Isaiah 11: 1-10 (links validated 11/22/25a)
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If Only
There’s this quiet little phrase that sneaks around our minds more than we realize. It’s like a pop-up ad for the human heart. It shows up at work, in relationships, in prayer, even when we’re just trying to fall asleep: If only… If only my boss weren’t impossible, then I’d actually enjoy going to work. If only this family didn’t argue every Christmas, then maybe we’d finally look like those picture perfect commercials or Hallmark Channel movies. If only my friends understood me, then I wouldn’t feel like I’m so alone. We don’t say it out loud, but it’s always there. And once that little phrase gets in our bloodstream, it multiplies: If only I scored higher. If only I looked better in pictures. If only I’d stop this habit. If only I had someone in my life or someone else in my life. If only I got that attention, that affirmation, that raise, that internship… If only, if only, if only. And we start to live like the missing piece to our happiness is always one step outside our reach — one achievement, one fix, one person away...Sermon Starters (Advent 2A)(2025)
At 1:30pm on October 26, 2018, an ordinary church service began in The Hague, Netherlands. The worship service lasted until January 30, 2019. One continuous worship service for 96 days. Dutch law states that no legal action can interfere with or disrupt a religious service. Sheltered within the walls of Bethel Church was an Armenian family — the Tamrazyans — who, after living in the Netherlands for 9 years under asylum claims, after winning their case in court twice, recently had their case overturned and were set to be deported, despite credible death threats in their home country. So our siblings in Christ at Bethel Church in The Hague did what Christians are uniquely equipped to do — they started worshipping and they just…didn’t stop. At first, it was hard to line up liturgists, musicians, preachers from within the congregation. By halfway through the pastor reports, “‘Even from abroad we’ve gotten help — there have been sermons held in English, French and German…It’s quite moving to us. I often see a pastor handing over the service to another pastor of another denomination who they would ordinarily not have anything to do with, liturgically.’” The worship service only concluded when the leaders of the church received word that that the Tamrazyan family’s petition was granted and they would be allowed to safely remain in the country. Fearful reaction or retaliation, escalation didn’t keep the Tamrazyan family safe. Worship—and, more to the point, the One they worship—kept them safe. In the meantime, they learned the language and practices of hope through worship. And hope always brings reinforcements.Building on a Foundation of Hope
We all know that one of the most egregious and horrifying acts of mass murder was exposed 80 years ago this year when the Nazi regime collapsed at the end of World War II. Millions of people were sent to concentration camps, which doubled as both a source of slave labor and as gruesome death factories. One of those camps was called Ravensbrück. In that camp, as many as 1,100 women were jammed into barracks that were designed to house 240 people. The overcrowding was intentional. As planned, it led to many of the unmates being crushed or suffocated. So even so, Rochelle Saidel writes in her book, In The Jewish Women of Ravensbrück that while they suffered, those women continued to create graphic art, write and perform plays and teach each other scripture. Surprisingly, one of their most popular outlets was to share any recipes they could remember. Saidel writes, “Exhausted, cold and hungry, they would talk endlessly about the food they longed for, about family meals they had shared, and the dishes they planned to make if they survived the war. “Rebecca […] a Belgian Jew who was in Ravensbrück for 17 months, even hid away small pieces of paper and an indigo pencil, and set about recording these recipes, so lovingly retold.” Believe it or not, that was an act of great courage because having any kind of paper — even toilet paper — was labeled a crime by the Nazis, one that would be instantly punished by death...The Gifts of the Holy Spirit
Pietas that is a gift of the Holy Spirit is the love of God, who is understood by us as our father in heaven. It carries with it the recognition that not just our parents, our children, our compatriots, but in fact every human being who crosses our path—every one without exception—is the beloved child of our father in heaven. And so every one—the sinful, the annoyingly stupid, the derelict, the afflicted—is one of our own...The God of Hope
We catch a glimpse of the possible pitfalls of preaching repentance in the 2000 film Chocolat, which stars Alfred Molina as the mayor of a small French town who has taken on the responsibility for the population’s morality. He edits the young priest’s sermons with a heavy hand. Through sheer force of will, he attempts to reform an abusive alcoholic. But the most vexing object in need of reformation is an unmarried mother who has set up a chocolate shop, tempting his people during the season of Lent, a period that ought to be set aside for fasting and prayer. The mayor runs around, much like John the Baptizer, with a message of repentance for all who will listen. In the end, determined to do whatever it takes to drive out the temptation leading his people astray, he breaks into the chocolate shop to destroy the sugary goods. The mayor had a certain vision of the good life. He had a certain conception of what peace in his town should look like, and his hope was affixed to this image he himself had crafted...
