Finding your mission field — hint, it’s right now, right where you are

This lay sermon originally was delivered at St. Matthew's Episcopal Church, Enid, Oklahoma, for the Service of Noonday Prayers, Wednesday, 09 January, 2019. “You have one business on earth – to save souls.” That quote from the well-known Anglican priest, John Wesley, captures the essence of today's message. We're here to talk about missions, our …

Ecumenicism: The way forward?

The thought of selling the church was hard for the congregation, "but ultimately, we're called to minister to people — we're not called to minister to a building." --Pastor Peter Olson, Faith Lutheran ELCA, Enid, Okla. ENID, Okla. — An Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) congregation and a United Methodist retirement community are strengthening …

Giving thanks for the harvest to come

Thanksgiving has passed, leftovers are packed away, and, if we’re lucky, the antacids are working. Hopefully we took time to give thanks. I am blessed with an amazing wife, two wonderful daughters, good friends, a reverent and inspiring church, my job and a warm place to sleep tonight, among other blessings. But, I’d like to …

Anglican becomes American

I've been posting pictures and synopses of the meaning behind stained glass windows at St. Matthew's Episcopal Church in Enid, Okla. These two panels depict the roots of the Episcopal Church in the United States, both in its historic and continuing connection to the Church of England and the development of its own Constitution and …

The road to Damascus

If you've spent much time in church - of almost any Christian denomination, but not all - you've probably at some point marveled at the beauty of stained glass windows. These incredible works of art depict scenes from the Bible, from church history, from the lives of saints and martyrs. Among the immediately recognizable figures …

The most segregated hour

    ENID, Okla. — More than half a century after Martin Luther King, Jr. called 11 a.m. on Sunday the most segregated hour in America, eighty percent of the nation’s congregations still are made up of predominantly one race. That statistic is slowly shifting toward more diverse congregations — in 2012 all-white congregations made …

Its name is love

I was very honored today to deliver a sermon on Christian unity, below, at the historic St. Stephen AME Church in Enid, Oklahoma. We had six ministers, including myself, preach on Matthew 24:14 in this ecumenical service. For a budding Episcopal lay preacher to have the opportunity to preach alongside pastors who have been in …

Embracing change to build up Christ’s church

For most active Christians, church offers benefits that go beyond the spiritual provisions of regular worship attendance. Church provides a haven into which we can withdraw, where we are surrounded by our church family and a very comforting sense of familiarity. It is a solid, unwavering foundation in a stressful, ever-shifting world. This sense of …

The Light Within Us

John 1: 1-4, NRSV: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the …

Mending the body of Christ

Have you ever sat through one of those really awkward family dinners? You know, where the relatives who don’t talk to each other are forced to sit together and act like a loving family. If you haven’t, congratulations. But, if you have — and let’s face it, that’s most of us — you have a …