Dis-illusioned: Post-Election Thoughts
Given the results of the election, we now know this: America wants Trump. Not just the convoluted Electoral College, but the majority of voting Americans have decided this. When I sit down with folks undergoing a faith crisis – often one that has been unfolding for years – a…
Seven Directions Prayer
If you’re looking for a prayer to stay grounded this election and post-election season, consider the seven directions prayer. It has similarities with how we did our Call to Worship on Sunday – facing each of the four cardinal directions, calling to mind the gifts of each. Like the new…
Essential Work/ers
Every year the Transitions small group ends with an evening mini-retreat. After a shared meal, we meet in the sanctuary for a ritual of passage that marks the end/fading/composting of a life stage for each participant, and the beginning/emerging/growing of the next. Every thirty years or so we get a…
Decade/s Review
These last two weeks I’ve been part of gatherings looking back on the life of two congregations over the past decade/s. The first was our annual CMC office staff retreat. Gwen, Mark, Mim, and I have been working together for ten years, but with Gwen’s upcoming retirement, this was her…
Frame-storming
Earlier this year the Harvard Business Review published an essay arguing that companies are too quick to problem-solve. A better approach, the authors suggest, is to step back and first look at the problem from various angles. Doing so can lead to a better set of questions, or a redefinition of the…
A Mentor Mindset
I recently picked up a copy of David Yeager’s book, 10 to 25: The Science of Motivating Young People after reading a review that piqued my interest. The sub-sub-title of the book is “A Groundbreaking Approach to Leading the Next Generation–And Making Your Own Life Easier.” I’m fairly skeptical of…
Ways To Read
Ways to read the Bible, that is. Now that we’re several weeks into the Narrative Lectionary, again working our way through the story of Scripture, I’m mindful of the many ways to read this astounding and confounding collection of writings we call the Bible. Here are two, ever-present for me:…
Ten Highlights
Ten Highlights I’m still glowing a bit from the very generous, meaningful, and tasty celebration you all threw for me a few weeks ago to mark my tenth year anniversary with CMC. Every job will have its ups and downs, but it truly has been an overwhelmingly positive experience for…
Chirps of Change
Today’s blog is written by Bethany Davey, now serving as a CMC pastoral intern. I know it’s fall—or, nearly fall—when I hear crickets chirping in the daytime hours. Their song, alongside the smell of musty prairie grasses and the subtle lessening of the sun’s summer intensity alert my body that…
Worship Preview
These next three weeks of worship will complete a summer series, honor an anniversary, and set a trajectory that will take us all the way into Advent. Here is a preview of these Sundays: August 25 | Accessibility and Inclusivity, Communion I can’t think of a more liturgically rich way…