First, a concern: The Gospels often paint a picture of “the Jews” as enemies of God, this story of the man born blind included. We must take care in our interpretation and proclamation of this text not to implicate those…
“I have food to eat that you do not know about.” When the disciples come upon Jesus at Jacob’s well and see him speaking to a woman, they do not ask him why he might do such a thing: Instead,…
Seems I have lots of thoughts about this week readings "Get up and go" לֶךְ־לְךָ In the twelfth chapter of Genesis, God tells Abram to get up and go “to the land I will show you,” and promises…
For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. Jesus speaks these words in the context of his encounter with Nicodemus,…
The Camp Mount Luther community gathered on Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026, to celebrate a remarkable milestone: 25 years of leadership by Executive Director Chad Hershberger. Nearly 100 members of the camp family came together to mark the anniversary (officially Jan. 1) with gratitude,…
The Rev. Dr. Mitri Raheb in his book, Faith in the Face of Empire (Diyar Publisher, 2014), refers to the temptation of Christ in the wilderness as an example of the lure of power exercised in military and economic might. When the…
This Lent, I decided to read our lectionary alongside the Lord’s Prayer, specifically using Martin Luther’s Small Catechism to enlighten the readings. As I started this exercise, I was surprised how I could use each part of the prayer sequentially…
The season of Lent invites us into a time of repentance, reminding us of our call through baptism to “live lives worthy of repentance.” Thus, we begin the season with the reminders of those disciplines that help us to repent—almsgiving,…
It was a wonderful, jam-packed youth Winterfest in early January. Nine from our synod spent time together in large and small groups discussing this year’s theme, Better Together. They worshipped together with 250 others and hung out as a community…
For those who use a lectionary book for the readings this week, you might miss the first few words in the gospel text. Omitted in my lectionary, these words make a clear connection to the reading from Exodus that might…