Readings for the Feast of Christ the King - Daniel 7:13-14;  John 18:33b-37
This weekend, we celebrate the Feast of our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe.  But it would be a tragedy if we only reflect upon this once a year.  Who is Lord of our life today, this very moment?  It's not an exercise in guilt, but one of choice and it's one we have to make every day.  And just what kind of a kingdom did this King point to anyway?
Special thanks to Bridget Zenk for her composing and performing of our intake and outtake music.  And thank you for continuing to listen and share this podcast with others who you think would benefit from it.  I'm humbled.  Have a question or comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]

Readings for the 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time - Daniel 12:1-3; Mark 13:24-32
As we draw nearer to the end of the Liturgical Year, our readings darken and we hear readings of The End of Time.  And that is w/ purpose.  Our liturgical calendar is rooted in time and time, indeed, is linear - moving toward an end point.  But there's more.  Time is also cyclical.  As individual human beings and as all things created by God, we experience ends within our lives, multiple times.  And those feelings can upend us, leaving us in darkness and feeling alone and unmoored.  Our readings today remind us that there is hope, even there, if we have but eyes to see.
Special thanks to Bridget Zenk for her composition and performing of our intake and outtake music.  And thank you to all of you for continuing to listen and share this podcast.  I'm so incredibly humbled.  Have a question or comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]  

Readings for the 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time - 1 Kings 17:10-16;  Mark 12:38-44
The heroes of our readings today are two women who literally have nothing.  Nothing, that is, but a faith that you and I would be wise to give everything we have to gain.  We all know that we are called to be women and men of faith.  But just what does that mean?  It's not belief.  It's even more than trust.  It's having the courage to enter darkness and trust that our God waits for us on the other side.  
Special thanks to Bridget Zenk for her composition and performing of our intake and outtake music.  And thank you to all of you for listening to this podcast and sharing it with others.  I'm so incredibly humbled.  Have a question or a comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]

Readings for the 31st Sunday in Ordinary Time - Deuteronomy 6:2-6;  Mark 12:28b-34
Sometimes it's easy to feel overwhelmed.  Scripture is so thick, there are so many books and sometimes the answers can even seem to contradict one another.  How do we know who or what to listen to?  Today, we hear readings of summation.  Call it our Cliff Notes edition.  Moses summarizes the Law.  And then Jesus summarizes the Gospels.  They give us the One Thing that grounds us and around which we are to revolve.  And throw in a City Slickers reference for good measure because, why not?
Special thanks to Bridget Zenk for her composition and performing of our intake and outtake music.  And thank you to all of you for continuing to listen and recommend the podcast.  I'm truly humbled.  Have a question or comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]

Readings for the 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Jeremiah 31:7-9;  Mark 10:46-52
At first glance, this Gospel reading looks like just another story where Jesus heals a blind man.  But this is not just any old healing.  We'd all be blessed to be as blind as Bartimaeus.  
Special thanks to Bridget Zenk for her composition and performing of our intake and outtake music.  And thank you to all of you for continuing to listen and share this podcast with others.  I'm incredibly humbled.  Have a question or comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]

Readings for the 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Isaiah 53:10-11;  Mark 10:35-45
Martin Luther once invited us all to "Sin boldly!"  He must have been thinking about James and John in today's reading.  They are bold - make no mistake about it.  And they are 180 degrees off-base in their assumptions, which were the foundation of their request.  They sought glory.  They had no idea what glory was.  And so Jesus made sure to set not only the two of them, but all of the disciples, straight on what glory consisted of - which meant tipping everything that they thought they knew upside down.  As if that wouldn't be enough for a podcast, let's also do a quick unpack of the theory of the atonement.  That's a light subject, no?  Perhaps that's why this one went a bit long...
Special thanks to Bridget Zenk for her composition and performing of our intake and outtake music.  And thank you to you for your continued listening and sharing of this podcast.  I'm so grateful and humbled.  Have a question or comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]

Readings for the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Wisdom 7:7-11;  Mark 10:17-30
This weekend, we get to have a mirror held up to us.  The good news is - it's not entirely a bad thing.  There are parts of this mirror that actually have us looking good.  But other parts, not so much.  The best part?  Jesus looks at us in love and names these things, inviting us out of them and into relationship with Him.  But the question is - what are we willing to give up for that relationship.  The author of Wisdom would tell us that nothing is more important - not power or riches or health or even light itself.  And while that sounds good, when the rubber meets the road, what are we willing to set aside?  We are the only ones that can answer that question.
Special thanks to Bridget Zenk for her composition and performing of our intake and outtake music.  And thank you to all of you for breaking open God's Word alongside of me.  I'm honored and humbled.  Have a question or a comment?  Send it my way at [email protected].

Readings for the 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Genesis 2:18-24;  Mark 10:2-16
This one is a bit more lengthy, but how does one talk about sin quickly?  So often when we think about sin, we think about something much smaller than the reality.  We think of the outer showings but pay little attention to the inner reality.  The readings this weekend don't give us that option.  We may think that they are only speaking to us about marriage and divorce.  I think that they are about something much more than that.  
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 along with me - and thanks for sharing this podcast with others around the globe.  I'm beyond humbled.  Have a question or comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]

Readings for the 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Numbers 11:25-29;  Mark 9:38-43, 45, 47-48
It's so easy to get caught up in titles and degrees and membership.  I'll listen to this person because they carry the right credentials but not someone without them.  I'll follow this person because they belong to the same group as I do, but not that person who doesn't.  It's so common we don't even notice it.  And it's been going on for a long, long time - at least so our readings show us today.  Thankfully Moses and Jesus cut through the blindness.  The Spirit of God is radically free and She will go wherever She will go.  And far from upsetting us - this is something to be celebrated.  And you know what?  Let's throw in two quotes from Abraham Lincoln just for good measure. 
Special thanks to Bridget Zenk for her composition and performing of our intake and outtake music.  And thank you to all of you listeners, for continuing to break open God's Word alongside of me and for sharing it with others.  I'm humbled.  Have a question or comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]

Readings for the 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Wisdom 2:12, 17-20;  Mark 9:30-37
Jesus picks up on the same topic that he ended with last week - if we are to be a follower of His, it leads to Jerusalem and the cross.  This is the second time of three times that Jesus will make these statements to his disciples.  Why so often?  Because it goes against everything our culture and those voices inside of our heads tell us to do.  We are always striving to do better than others, to looks smarter, to be more successful.  But do we ever stop to ask ourselves why?  What is motivating us to act in such a way?  What are we protecting?  Because as Jesus reminds us (for the second time), it's not the Kingdom of God that is asking us to live in such a manner. 
Special thanks to Bridget Zenk for her composition and performing of our intake and outtake music.  And thank you to all of you for continuing to listen and share this podcast with others.  I'm incredibly humbled.  Do you have a question or comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]