3
Thinking ahead from writing this, I realize that many of you will be reading it on the day it comes out in St. Paul’s e-News, when we also have one of our Theology Pub outings. That St. Paul institution is one I inherited when I arrived in 2019. I to…
4
This week, I had the opportunity to hear a series of lectures from one of the Lutheran bishops of Hungary, Bishop Dr. Tamás Fabiny. When he began his talks, Bishop Fabiny shared that when one Hungarian Lutheran sees another Hungarian Lutheran, they s…
7
I’ve always wanted to see the Northern Lights, but the opportunities to catch them were few and far in between since city lights have surrounded me. When that rare chance appeared over Labor Day weekend, I searched out this natural wonder, hoping to…
7
On March 23, 2011, my basement flooded. I know the date because it was my wife’s birthday. A flooded basement is NOT a good birthday present, by the way. At the time, Malie was teaching for an online high school and, living in a split-foyer house, h…
5
Earlier this year, you might’ve heard about an earthquake that rumbled across southern California. Yes, earthquakes are pretty common in that area. But even though the 5.2-magnitude quake wasn’t particularly notable for any widespread damage, it was…
2
A recent dinner that included chips and salsa gave me an opportunity for reflection. Imagine scooping up a chip full of salsa and biting into it – what happens? Unless you have a superpower of which the rest of us are incapable, you see the chip brea…
3
Earlier this week, just after rushing to take photos of my kids on their first day of school, I walked through our neighborhood seeing other families doing the same thing. Kids stood on front porches or on the school’s front lawn with big smiles, ner…
2
For every meeting and gathering in the main building of the church, the route from my office takes me through the halls of the preschool, often multiple times a day. When I first started as the new pastoral resident in January, the corridor was alive…
8
I have a confession; and I hope I don’t hurt anyone’s feelings. I don’t like musicals. Like, musical theater. I like plays; I like music…I don’t like musicals. This hasn’t always been true, but for whatever reason, it has become true. My wife an…
5
If you ever find yourself driving northeast outside of Tucson, Arizona, you may happen upon Biosphere 2, owned and operated by the University of Arizona. Inside this large campus of glass domes is essentially a mini-Earth. Whole ecosystems exist in w…
For many people, everything about these last days of July has screamed “vacation!” It may be the welcome break from a long slog at work. It may be a deep desire to escape the vagaries of a Midwest summer. It may be the fulfillment of a long-planned a…
6
The abundance of rain has made the yards in my neighborhood lush and verdant. Tomatoes overflow their cages. Coneflowers burst with their bright pink in every direction. Hydrangeas have grown to be as big as bowling balls. On my daily dog walks, I’ve…