The Day Will Come When You Won’t Be Here. That’s the title of a episode of a Netflix series. That’s also our stark reality. YOLO appears in often unexpected places, reminding us that You Only Live Once. The Day Will Come When You Won’t Be Here. “Remember you are dust, and to the dust you…

“Getting it wrong is your greatest opportunity to getting it right the next time,” says Helen Rothberg. She’s the author of The Perfect Mix: Everything I Know About Leadership I Learned as a Bartender. At the table in the corner writing a letter is our old friend St. Paul. He’s the author of most our…

Was having breakfast with an almost-life-long-friend from a different tradition, now active in a United Methodist Church. We were talking about Holy Communion. My friend mentioned that college was the first time he’d shared in that Sacrament, and that it was one of the most moving and memorable moments of his life. His church background…

“I want the whole Christ for my Savior, the whole Bible for my book,  the whole church for my fellowship,  and the whole world for my mission field.” — John Wesley Mr. Wesley is credited with starting what is now The United Methodist Church. We’re sometimes accused of being inclusive. Some critics even use that…

Every time you cross my mind, I break out in exclamations of thanks to God. — Philippians 1:3, The Message version That’s probably not the way you learned that verse. Neither did I. You probably learned a more sedate version. So did I. But this one, from Gene Peterson’s version of the Bible called The…

“I sometimes wonder if I am not a Pharisee. “I find it hard not to think of my faith as a possession. “I catch myself thinking of my church, my sanctuary, my pew, my  beliefs.” — Thomas Frank, Disciplines 2017, page 335 Hooooboy. It’s awkward when someone else says your confession for you. And he sure expressed what I need…

If I’m gonna live this dream, I gotta leave Joshua Tree, sings High South. Jamey Garner is in that group. If you and I are Facebook friends (and if we’re not, just ask: I’m simply Joe Scheets there), you’ve seen his picture and been able to follow their career. I was his pastor when he was in…

From a Hebrew Prayer Book — Though our mouths were full of song as the sea, and our tongues of exultation as the multitude of its waves, and our lips of praise as the wide-extended firmament; though our eyes shone with light like the sun and the moon, and our hands were spread forth like…

Approaching Thanksgiving Day and maybe more family time than usual? It might help to remember that there are some for whom these Elton John lyrics are reality — You may not believe it But I don’t believe in miracles anymore And when I think about it I don’t believe I ever did for sure All the…

Elijah Slifer is a young adult who’s active in a church I served. Back in May we were talking about basic theological understandings and perspectives, and it’s with his gracious permission that I share this with you. He said he’s neither a hardcore conservative nor a flaming liberal. We kicked this around a bit, then…