The first time I met Marlin, I was at Westhaven Children’s Home, outside of Montego Bay, in Jamaica. Westhaven is an orphanage for children with developmental disabilities. Our group was there to provide love and care for the kids, and to work on some physical projects at the orphanage to improve their quality of life. Because of … More When Your Heart Breaks
The people were angry. They were. The Jewish people had been robbed of their land, and their dignity. They were subjects to the Romans, their rights had been taken away and the Roman soldiers were regularly mistreating, beating and even killing those who broke any kind of law or rule. Emotions were high, and the people were angry. Enter … More Something Different
Two summers ago, I took a trip into the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness with our youngest son, Sam. On our last day, we were paddling back to the outfitter’s when we took the portage from Alpine Lake into Seagull Lake. Seagull is what Boundary Waters veterans call “big water.” It’s a really big lake to paddle … More When God Whispers in Your Ear
We do it without even thinking about it. Somewhere between 12 and 16 times a minute, our chest contracts and then expands, and our lungs fill with air. The lungs extract oxygen, which our body uses to pump our blood, move our limbs, and power our thoughts. We do this over and over, from birth, … More Breath of Life
In his great book on adaptive leadership, “Canoeing the Mountains,” Tod Bolsinger tells the story of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. In August of 1805, Captain Meriwether Lewis stood at the freshwater spring that was the source of the Missouri River. It had been a long and painful journey. He and his company had been … More Way Off the Map
Dear friends, We are all well aware of the spread of the COVID-19 virus. The leadership team at Trinity has been paying close attention to what is going on, and we have been in contact with medical experts and the county health workers. We have developed a congregational response plan with three stages. In the … More Trinity’s Response to the COVID-19 Virus
The power of water is an amazing thing to witness. Certainly, we saw that earlier this week. The heavy rains Thursday and the flooding between here and Rochester were a stark reminder of what water can do. At an earlier stage of my life, I spent a lot of time on the water, in canoes. … More Nope. Never Again.
A number of years ago, I was in New Orleans for a continuing education conference. I was in the hotel lobby, deep in conversation with a colleague after the evening session when we witnessed an interesting exchange. A man who looked to be homeless shuffled into the lobby and approached the front desk. I don’t … More A Turn in the Story
This Lent, we are focusing our Wednesday, mid-week Lenten worship services on the word “Scarred.” God created the world and declared it to be “good.” But sin and brokenness entered the world. In our confession, we acknowledge that “we are captive to sin, and cannot free ourselves…” Sin shows up in broken relationships: Our relationship … More Scarred
Every year, around 6 weeks before Easter, the Christian church celebrates Ash Wednesday. This year, Ash Wednesday falls on March 6. Tomorrow. You will see people walking around with black smudges on their foreheads. It is an ancient tradition that the church practices to mark the beginning of the season of Lent. Lent is a season when Christians … More Ashes on our Forehead
Test Driving Theology 