Resources from 2022 to 2024
Sermon Starters (Advent 2A)(2022)
In a scene from the chilling terror film Aliens, Ripley (played by Sigourney Weaver) and her companions discover that one of their colleagues had recently tried to engineer a terrible event in order that he and his company might turn a hefty profit. This man was willing to sacrifice the lives of Ripley and a little girl if that’s what it took to be able to bring back alive one of the nightmare alien creatures they were even then battling (these, as you may recall, were the aliens with a double-set of jaws, deadly acid for blood, and with a penchant for biting people’s heads off, literally). But after discovering her colleague’s attempted betrayal, Ripley at one point says in essence, “You know, I don’t know who is worse: those aliens or us people. At least you never see them betraying each other to make a few extra bucks.” Indeed, what people do to each other is usually far worse—and far more sinister—than what can be witnessed in the animal kingdom. Animals do what they do to survive and mostly out of sheer instinct. People, on the other hand, regularly go against their better nature to destroy fellow image bearers of God, and usually just to turn a profit...Visions of Peace
December 1993, Time magazine published an article by Nancy Gibbs which told the story of Melissa Deal Forth, a filmmaker who was then living in Atlanta. In that article, Melissa described an incident that happened shortly before her husband Chris died. He was suffering from acute lymphocytic leukemia and in his last days he had to deal with intense pain and lack of sleep. One night, while Melissa was sleeping beside his hospital bed, Chris somehow managed to get himself and his IV pole out of bed and past the nurses’ station without being seen by anyone. When Melissa woke up, she panicked. Where was Chris? No one knew, so she and the nurses started searching for him frantically. Melissa found him in the chapel sitting peacefully with a stranger. She asked Chris about him later: “Who was that guy?” Chris replied, “You’re not going to believe me.” But Melissa said, “Yes, I will.” So Chris told her, “He was an angel. My guardian angel.” And Melissa did believe him. She was quoted in the article to say: “All I had to do was to look at him to know something extraordinary, something supernatural had happened.” She searched the hospital to find the man. But there was no one around, and the security guards hadn’t seen anyone come or go. “After the visit, Chris told me his prayers had been answered. I worried for a while that he thought the angel had cured his cancer. I realize now it wasn’t the cure, it was the blessing he brought with him. It was the peace of mind.” Chris died two days later. In the years since Chris’s death, Melissa says not a day has gone by when she has not thought about the angel and what he did for her husband. “Chris’s life could not be saved, but the fear and pain were taken from him,” she says. “I know what I saw, and I know it changes lives. Never, never will anyone be able to convince me that angels don’t exist.”...Subverting Symbols of Power
This morning I’d like to name someone who provided the last major piece of my conversion, chiefly involving my prayer life and overall spirituality. He’s a Franciscan priest named Richard Rohr. And the most important book of his to me has been Falling Upward: A Spirituality for the Two Halves of Life. Even bigger is a conference he gave on “A Spirituality for the Two Halves of Life” with a Catholic lay leader named Paula D’Arcy. Paula’s ministry grew from personal tragedy. In 1975, at age 27, she survived a head-on accident caused by a drunk driver swerving across the median. It took the lives of her husband, Roy, and twenty-one-month-old daughter, Sarah. Pregnant at the time, Paula survived the accident to give birth to a second daughter, Beth. In this conference on “A Spirituality for the Two Halves of Life,” she tells the story of her long journey from that horrific loss into new life. And I find it interesting that just before she relates the key moment in that journey, she pauses to tell about an interview with author Rachel Remen (author of Kitchen Table Wisdom) she heard on NPR. Dr. Remen had in her own life received a jolting diagnosis of Crohn’s disease when she was only 14. The doctor had told her she would suffer many debilitating surgeries and not live past the age of 40. She was in her 60’s when she gave the interview. But Dr. Remen had always remembered something on that day of receiving the dire diagnosis. As she walked up Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, she saw two blades of grass coming up through the pavement. Not between cracks in the pavement, mind you. But, somehow, right through the slab of cement itself. That remained for her a symbol of life’s power to break through obstacles and rise to new life. After sharing that image from Dr. Remen, Paula D’Arcy goes on to share the turning point in her journey...God's Peaceful Realm
