I am writing from the 223rd General Assembly in St. Louis, Missouri.  Here’s a photo of our representatives, in their first plenary session:  Young Adult Advisory Delegate Sophia Alecci (who has become one of the leaders among the YAADs), Ruling Elder Commissioner...

This week there are so many pivot points in the histories of everything: from the global geopolitical drama in the West and in the Korean peninsula, to the start of the 223rd General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (USA) and the start of the tenure of Diane...

We had our 2nd Annual All-Presbytery Day of Service this last Saturday, and it was enlightening in many ways. We had a short business meeting which was highlighted by the presence of Mission Co-Workers Ryan and Alethia White, who pastor the Farsi-speaking Iranian...

This Sunday is not only Memorial Day weekend, it is the first of many "ordinary" Sundays in the season after Pentecost. This season lasts from Pentecost to the end of the liturgical year, right before Advent-so that's around 27 weeks. It's always struck me as a little...

For some reason, it felt like Pentecost came very early this year. Yesterday I heard a pastor friend saying that things are so busy there wasn't time to really think about Pentecost, and it reminded me how sometimes we try to fit God into our very-busy lives (even...

Some of you may know that I argued long and hard with God before becoming ordained. Among the countless (and I mean countless) reasons I should not be a pastor was my intense stage fright. Even during seminary, my voice would shake if the Scripture passage I was to...

A couple of weeks ago, I gave a summary of the April 21 Presbytery meeting, and I mentioned the approach now being taken by the Vision and Strategy Team (VST). As a new committee, VST felt the need to develop a stronger shared understanding of their role in the life...

I don't know if many of you know the story of Naboth's vineyard (1 Kings 21); I can't remember ever hearing a sermon on it in any Presbyterian church. It is the scriptural basis for Queen Liliuokalani's appeal to the American people to restore the Kingdom of Hawaii....

This weekend we had a Presbytery meeting at Claremont Presbyterian Church, and we thank them for their warm welcome. The meeting did not have big surprises or conflicts, but we confirmed several transitions that have been discussed: --we officially approved the sale...