these spiritual practices are brand new.  They might feel uncomfortable because they require us to step outside of how we’ve always experienced God. For others, these practices are already part of our daily connection to God. Regardless of our experience, we’ve found a safe space to ponder what it means...

  In the rear view there are winding roads  Wide as far as the eye can see Clear sky, smooth asphalt, no speed limit Nothing slowing us down The top is down Wind whipping our hair into a tangle Pure joy and exhilaration Always toward a promise of …something  In the rear view there are winding roads  Twisted and jagged across root exposed earth Threatening punctured tires and bloody heels Forcing us off our desired paths Questioning our journey, we never stopped.  Too much was at stake. Curiosity kept us moving forward  Always toward a promise of…something Seekers of truth, Of the promises of God when she says I am with you,  Look how far you’ve come Down roads of sorrow, of pain, of uncertainty You didn’t know where you were going,  Yet you followed anyways Always toward a promise of…something.  Our pathway to the manger  is illuminated now, bright star exposing the thorns and temptations that slow us do...

As a young teenager, I was deeply shaped by what it meant to have a   “personal relationship with Jesus.” I heard it talked about all the time, in every sermon and every Bible study, in every youth group message. I learned that the way to know God was through a “quiet time” where one devoted themself to studying scripture, searching for the sin in their life, asking for forgiveness, and repeating daily. This pattern was engrained in my mind and became the only allowable way to know Jesus. There wasn’t a lot of room for creativity in discovering God because anything outside of the prescription felt sacrilegious, or had potential to lead me astray into something “evil.”   It’s interesting the deep impact those teachings had on me in those formative years. While seminary stretched my imagination for encountering God, I still found myself stuck in a loop of guilt for not doing a daily quiet time as I had learned in my primitive Christian formation in youth group. I clearly remem...

A Sermon for the people of Central Presbyterian Church of Austin and the First Baptist Church of Austin July 21 + July 28 Hope in Strange Places 2 Samuel 11:1-15 Bathsheba  by Loui Jover I bought a running watch at the start of the pandemic. A fancy Garmin watch equipped with a heart rate monitor, step counter, blood oxygen detector, a convenient timer that comes in handy when I’m cooking in the kitchen, and of course, GPS to track the distance of my runs. It was way more watch than I needed but it gave me helpful information on my wrist as I set out on solo runs in my neighborhood-and-beyond to escape the monotony of pandemic daily life. A well intentioned purchase and the cause of my perpetual, unattractive watch tan, this watch also came with a feature I didn't want- the ability to receive smart phone notifications the second they arrived.   Being THAT connected to my phone was the reason I opted NOT to get the very hip Apple Watch. I was jaded by people who, in mid convers...

I’m a big fan of iced oat milk lavender lattes. They have a hold on me during the summer.   And during the winter, I switch to extra hot oat milk lavender lattes (because I like my coffee to burn my mouth when I drink it. Yes, I know, it’s weird.)   I think about lattes in the middle of the day, wishing it was the appropriate time for caffeine.   At bed, I am excited to go to sleep because morning will be soon… and you know what that means- lavender latte time.   Anytime I drive on North Lamar, my Subaru’s steering wheel automatically turns into the parking lot in the search for a delicious   (and affordable) caffeinated beverage.   Today was no different. I headed into the cafe to order my usual latte. I didn’t need any groceries on this trip so I quickly walked towards the same door I entered, trying not to get distracted by the promotions near the checkout. On my way out, I noticed a young mom juggling her freshly made smoothie and her two precious lit...