Words of Welcome

Leviticus 25:1-12 When Douglas MacArthur retreated from the Philippines in the face of the Japanese invasion early in World War II, he boldly declared: “I shall return.”  And he did!  While we’re not facing invasion as a congregation, and though I’m not fleeing for my life, this phrase popped into my mind when I was thinking about what to say in my final sermon before leaving on my sabbatical.  Now, I could have gone with another famous quote; one that was uttered by Arnold Schwarzenegger in the movie The Terminator:   “I’ll be back!”  Either one works, because even though I’m saying good-bye – I’ll be back before you know it! So, by the end of this coming week we will be entering this season of rest and renewal that we call a sabbatical.   Now, I must admit that it’s not going to be  easy for me to do this, because I’m not very good at resting.  John McCauslin is already worried about this! Now, I do take a day off most weeks and I take my vacations – as some of you

Genesis 12:1-9 Back in the 1970s millions of Americans watched a family’s story unfold in a TV mini-series that went by the title Roots .  Maybe you watched it.  It told the story of a young African man who was taken into slavery by the name of Kunte Kinte and his descendants.  It was and remains a powerful story, one that encouraged many other families to trace their own family origins.  After that people seemed to really get into their genealogies.  I know that some of you are hard at work tracing your own family histories.  Perhaps your interest in your roots was inspired by Alex Haley’s family history.   In just two weeks, I’ll be heading out on my three-month sabbatical.  Back when we were working on a grant proposal to fund the sabbatical I had to come up with a theme.  So,  I chose the theme – “Reclaiming a Founding Vision.”  Over the past year, even after we didn’t get the grant, I’ve been reworking this theme.  So as I go out on my sabbath journey, I plan to

Hosea 11:1-11 Children will try the patience of their parents.  It’s simply inevitable.  Even Jesus caused his parents a few headaches – that is if Luke’s account of the family visit to Jerusalem can be believed.  I know that some people think their children are perfect, but this idea must be a figment of the imagination.  We might wish for the perfect child, but to this point no such child has emerged.   Because I’m both parent and child, I’ve had the opportunity to see the parent/child relationship from both sides.  I’ve tried the patience of my parents, and had my patience tried by my son. If you were to ask my mother, she would tell you that I was a wonderful child growing up.  But she would also be lying, because I wasn’t always a wonderful child.  Yes, if she were honest, she could tell you that I tried her patience on many an occasion. In a scene reminiscent of Luke’s story of Jesus getting left behind in Jerusalem, I was accidently left me behind in th