How appropriate that this text is assigned to the season of Lent. During this season, we embark on a journey of faith, following Jesus to the cross. Our Old Testament lection for this second Sunday in Lent is the paradigmatic journey of faith – the summons to Abram to leave (relinquish) his homeland and his family to journey with God to a land of promise and newness of life. For context, it is important to emphasize just how settled Abram was in his old life. Abram’s place of origin was Ur...

Connected with the First Reading from Isaiah 11:1-10 that speaks of a shoot growing out of the “stock of Jesse,” King David’s father, in this passage we read a Psalm “of Solomon,” King David’s son. It’s not clear whether Solomon is the author of the Psalm or the one who who is promised. I’m inclined towards the latter. This is Solomon’s typical problem; he believes he is more important than he actually is. When we look at 2 Samuel 7 we read the words of YHWH spoken to David through the...

PREACH THE WORD From the time that our girls were very small with their too-big backpacks and their lunch bags dangling from small fists, we have reminded them as they walked out of our door, ‘Remember who you are, whose you are, and what you stand for.’ And then, as a follow-up, I would call, “And if you are confused about any of the answers, we will talk about it when you get home.” As parents, there is always this core desire to make sure our children are well-grounded. We know that as...