Readings for the 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Isaiah 50:5-9a;  Mark 8:27-35
The word Gospel, as we all know, means "Good News".  And while the Gospel is always good news, sometimes that news can also be hard.  Today is one of those days.  Isaiah shares with us the path of the Suffering Servant, which Christians see as a foreshadowing of the ministry of Jesus.  But if it's a foreshadowing of the ministry of Jesus, it also foreshadows our ministry.  Jesus confirms this by looking at you and I and reminding us that if we want to follow him, we need to pick up our cross and do so.  Hard words.  Being a follower of Jesus is not for the faint of heart.  
Special thanks to Bridget Zenk for her composition and performing of our intake and outtake music.  Also thank you to all of you for continuing to listen and break open God's Word with me.  I'm humbled and honored.  Have a question or comment?  I can be reached at [email protected].  

Readings for the 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time - Isaiah 35:4-7a; Mark 7:31-37
Isaiah speaks to a people without hope and does his best to give them a vision of what hope would look like within a hopeless place.  For until they have bought into the vision, until they are able to see it, they have nothing to say, nothing to leap about.  They must first "be opened."  What was true then is also true now.  If we as individuals and we as the People of God are not people of hope and vision, we carry no authority.  We have nothing to say, nothing to share.  Just ask the rose.  
Special thanks to Bridget Zenk for her composition and performing of our intake and outtake music.  And thank you to you - for listening and sharing this podcast with others.  I continue to be humbled by your presence and trust.  Have a question or comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]

Readings for the 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time - Dt 4:1-2, 6-8;  Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23
Both Moses and Jesus (there's a couple of heavyweights for you!) call us out into the deep today.  We are not invited to stay in the shallow end of the pool by merely going through the motions of our beliefs or saying the right words.  We are called to the weightier things like justice and mercy and faith.  And how do we do that?  Not by just bringing part of ourselves to the table, but our entire self.  That's what brings life.  
Special thanks to Bridget Zenk for her composition and performing of our intake and outtake music.  And special thanks to you for listening and continuing to share this podcast with others you think would enjoy it.  I'm humbled at the places around the world that continue to listen.  Have a question or comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]

Readings for the 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time - Joshua 24:1-2a, 15-17a, 18b;  John 6:60-69
This week comes with a challenge.  Actually two.  Joshua gives one in the first reading and Jesus in the Gospel.  Which way will you go?  Whom do you choose?  And you will notice in each case, they give the grace for choices that may not serve them or ourselves well.  They respect free will that much.  Those choices still stand before us today.  Whom will we choose?  
Special thanks to Bridget Zenk for her composition and performing of our intake and outtake music.  And thank you to you for continuing to break open God's Word alongside of me.  I'm humbled and grateful.  Have a question or comment?  Feel free to send it to me at [email protected]

Readings for the 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Proverbs 9:1-6;  John 6:51-58
I know - this sounds like a JRR Tolkien novel.  Sorry, nothing so sublime here.  Just a juxtaposition between wisdom and folly that we hear in the book of Proverbs, looking at the values that each holds.  And if, perchance, we wish to partake of the food of Wisdom, just where do we find that?  Jesus lets us know in no uncertain terms in today's continuing look at the Bread of Life discourse.  
Special thanks to Bridget Zenk for her composition and performing of our intake and outtake music for this podcast.  I'm also grateful to you for your patience these past weeks when my pod was struggling to get out to all the feeds and continuing to listen.  I'm humbled.  Have a question or comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]

Readings for the 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time - 1 Kings 19:4-8; John 6:41-51
The thread between the two readings couldn't be much easier to spot.  We can't make the journey on our own.  It's too difficult.  But what it also reminds us is that we are not at the end, either.  No matter what is happening in your life, whatever difficulties and struggles you may be facing - God gives us a gentle shove (or maybe not so gentle!) and doesn't invite us to keep moving.  He orders us.  There are missions to accomplish and you need Bread to sustain you.  So get up, partake of the Bread, and keep moving.  Your life has purpose.
Special thanks to Bridget Zenk for her composition and performing of our intake and outtake music.  And thank you for continuing to listen and share this podcast with others.  I'm so humbled and grateful.  Have a question or comment?  I can be reached at [email protected].  

Readings for the 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Exodus 16:2-4, 12-15;  John 6:24-35
This weekend, we hear about how God provides for us - specifically giving us Bread from Heaven (in the form of manna and Jesus, himself).  And while there is much to explore there, I went in a different route.  I talked about how quickly the Hebrew people of both Moses's and Jesus's day could be so obtuse.  How can they forget God's presence and actions for them so quickly?  It's almost comical.  Until we realize that maybe it's not just them.
Special thanks to Bridget Zenk for her composition and performing of our intake and outtake music.  And thank you to you for continuing to listen and share this podcast with those you believe would enjoy it.  I'm incredibly humbled.  Have a question or comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]

Readings for the 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time - 2 Kings 4:42-44;  John 6:1-15
God desires for you and I to be fed.  It's as simple as that.  Whether it is manna in the desert, food during a plague or 5,000 people sitting on a grassy field, God desires not that we remain empty and in need, but rather that we are satiated.  But there is really only one thing that feeds us, right?  The Word of God.  Jesus says that himself when Satan tempts Him in the desert.  "Humanity does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes forth from the mouth of God."  Yet Jesus is wise enough to know that if our bellies are not filled, our minds cannot be reached.  And so he does both.  The question before us this week is - are we Philip or are we Andrew in this process?
Special thanks to Bridget Zenk for her creating and performing of our intake and outtake music.  And thank you to you for continuing to listen and share this podcast with others.  I'm humbled and grateful.  Have a question or comment?  Feel free to reach out at [email protected]

Readings for the 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Jeremiah 23:1-6;  Mark 6:30-34
In hearing Jeremiah play the role of prophet, we hear him both rage against the unjust shepherds of the day, and remind the people that they are loved and seen and heard.  In our Gospel, Jesus longs for rest, but chooses the hard work of being present to the people.  So which is it?  Are we sheep or shepherds?  Do we rage against injustice or nurture the wounds of our trauma?  Are we in need of healing or are we healers?  The answer, of course, is yes.
Special thanks to Bridget Zenk for her composition and performing of our intake and outtake music.  And I'm so grateful for all of you - taking the time to break open God's Word with me.  I'm humbled.  And I'm hopeful that this one actually makes its way into your podcast feeds.  Here's to hope...

Readings for the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Am 7:12-15;  Mark 6:7-13
In this weekend's readings, we hear about the call and struggles of the prophet Amos, as well as Jesus sending out the Twelve.  Which, of course, begs the question for us - Am I called to go out, too?  If so, where and how?  And how can I be a prophet when I'm just an ordinary person in an ordinary job in an ordinary location?  Today we explore all of those questions.  It's time to step out of the shadow, my friends.  It's no longer time to simply have faith in Jesus.  Now it's time to step out with the faith of Jesus.  
Special thanks to Bridget Zenk for her composition and performing of our intake and outtake music.  And thanks to all of you - for listening and your encouragement to continue with this podcast.  If you like it, please take a moment and rate it (it's how others can find it, too!) or share it with a friend.  Have a question or comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]