I’m thinking of two congregations..., in neighbouring small towns, churches that sapped each other’s strength for generations. Neither one ever got big enough to do much or wanted anything to do with each other. However, when the children came together, they had a great time and said so to their parents. At last the congregations settled their rivalry and merged. They were briefly divided as to where they would worship: both factions wanted their church building. With considerable prayer they decided to build a new place out in the country that would serve not only their needs, but those of the area—and, I’m glad to say, the first thing they put in the blueprint was a food pantry. They built on farmland with views of the wide fields and quiet pines and a creek, and right away felt at home. One of the first worship services there was a funeral for an outdoorsman. Three deer came up to the big window behind the altar and looked in on the proceedings. A doe and two fawns pressed their noses to the glass. The people in the pews were startled and deeply moved...
Resources from 2019 to 2021
Straight Talk to Bring Out the Good
Not too long ago, sitting in a doctors office waiting room, frustrated that I had forgotten to bring some work with me and not getting great cell service that I could catch up on words with friends games or something mindless – I ended up picking up one of their magazines. Who knew they even made these things anymore? The assortment the office had didn’t have a lot of options. There was Oprah’s magazine with her on the cover, once again… People magazine…Entertainment weekly… the most “masculine” of the assortment was Esquire. As I flipped page by page, I came on this story about a Hollywood actor who’s name really wasn’t familiar to me (must be getting old) Shia LeBeouf. What-a Le- What? Anyway the headline writer wins. “Shia LeBeouf is ready to talk about it – the actor sets out to save his career – and his soul.” Got this priest’s attention. While there’s been a history in LeBeouf’s career of embarrassing stories surrounding his abuse of alcohol, what was the breaking point and put him in the spotlight as possibly the last straw took place in the Fall of 2017. He was filming a movie in Georgia and was out partying late one night. At 4:00 in the morning, a highly intoxicated LeBeouf stumbled upon two strangers looking for a cigarette...A Shoot from the Stump of Jesse
If you have walked alongside me for a while, you have heard me speak of her before: a woman in her 30’s who I had called on at the county jail. I brought her a Bible then, the first she had ever owned. She was sent away to complete her sentence last spring and since then we have corresponded occasionally. I have marveled to see faith blossom in her, in the most unlikely of places. Or so it seems to me. Here is part of what she wrote a few days back: I’m learning that Thanksgiving is more about being thankful for the things God has brought into your life, rather than anything traditional. Being here, I am surrounded by moms, grandmas, daughters, etc. We are all hurting in some ways. Some more than others. Hurting… longing…just plan sad… we hare here, not with our families. We should be busy making cookies, pies, yummy food, turkey, crafts, shopping, helping those in need… but again… we are here. We are in what is considered the most miserable place in the U.S. As I sit in my room and look out the window at the sky and the trees that are almost bare, I am thankful that I am so very blessed...The Perfect World Is Not A Utopian Nightmare
