In the Valley of the Shadow
Mark Schloneger
“Jesus wept.” Jesus wept. That’s it. “Jesus wept” is the verse that I’d blurt out when I was asked by my childhood Sunday school teachers to share scripture that I had memorized. A little smart-alecky, I know, a sad part of my checkered history. And to you children’s Sunday school teachers who are watching, all […]
The Next Great Adventure
Joanne Gallardo
(Sermon includes Apocryphal text, Wisdom 3:1-9) Last year I preached an All Soul’s day sermon after the actual All Souls day, so I was inclined to do the same this year. Around this time of year, not just because of the liturgical season, people (myself included) start to think about family and loved ones. We […]
Loss
Dan Schrock
In February 2016, Laura Kelly Fanucci gave birth to identical twin daughters, named Margaret and Abigail. Both babies were premature, both had twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome, and both died in their parents’ arms within two days. Laura, the mother, was well-acquainted with loss and grief long before the death of her twin daughters. When she was […]
Remembering . . . and Encountering
Dan Schrock
About 25 years ago, my mother died. Her death affected me so much that for several months afterward, I was disoriented. I had trouble mentally focusing on things and spent more time than usual staring out the window, daydreaming, thinking about her, trying to imagine what life would be like without her. I also had […]
Love in Action
Marilyn Rudy-Froese
“In the days when the judges ruled….” Right away, this little book of Ruth begins with a whole lot of trouble. In the days when the judges ruled, there was a lot of trouble in the land of Israel. After Joshua died, another generation grew up after him, who did not know the Lord or […]