This month marks the beginning of how we as a church will be looking toward the next year of ministry in 2024.

Forgiveness is vital for our own healing whether or not it leads to reconciliation.

When we get at how we have hurt one another and when we don't avoid the emotional stakes of a conflict, we can transform even painful conflict into an opportunity for healing and true relationship.

The question I am exploring this week is simple but complicated: is suffering in and of itself redemptive, or can suffering be an invitation that invites us to the liberation and transformation God desires for us?

The very first chapter of Exodus can be easy to skip if you want to get into the interesting stuff about plagues and Passover and the Isrealites crossing the Red Sea to escape the Pharoah in Egypt. But by doing so we miss out on this really awesome story of heroism by two women in the very first chapter: Shiprah and Puah.

One of the things that keeps my faith alive as a Christian is that our scriptures are not all convenient and perfect in their telling. Just like how complicated it is simply to be human, the stories of our faith are also complicated!

Peter was inches from the finish line. He did something miraculous, but all of that fell apart when he was distracted by the winds.

This week I witnessed what felt like another miracle at Lakewood UMC.

We are more than victorious. And while we can't solve all of the problems sin creates, we can do the small things that are ours to do.

It seems to me that what we consider weeds are also a human created category. And like anything created by us throughout history, it is and should be subject to change.

If there is one thing that the worlds ways are teaching us it is that people who think or believe differently than us are dangerous. And friends, this kind of thinking might unravel all of us if we do not remember and find peace with the fact that we are called to a welcome that welcomes Jesus and the one who sent him.

Compassionate. Inclusive. Risk-taking. Resilient. There are so many ways to describe the abundance in our congregation!

A turn of phrase is often used when we ask someone to put something complicated in "laymen's terms." This presumes that the word "lay" means something less than "clergy."

As ordained clergy, I have learned over and over in my life just how completely wrong that is!

If you are curious about what our broader denomination is up to, or want to understand more about how our connection works, let me know! I love talking about this stuff. Just email me: ben@lumc.net.

The Great Commission isn't just a command to follow, it is a responsibility we have been given that we must take seriously.

I hope we never shy away from speaking our own belief publicly: that we are a church who openly and proud celebrates the Queer community, their leadership, their voice, their presence. And that we can live into a courage that extends radical hospitality to our neighbors.

The combination of urgency, tenacity, and creativity led to a miracle. The shared effort of friends unleashed the power of Jesus not only to forgive sin, but also to heal wounds. Imagine what our shared efforts as a church could lead to!

It says in scripture that God tested the Isrealites, but I don't think the test was only in the experience of eating just enough manna and quail or following specific instructions. I think God's test for the Isrealites was for them to live as if they believed God was with them, was watching over them, and that, even in the hardest times of their wilderness wandering, they were not alone.

What does your name mean to you?

I hope that the name or title or designation you have feels right. And I hope it is something that allows you room to fully live into who you are--who God made you to be and who God is calling you to become.

And if you don't feel like you are fully living into it yet, take heart--maybe you are like Peter and just need some time to grow.

What if that is our tendency: to go through life walking right alongside Jesus but not recognizing him being among us day after day. Maybe Jesus meets us through the eyes of someone in need, or in the face of someone who has been estranged from us or needs our forgiveness. God forbid, what if Jesus meets us in people whom we plain just don't like?