The first works of speculative politics, which sought to outline the ideals, values, and concerns of a “perfect society,” were arguably Plato’s Republic, and the Analects of Confucius. Yet, neither is “utopian” in any classical sense, for the very simple reason that the term “utopian” is traced to Thomas More’s landmark novel, Utopia, which was written nearly two millennia after these two other works. The commonly accepted definition of utopia is of a perfect society or community—usually imagined—which provides highly desirable living conditions and freedom from any pain or suffering for all of its citizens. More creates something new with his work, however: the new binary framework of utopia/dystopia. Through his playful satirizing of the concept of “perfect society,” he sows doubt about whether his speculative society is perfect, or actually, the exact opposite. More establishes his intent from the outset with the name he chooses: “utopia.” Hidden within the name is a truly clever pun, for the letter u in English can either match the Greek prefix “ou” (which means “no”), or “eu” (which means “good”). So, Utopia could just as easily mean “no place” as “good place.” Obviously, More took the satirical aspect of his work quite seriously, and this satire extends throughout the work, in that it’s never clear whether More is lauding this society, or simply demonstrating the radical (and potentially quite frightening, depending on your perspective) implications of the society’s core principles...The Gifts of the Holy Spirit
Pietas that is a gift, is the love of God as our Father in heaven, and it includes the recognition that every human being who crosses our path—every one without exception—is the beloved child of our Father. And so every human being—the sinful, the annoyingly stupid, the derelict, the afflicted—is one of our own.
Resources from 2016 to 2018
Come This Way!
Knud Dyby was a Dane and a member of the King’s Guard. When the Nazi’s conquered Denmark in 1940 and attempted to raise their flag over the capital, he helped take it down. He was a sailor and knew the best routes out of Copenhagen. In 1943, when the Germans ordered the round up of Danish Jews, he participated in the effort that helped over 7,000 Jews escape to Sweden. Asked, “Why did you risk your life to save total strangers?”, he said, It was our duty, it was just something one did; …there was a sense of outrageous indignation that anyone would harm their fellow compatriots, their neighbor humans – their neighbor kids, their grandmothers, members of their community, no matter what religion they espoused.How Peaceable? (Isaiah)
It's hard to resist Isaiah's "Peaceable Kingdom" (Isaiah 11:1-10) when it shows up in the lectionary readings for Advent 2A. It appears to have been reasonably easy for artists to resist that scene for centuries, though. The American artist most connected with the subject is a Quaker painter named Edward Hicks. Hicks painted the subject more than 60 times over the course of his artistic life...A Word of Hope
I heard a story recently about a church in Nebraska, an American Baptist church. The church had declined to the point where it really couldn’t stay open anymore. They only had a handful of members and the bank account was running down. But they decided to go out with a bang. They took their remaining funds and decided to hold a big barbecue for the neighborhood, kind of like a going away party. They dropped off flyers, invited all the neighbors, and the extended church family such as it was showed up for one last hurrah. It was advertised as a free barbecue for the community for anybody who wanted to come. The little group of members were surprised when quite a few of the neighbors actually showed up. Some hadn’t really noticed the church before, or hadn’t paid much attention. The church put on a nice feed, people visited and had a good time, a couple of people sang for a little entertainment segment. And some of the neighbors who came wanted to make a donation to help pay for the meal. “Oh, no, it’s free – we’re just glad you came,” church members said. But people insisted. It wasn’t just one person, it was a number of people. So they reluctantly accepted the contributions. It turned out that they made more in contributions than they had spent on the food. They decided to do it again. I mean, they wanted to spend down their remaining funds so they could close. The next week they put on another neighborhood barbecue. Even more people came. Everybody seemed to enjoy themselves and again, without asking for anything, people donated and they made even more money. And some of the neighbors asked what time the church services were. And a few showed up. And they kept doing neighborhood barbecues, and money and people kept coming, and more of them started coming to church...
