Worship is a fundamental aspect of Christian life, connecting with God, expressing faith, and fostering a sense of community. This article delves into the elements that make worship effective, drawing from the teachings of the Gospel of John and the principles of worship in the church. It emphasizes the need to believe in Jesus Christ, the importance of communal and simple worship, and the transformation of individuals through scripture, spirit, and sacraments.

We are learning that God does speak to each of us in a multitude of ways.

A Bowl of Fruity Pebbles. Saturday Morning cartoons sometimes had accessorizing cereals, and one of the most deliciously disgusting is Fruity Pebbles. These colorful rice smushings have been sugared and marketed with great success for over a generation. You can read more about them here, watch how they are made here, and find out where to buy them here (as if you don't know). I thought about Fruity Pebbles yesterday after Mark’s gospel account of Jesus’ temptation. Temptation is by definition tempting, and it presents itself to us in a variety of colorful, sweet, immediate ways. And, unlike Jesus’ successful refusal to turn stones into bread, temptation’s victory over us can leave us feeling as though we’ve just eaten a bowl full of rocks.

The wordiest Psalm in the Book of Psalms (and the longest chapter in the Bible) is a song about the Word.

Do you feel like you're in the wilderness? Have you completely lost your bearings? Are you in the ocean depths—overwhelmed and under pressure? Are you floating in an open sky—feeling disconnected from everyone and everything?

Hanging pictures is best done by a team of two. One person shifts the wire on the back of the picture to the left or right until it finds a magical (mythical) midpoint where the picture will hang evenly.

"While fantastic acting and direction can help evoke emotion in an audience, nothing sets the tone in a film quite like its soundtrack. But while scores and songs are usually carefully chosen to match the dramatic arc in a film, there are times when a scene and accompanying song seem entirely mismatched. This dissonance between song and action has the power to make the scene even more poignant, emotional, or in many cases, more terrifying."

The prophet Amos is shown a string in our passage for Sunday. More exactly, a plumb line. God shows him this instrument used by skilled builders; held above and weighted below. A simple tool with powerful diagnostic potential. There is much more to the prophet Amos and the book that collects his ministry-long span of messages and visions. You can see a brief overview of the book here that may help put his message in context.

I remember a conversation between my

What do you do with the fifth goat? Between the Services Sunday: