A Positively Poetic Priest

I want you to picture in your mind our local drug dealer. Every town has one or two and by the way the local news talks about the drug crises we have more than one or two in Franklin. I want you to try to picture our local drug dealer, wandering down Buffalo Street, thinking about his business, when he stops and looks up at St. John's doors. For some reason, he decides to walk in and say a prayer. He says, Hey God, to you, I'm messed up. Forgive me, will ya? Also in the church at that time is one of our long time faithful regulars, praying. This long time member is giving thanks for something going really well in their life. Then Jesus walks in with a bunch of people and points to the two people praying. He says that the drug dealer is in better standing with God at that moment than the long time faithful member. What? Its a confusing and shocking and harsh parable. What can Jesus possibly mean? Interestingly, this parable only...

23 October 2016 Proper 25C There are a lot of sayings out there about practice, especially in the realm of sports. "Practice, practice, practice." "If you don't practice, you don't deserve to win." "If you think practice is boring, try sitting on the bench." "Don't practice until you get it right, practice until you can't get it wrong." "You play the way you practice." Then there are the longer ones written on gym posters and websites.  "Be patient, the results will speak for themselves." You have heard these kinds of sayings shouted out on sports fields, you have seen these sayings on tee shirts, you have said these things to yourself in the midst of challenges. These are normal parts of daily life, especially for anyone involved in any athletic endeavor. But I've never heard any of these applied to life in the church. Yet, there are many things that we do in the community of the church that re...