Resources from 2013 to 2015
A New Shoot Has Begun to Sprout
Paula D’Arcy, one of the top spiritual teachers of our time, presented Friday at a Caregiver’s Conference at Transformations Center. Paula’s ministry grew from personal tragedy. In 1975, at age 27, she survived a head-on accident caused by a drunk driver swerving across the median. It took the lives of her husband, Roy, and twenty-one-month-old daughter, Sarah. Pregnant at the time, Paula survived the accident to give birth to a second daughter, Beth. About a year-and-a-half later, a friend arranged a meeting with well-known preacher Norman Vincent Peale. He quietly spent a half hour listening to her story, after which he said quietly, “Young woman, you’ve got a huge challenge ahead of you.” “Wow!” she thought. “No kidding. I came to hear you tell me that I have a huge task facing me? I think I know that.” But she simply asked, “What’s that?” “Discovering the purpose of your life.” Again, Paula felt the anger rise in her, her mind flooding with thoughts. But she simply said, “I lost the purpose of my life when my husband and daughter were killed.” He brought his face closer to hers, with great love clearly filling his eyes, and said, “You lost the purpose you wanted. But there is another purpose in life for you. Life has a larger purpose.” With those words, her life began to open up to new possibilities. Within several years, it was actually Norman Vincent Peele himself who asked her to speak with him to grieving people in need of healing. That’s how her life as a speaker and spiritual teacher began. Her life which had been like a stump cut-off by that drunk driver, now had a shoot of new life...A Voice Crying in the Wilderness
My old friend is the local rabbi here. I told him a few weeks ago that he is John the Baptist, 'A Voice Crying in the Wilderness'. I've known him for over fifty years. We were college room mates and he has been crying his cry for justice for the poor, for an end to war, and racial and interfaith understanding and conversations for as long as I've known him...
Resources from 2007 to 2012
The Peaceable Kingdom
Have you ever seen the series of paintings done by the late-eighteenth century painter, Edward Hicks? You may not recognize the name, but I bet you'd recognize his work. Hicks created the famous paintings bearing the title, The Peaceable Kingdom. These works have as their basis verses 1-10 from the 11th chapter of the prophet Isaiah. In his paintings, Edward Hicks tried to capture the true flavor of what Isaiah was describing. He has a lion, a leopard, a tiger, a wolf and a bear, interspersed among a cow, a goat, a sheep and several other small animals. All of the animals are wide-eyed as if in wonder that they're all together. They are gathered along with three small children, one near school-age, the other two apparently helpless toddlers. They all look happy and contented and the children have at least one hand on hitherto dangerous animals. In the background of the painting is something of equal weight and importance. Off in the distance, behind the children and animals, you can see a group of Native Americans and several Anglo "settlers." They represent William Penn, the founder of Quakerism in America, and his group as they negotiated with the Lenni-LÉnape tribe in the Great Treaty of 1682. All of these people are separated from the children and animals by a wide ravine and there is a forked tree – apparently struck by lightning in the background. There is great symbolism in Hicks' work. There is a huge chasm or ravine between where we are – where we live – and the "peaceable kingdom," about which Isaiah speaks...Advent 2A (2010)
("Woody Allen once quipped that the day may well come when the lion will lie down with the lamb, but the lamb isn't going to get much sleep! Allen was being merely cheeky. But he makes a good point. In the kind of shalom that a passage such as Isaiah 11 sketches for us, it will indeed not be enough to create a showcase display window of former foes dwelling next to each other....")
