Sermon Blog

I shared last week that I was a glad to be called a “tree-hugger.”   Is there anyone else her who is ready to be called a “tree-hugger”?   My hope is that by Easter Sunday, everyone here will be thrilled to be called a “tree-hugger.” Last week we began our journey of exploring “Life Between The Trees.”   We considered the fact that the Bible begins with a tree and ends with a tree.   All of Scripture is found between the Tree of Life and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil in Genesis and the Tree of Life in Revelation.   We find that throughout Scripture God’s people connect with other trees between these three.   What I failed to mention, was that while the Scriptures are about Life Between The Trees, since we haven’t yet reached New Jerusalem and been restored to life below the Tree of Life, we too are on this journey, we are living Life Between The Trees ourselves. When we left last week, having observed humanity’s first encounter wit...

To call someone a tree-hugger is usually meant in a derogatory fashion, much in the same way the name “Christian” was originally a negative name placed upon those who followed The Way of Christ, and “Methodist” was a slam on those who, under John Wesley’s leadership, believed there was a certain way things needed to be done in order to continue to grow in our walk with God.   The term “tree-hugger” actually began almost 300 years ago in India as about 366 men and women clung to the trees around their village in an attempt to keep a group of trees they considered sacred from being cut down to build a new royal palace. [i]   Nowadays the term is applied toward anyone that is concerned for the environment in such a way that it might cause an inconvenience to someone’s pocketbook, pleasure, or lifestyle.   I’ve had the label placed on me a few times by those I would consider friends, sometimes in ways that I wasn’t sure if they were just joking or were truly critical o...

Yesterday was a day that annually brings out many who are overwhelmingly obsessed with death—whether it be the tradition of dressing up as zombies, fictional serial killers (like Michael Myers or Freddy Krueger), vampires, or simply the dead.  Some may have even decided to sit and watch a marathon of horror movies.  For others, obsession with death is not limited to Halloween and is not about any sort of fictional death and it is less about fascination and more about worry or anticipation—of the death of a loved one or our own death.  For those who really need help pinpointing that day when the grim reaper will come knocking on the door, there is an option on the internet at www.deathclock.com .  The deathclock site is not intended to be a forecaster of doom or magically predict when we are going to die.  If you read the information on the site, you will find that all the developer did when they set it up (14 years ago, and it hasn’t been updated in 12 year...

It’s an Atlantic Beach morning ritual.   If we are going down to the beach, I head out first.   Our family week at Atlantic Beach is the week of July 4 th .   Everyone knows how crowded the beach can get the week of the Fourth.   I will head down to the sand anytime between 7:30 and 8:30 in the morning and set up our umbrellas and chairs.   Heading out that early, there is usually plenty of space to choose from, as many folks are still lying in bed, sound asleep.   By getting out that early, we claim a small area to be able to enjoy through the day, or at least until we are ready to head back to the air conditioning of our unit.   On the other hand, if we are planning on spending the day at the pool, Anita heads down first and claims our space poolside, preferably at a table with an umbrella where I can sit and read in between trips to the water. There are a lot of things that folks seek to stake their claim on—to say, “this belongs to me, no...