meeting with a bishop

Bishop Laura Ahrens met with me and the two wardens at the Diocesan offices because she is visiting Trinity on Feb. 18.

I have had issues with bishops before, but not with Laura.

We have a fine relationship based on mutual respect.

I enjoy being with her.

Our Jr. Warden had probing questions about the Episcopal Church and the conflict in Gaza.

But mostly we just talked about Trinity and what she should expect when she comes.

I also saw my old friend, H.D., who works at the Diocese.

We go way back and have shared joy and sadness with each other several times.

Not a bad bishop visit at all.

 

my handwriting and my 7 year old granddaughter

 My handwriting has degenerated so badly that I can't even read it.

I make my grocery list by printing and even then I sometimes can't read it!

If it wasn't for my key board I'd be cut off from the world by my writing.

Eleanor is 7--my daughter and son-in-law's girl.

Bern talks with her on zoom for an hour every M-W-F and sometimes other days.

I poke my head in and say hi from time to time.

But it is her and Bern's time.

Today, Bern had her phone turned up (maybe she too is losing her hearing) and Eleanor sang for 45 of the 60 minutes.

Her dolls were having a talent show.

She sings well (my singing is just below my handwriting) but our two kids got Bern's musical ability and passed it on to their kids.

Hearing Eleanor singing down the hall gives me great joy and hope for the future.

No church this Sunday

Steve, who fills in for me on my off Sunday and does Morning Prayer has Covid.

So I was going to go up to Milton tomorrow.

But heavy weather is predicted tomorrow, especially in the North West Corner of CT where Milton is.

So church is cancelled.

It was going to be interesting since I didn't have a sermon. I usually write them by Thursday.

I was going to 'wing it' and see how it went.

But no need now.

And tomorrow is the NFL semi-finals.

Go CHIEFS!!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Empty Thursday

 So, he who will not be named, won in New Hampshire but not by much.

And a Fox News survey (of all people) found that 35% of Republicans will not vote for him in the general election.

Amazing and bad news for what's-his-name.

Biden was not on the ballot, but write-ins gave him as many votes as the former president with a dozen people 'on the ballot'.

I'm feeling better but not relieved.

I'm still worried about democracy and this crazy orange guy who wants to be a dictator.

Pray for our country.

Please.

Fly me to the moon

Some mornings I wake up with a song in my head.

This morning it was "fly me to the moon".

It was written by Bart Howard in 1954 and recorded by  Frank Sinatra.

I know that because I looked it up on my computer.

 What I don't know is why I woke up with it zooming around in my mind....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This Week's sermon

 

God Still Calls Us

        Last week’s sermon was titled “God calls us; are we listening?”

        This week’s sermon is called “God still calls us….”

        I have some more to say about God’s call to us.

        Let’s begin with the collect of the day. Listen: “Give us grace, O Lord, to answer readily the call of our Savior Jesus Christ and proclaim to all people the Good News of his salvation….”

        We need God’s ‘grace’ to answer God’s call to us.

        The ability to answer is also a gift of God—a gift we need to respond.

        Pray always for that gift.

        God called to Jonah to go and preach to the people of Nineveh to change their ways. Jonah doesn’t do what God asks him so God sends a whale to swallow him and spit him up on the shore of Nineveh.

        Sometimes God can bring us kicking and screaming to do what he calls us to do. Stay away from whales!

        Then, what we read today tells how the people of Nineveh listen to Jonah and change their ways. Then Jonah sits on a hill and ponders why God brought him halfway around the world to condemn the Ninevites and then saves them. God makes a Castor Oil tree to give Jonah shade then sends a worm to kill the tree.

        Jonah’s story ends under the ruined tree still pondering.

        Now I think ‘pondering’ is good—but there is no way we can ever understand the ways of God.

        Then, in todays Psalm, we heard these wondrous words: “For God alone my soul in silence waits; truly my hope is in him.”

        That’s a verse to ponder. Our lives are so full of noise, how can we make our souls ‘in silence wait’ for God’s Call?

        Then in Mark’s Gospel today, Jesus calls his first disciples—Simon and Andrew, James and John. They leave their lives behind to follow him and fish for people.

        We’re reading the Gospel of Luke on Wednesday’s and got to the point where Jesus is calling all people he meets. One man says, “I have to go bury my father first” and Jesus says, “Let the dead bury the dead, follow me and I will give you life.”

        It sounds harsh of him, but God’s call sometimes gives us a difficult choice.

        Believe you me, I tried every way I could think of to avoid the priesthood. And here I am today!

        Today is Trinity’s Annual Meeting. We will evaluate how we responded to God last year and try to silence our souls to see where he is calling us, as individuals and as a congregation to follow him This year. Listen well, beloved,    

Listen in the silence of your soul.

Shalom and Amen.

 

 

So What's-His-Name wins Iowa

We knew he would.

And he is odds-on to get the nomination--even if he's in jail.

Can someone convicted of a felony run for President?

I hope we'll find out.

I'd rather have a younger Democrat running--but Biden is only 5 years older than me and I expect to be around for four years.

We shall see.

If What's-His-Name regains the White House, Democracy, as we know it is over.

We can't let that happen.

Go, old Joe! Go!