“I waited patiently for the Lord; he inclined to me and heard my cry, He drew me up from the desolate pit, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear, and put their trust in the Lord. Happy are those who make the Lord their trust, who do not turn to the proud, to those who go astray after false gods.” - Psalm 40:1-4 The real-life title of this reflection should ha

And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” — From Matthew 3:13-17 What a beautiful and meaningful Advent and Christmas season we had at St. Mark’s. As always, I am grateful for the many people who make our services and gathering times possible. As we enter the new year, we are in a good position to imagine what staffing will allow us to continue the good work of last year. Many of you have asked if we will hire another assisting

Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” From Matthew 1:18-25 This Sunday, we

“When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?” From Matthew 11:2-11 The woman made an appointment to come see me at St. Peter and St. Paul early in my ministry. She wanted to discuss some troubles she was having at work and how she imagined her future. She worked in a bank and had a lot of interaction with the public. She had been struggling with co-workers

“Bear fruit worthy of repentance. Do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our ancestor’; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham.” — From Matthew 3:1-12 We know we are fully into the Advent season when we encounter the endearing cry to attention from John the Baptist, who calls those who seek him in the wilderness “you brood of vipers.” To say John doesn’t suffer fools gladly is an understatement. He refuses complacency o

Almighty God, give us grace to cast away the works of darkness, and put on the armor of light, now in the time of this mortal life in which your Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the living and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal; through him who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.  Amen. — Collect for the First Sunday of Advent

“When they came to the place that is called The Skull, they crucified Jesus there with the criminals, one on his right and one on his left. Then Jesus said, "Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing." — From Luke 23:33-43 This last Sunday of Pentecost is always a bit jarring. Ending the liturgical year with the crucifixion right before we prepare for the birth of Jesus catches our attention in its stark imagery compared with the arrival of a baby born in

Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning: Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them, that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life, which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen .  - Collect for Proper 28C I really like the collect appointed for this Sunday. The Rev. Ann Fraser used it a few week

“Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me under the shadow of your wings” Psalm 17:8 This line from Psalm 17 is one of my favorites. One of the main reasons is that we often chant it at the end of evening prayer at my beloved retreat center. St. Augustine said, “He who sings prays twice.” And I do find that scripture, when set to music, finds a deeper place of resonance in my soul. There is something about a line of song that calls me back to a place of centeredness and allo

It was such a gift to gather this fall and reflect together on our common life.  Rooted in Christ, Living Generously  has given us a rich starting point for imagining the role faith has in our daily lives. We cannot be generous people if we don’t have a foundation that is deep, and as Christians we claim that rootedness in Jesus Christ. What I’ve loved about our conversations is that our connections at St. Mark’s are both deep and wide. We share a love of community life, whet

Jesus told his disciples a parable about their need to pray always and not to lose heart. He said, "In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor had respect for people. In that city there was a widow who kept coming to him and saying, `Grant me justice against my opponent.' For a while he refused; but later he said to himself, `Though I have no fear of God and no respect for anyone, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will grant her justice, so that

Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and...

Almighty and everlasting God, you are always more ready to hear than we to pray, and to give more than we either desire or deserve: Pour...

“But Abraham said, `Child, remember that during your lifetime you received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things; but...

Jesus said to the disciples, "There was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was squandering his...

“All the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to Jesus. And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying,...

The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: "Come, go down to the potter's house, and there I will let you hear my words." So I went...

“Lord of all power and might, the author and giver of all good things: Graft in our hearts the love of your Name; increase in us true...

“Now Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath. And just then there appeared a woman with a spirit that had crippled her...

“Almighty God, you have given your only Son to be for us a sacrifice for sin, and also an example of godly life: Give us grace to receive...