Words of Welcome

Luke 4:1-13 We’re tempted to take shortcuts, especially when we feel pressured, vulnerable and weak. The LA Times recently ran a story about the prevalence and the acceptability of cheating among high school athletes. In fact, the survey suggests that coaches are encouraging their student-athletes to cheat and cut corners academically to gain the advantage. When we’re confronted with the possibility of sure success, it’s often easy to rationalize our choices. We say to ourselves, no one’s getting hurt and I’m just helping myself out. You see how easy it is? Luke tells the story of the day Jesus encountered the Tempter. He asks the question: Who is Jesus and what’s his calling? If he’s the Son of God, then what does that mean? The story picks up as Jesus is ending a forty-day fast in the desert, and the tempter puts the question to him – why not take a short cut and achieve your dreams? If only all our choices were easy ones – black and white, two equally powerful but strikingly differe

Exodus 34:29-35; Luke 9:28-36 I'm not a big mountain climber, but in my youth I climbed a few. Once I climbed Diamond Peak in Oregon. Standing more than 9000 feet above sea level, it wasn’t Everest, but it still wasn’t an easy hike for a thirteen-year-old Boy Scout. When I got to the top, I found a view that was breathtaking. I could see for miles in every direction, from the high plains of central Oregon in the east to the fertile Willamette Valley to the West. Looking north and south I could see the whole spine of the Cascade range punctuated by high peaks. Far below was Crescent Lake, the site of our Scout camp and off in the other direction was Odell Lake, both crystal clear and blue. There’s something truly awe inspiring about great mountains; they remind us of our own smallness and the grandeur of creation. When we stand on a mountain top, we also might find ourselves drawn into the presence of God. GOING TO THE MOUNTAIN From the earliest times we’ve gone to the mountains lo

Proverbs 8:22-31 When you see the Grand Canyon, a Hawaiian sunset, or Crater Lake for the first time, I doubt that science questions will pop into your mind. You’ll probably say something like, "wow, isn’t that beautiful!" And then, after taking in the sights for a bit and likely taking a few pictures, you may finally stop to think about how these things of beauty came to be. The first reaction is aesthetic and even spiritual; the second is scientific. Science deals with the how and faith deals with the wow! Those two different reactions suggest that there’s more than one way to look at things. Neither one is right nor wrong, they’re just different. The scientific angle is extremely important, and it should be honored. But it doesn’t always tell the whole story. That’s where faith comes in. They’re not competitors, they’re complements. For centuries now people have been arguing about the relationship of religion and science. Some people believe they’re opposed to each other,

Luke 6:17-26 Today is Super Bowl Sunday, the biggest day in football and in advertising. Americans must choose, Bears versus Colts. Payton Manning or Rex Grossman. Lovie Smith or Tony Dungie. The nation will stop for a few hours and pay attention only to football and to advertisements. At the end of the day, someone will give thanks to Jesus for helping him achieve his dream! I can make this prediction with some degree of confidence, because it happens every year. For some reason, God seems especially interested in who wins the Super Bowl. While God is caught up in deciding the outcome of the Super Bowl, there are other questions begging for an answer. Like the AIDS epidemic wreaking havoc on sub-Saharan Africa. Genocide in Darfur, war in Iraq, or the aftermath of Katrina. Poverty in our country and around the world. Global warming and the extinction of species. Corporations giving CEO’s multimillion dollar bonuses, severance packages, and retirement gifts, even while they lay off tho