Sermon Checklist Planning a sermon has a lot of moving parts. Especially for beginners, when you get caught up in the sermon itself, it’s easy to forget logistical details. Here’s a checklist that may help, so you don’t find yourself tripping into the…
Read MoreOrdinary Time V – Prayers for Ferguson
Prayers for #Ferguson – Tuesday Yesterday I posted a sweet message about my child’s back-to-school day. Today I’m posting a prayer for the children of #Ferguson who were scheduled to begin classes today, August 19, 2014. Schools will remain closed this…
Read MoreOrdinary Time IV – God is (Still) Waiting
God Is (Still) Waiting More Baptist churches are calling women as pastors, but the gender gap remains large. This coming Sunday, Watts Street Baptist Church, Durham, N.C., will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first ordination of a woman in…
Read MoreOrdinary Time III – Closing the Mentoring Gap
Closing the Mentoring Gap A major key to closing the gender gap in ministry is mentoring to help women improve skills and knowledge and introduce them to networks that lead to jobs. This week more than 2,000 Baptists, who openly…
Read MoreOrdinary Time II – Celebrating Pam Durso
Celebrating Pam Durso* The world of Baptist Women in Ministry was waiting for you. And you, my dear friend, you have been a gift. You continue to be a gift to Baptists, to historians, to women in ministry, and to…
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Ordinary Time I – Deep Peace
Deep Peace This prayer has wound its way in and through my life for at least 15 years now. I saw it in print, prayed it in a steady breath prayer, and offered it as a blessing many times before I…
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Eastertide XI ~ Pastoral Imagination
Learning Pastoral Imagination Project My work and vocation take me in a lot of directions: writing, teaching, coaching, and consulting. Topping my list of responsibilities, however, is my research as co-director of the first ever, national, ecumenical and longitudinal study of ministry.…
Read MoreEastertide X
GAs Gone Bad Over the next few days a group of women who study Baptists and gender will gather. It will be our second gathering. The actual group is about three times the number of these pictured. Six of us will…
Read MoreEastertide IX
“Baptist Preacher Girl” An Evening of Entertainment National Association of Baptist Professors of Religion May 19, 2014 Readers’ Theatre By Kryn Freehling-Burton with Susan Shaw In a denomination that historically has centered on soul competency, what happens when women hear…
Read MoreEastertide VIII
Closing the Gap Despite progress, the gender gap among Baptist pastors remains persistent. In recent weeks two prominent progressive Baptist churches moved to call well-known Baptist pastors. Notably in both calls the pastors are women. Riverside Church in New York…
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Eastertide VII – Practicing Resurrection
Practicing Resurrection F ~ Food and Faith Saturday morning I was up early with plans to go to a hot yoga class. My husband was planning to catch a swarm of bees (a story for another post). He told me that his friend…
Read MoreEastertide VI
May 3, 2014 Tweets about #FoodAndFaith @ecampbellreed “Food and Faith: A Matter of Health and Wholeness” Conversations with Norman Wirzba, Ellen Davis and Wendell Berry St. George’s Episcopal Church, Nashville, Tennessee Advice for young farmers? Be careful, don’t give up…
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Eastertide V
Practicing Resurrection E is for Every Body Rule # 3 for practicing resurrection: engage your whole body. We are equipped with a kind of knowing that is not mainly with our minds or cognitive abilities. We also know the world through…
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Eastertide IV
Practicing Resurrection D As the Sister preached tonight at St. Benedict’s Vigil service, she reflected on the Gospel reading for tomorrow. She reminded me and about about 60 other worshipers that everyone, like Jesus’ disciple Thomas, has periods of doubt about the resurrection. Amen, Sister.…
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Eastertide III
Practicing Resurrection C Let’s start simply. Rule number one for practicing resurrection: Look for signs of new life. Resurrection is not merely about the cycles of life. However, it is about renewing life. Right now the cycles of life are bursting forth everywhere. But…
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Eastertide II
Practicing Resurrection B Last week I sent off final proofs on some devotions for Upper Room’s Disciplines 2015. My chosen theme for the week following Easter next year is practicing resurrection. I won’t be sharing what I wrote for Upper Room here…
Read MoreEastertide I
Practicing Resurrection A Eastertide is the season of the church year that we observe from Easter Sunday until Pentecost Sunday. In the coming 50 days, I’ll be unfolding a new series called “Practicing Resurrection.” I wrote about Wendell Berry’s injunction to “practice resurrection” last summer. As…
Read MoreLent XXXIX
Lenten Lights MM ~ Silent Saturday Early this morning in my car headlines on the radio jumped out to me for the long and deep silences in each stories. . . prolonged waiting for grieved families, the crushing depths of the ocean, the ignorance of damage…
Read MoreLent XXXVIII
Lenten Lights LL ~ Good Friday The morning started with a chase after neighborhood crosses. Here’s some of what I found. The morning was grey and clouds hung on the verge of tears. …
Read MoreLent XXXVII
Lenten Lights KK ~ Maundy Thursday My congregation actually has a “Maundy Wednesday” service – for each of the last ten years. Maybe more. We gather for our usual midweek meal, which is not all that usual, since we take turns…
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