Women who prepared the way for Jesus
Rahab acts by faith Joshua 2:1-21; 6:22-25; Matthew 1:5; Hebrews 11:29-31; James 2:23-26. Beyond the narrative in Joshua and Jesus’ genealogy, Rahab is mentioned two other times in Scripture. Both times her name appears in a list of heroes of the faith, and it seems like a miracle that this woman, a prostitute with only…
Mary’s story: Our inheritance
Mary’s story comes to us this year, maybe in a new way, at a time when we welcome some really good news. We could use an encouraging, empowering and heart-warming story right now. Year after year in pageant, poetry and hymnody we rehearse Mary’s good news story and the angel’s message: “Fear not!” I confess…
Resting in the shadow of hope
Recently, I read a book that unsettled my sense of hope. In her memoir I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness, Austin Channing Brown, a racial-justice leader, writes about growing up Black, Christian and female, and her journey to self-worth while navigating America’s racial divide. In the final chapter, “Standing in…
Proclaiming Immanuel
I was eight years old. That year, the Sunday school Christmas pageant was going to be a no-fuss event. All the kids were going to stand up in a line, each of us reciting a memorized verse from Luke’s Christmas story. “And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told…
