Writer Anne Lamott says that the most important prayers are “Thank you,” and  “Help.” There is great truth in her simple proclamation. I dare say most of us, including myself, have a hard time with these sincere prayers.  One of the most difficult things I had to learn to do …

The man in the weight room lifting weights next to me looked like he was about 85 years old, give or take a couple of years in either direction.  He was seated, lifting ten pound barbells over his head. He was fit and trim.  Like me he was doing a …

The Rev. Prof. Peter Gomes died on Mon., Feb. 28. He was 68 years old. You may remember that he lectured and preached here at Country Club Christian Church on  Jan. 20 and 21, 2007. One week after his death I am still grieving this terrible loss. Just two weeks …

My wife Julie and I love going to movies. The first movie we saw together was the original Star Wars. During our years in grad school we couldn’t afford to eat out at restaurants or attend concerts. However, we found that student discounts at movie theaters combined with matinee prices …

My old college buddy Bob Cornwall is one of the smartest guys I know.  He’s written a study guide on the book of Ephesians that would be an excellent small group resource. Bob combines the mind of a scholar and the heart of a pastor in this participatory study guide …

Have you ever noticed that some of the most popular Christmas carols deal with very serious issues? We sang the hauntingly beautiful Advent carol, O Come, O Come Emmanuel, on the first Sunday of Advent. It calls on God to put to flight “death’s deep shadows.” I suppose the somber …

Several years ago I participated in a ministers’ study group. We met once a month to hear one another’s sermons. We scheduled our presentations a month ahead of the church’s calendar. That meant November was the month to hear sermons on Advent and Christmas. I remember one particularly grey, bleak …

Last December I mentioned in a sermon that I was hoping for a White Christmas. I had never experienced one before. Gary Lezak, my favorite TV meteorologist, had been hinting that the possibility of significant snow on Christmas Day was beginning to look good. On Christmas Eve I saw Gary …

Someone asked me the other day, “What is the purpose of life?” I said, “The purpose of life is love. Period.” Being a preacher I can’t really stop at two short sentences so allow me to elaborate:

I was born in 1958, the same year that the San Francisco Giants began playing baseball in the city by the Bay.  My birthplace was Los Angeles but my dad, a long time New York Giants baseball fan, never gave a single thought about pulling for the Dodgers.   I cannot …

Sunday afternoon is usually a time for me to decompress. Julie and I like to go to lunch on The Plaza or sometimes we pick up a light lunch, grab our tennis rackets and head out to the courts for a few games. There are other times when we head …

This Sunday I begin a four part sermon series titled, “Imitatio Dei: Imitating the Compassion of God.”  Robin Myers, in his book, Saving Jesus From The Church, negatively critiques the church saying that “we have lost the essential quality of Christianity as a way of life.”  I agree.

A report came out today from the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life noting that atheists and agnostics are better educated about religion than Christians (Protestant and Catholic) in America.  I’d like to say I was surprised by this conclusion but I was not.  I am continually amazed at …