Resources from the Archives
Peaceable Righteousness
("One day God was looking down at Earth and saw all of the rascally behavior that was going on and decided to send an angel to check it out. The angel returned and delivered a report. 'Yes, it is bad on Earth. 95% are misbehaving and 5% are not'. God thought for a moment and said, 'Maybe I had better send down a second angel and get another opinion'....")Stepping into the Peaceable Kingdom
On the second Sunday in Advent the children of the Buttertown Congregational Church gather in a circle in the Fellowship Hall for their worship service before Sunday School. Their pastor has just begun talking with them about the scripture that they will be studying in their classes this morning. The day's lesson is from the book of Isaiah..."The Wolf and the Lamb at Peace
("This is one of Aesop's best known fables: A wolf meets a lamb straying from the flock. The wolf decides not to pounce on the Lamb right away but first to give the Lamb a reason why he, the Wolf, should eat him. So he says to the Lamb: "It was you who insulted me last year'...")Dream, Dream, Dream
Did you catch Barbara Walter’s interview with Michael J. Fox last Friday night? He’s the television and movie star who recently announced that he has been battling Parkinson’s disease for several years, unbeknownst to anyone but his family and doctors. With Parkinson’s, a person gradually loses control over their muscles. As yet there is no cure, though there are short term treatments which take care of certain symptoms. Eventually Parkinson’s disease is fatal. A couple things stuck out for me in that interview, aside from a mention of faith in God, which is not always an assumption in Hollywood. Michael’s wife has stuck by him through it all, also not a foregone conclusion assumption in that tinsel town. She stepped into the interview toward the end and mentioned two things she has learned from her husband. One is his ability to live in the present. The other was his optimism. Fox has a dream that there will be a cure for Parkinson’s before he reaches age 50. Having walked with a few persons who also suffered from Parkinson’s, I pray Fox’s vision is not just a pipe dream...Waiting Is
The Nazis arrested Father Delp because he was a member of a group of Germans who dared to think about what a new social order might look like after the inevitable collapse the Third Reich. The dominant order that believes itself to be the centre and the top cannot tolerate people running around who have been shaken up by a vision of some alternative reality. A reality of a God who comes when all our resources are exhausted... Father Delp noted that Isaiah, our Advent prophet, wrote his words of hope in a politically hopeless time, similar to the time of John the Baptist, similar to Germany in the early 1940's, perhaps like other times...Holy Fishes
("John's alarming forecast has the look of a scenario known to many who grew up in corn-growing country. Every fall the harvested ears went temporarily into 'corn cribs' of various shapes and sizes....")
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Sermon Starters (Advent 2A)(2019)
In the politically and militarily charged atmosphere of the Western world, it is clear that people are looking for a leader who will satisfy their needs. So, you can introduce this text by asking people what they are looking for in a leader. Are you looking for strength or compassion, toughness or tenderness, intellectual prowess or emotional intelligence? Will you be attracted by a fresh new platform, a set of world-changing promises, or an experienced leader who has demonstrated skills? Does age matter, or gender, or upbringing, or church membership? Will the person’s piety make a difference to you, or will you focus on political savvy? Are you looking for someone who will pursue your particular interests, or for someone who has a vision far beyond your own personal concerns? Will you vote for someone who has the right ideas or someone who is personally righteous? What are you looking for in a leader? Now compare that to what God sent in the Branch of Jesse.Christmas Conflict
The story is told of a king who offered a prize to the artist who would paint the best picture of peace. Artists from far and wide entered the competition. The king looked at all the paintings, but there were only two that he really liked and he had to choose between them. One was of a calm lake. The lake was a perfect mirror, and peaceful towering mountains were all around it. Overhead was a blue sky with fluffy white clouds. Everyone who saw this painting thought that it was a perfect picture of peace. The other picture had mountains too. But these were rugged and bare. Above was an angry sky. Rain was falling and lightning was flashing. Down the side of the mountain tumbled a foaming waterfall. At first glance, this painting did not look peaceful at all. But on closer inspection, behind the waterfall there was a small bush growing in a crack in the rock. In the bush a mother bird had built her nest. There, in the midst of the rush of water, sat the mother bird on her nest... perfect peace.