Inspiration
Epiphany is a special church, just a little bit different from most churches.
03/Sep/2010 08:17
Fr. Mike Epiphany is a special church, just a little bit different from most churches. That is because we were started with a unique purpose: to build a church in southwest Las Vegas/Henderson. Those of us who have since joined the congregation may have heard of this purpose, but have we made it our own purpose? Is it a part of your mission and mine?
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Listening to reactions in our renewed worship space has been fun this week; come and decide for yourself. God is faithful.
26/Aug/2010 00:33
“It looks bigger!”
“It looks like a meeting space, not a worship space.”
“I like the feel of it.” Read More...
“It looks like a meeting space, not a worship space.”
“I like the feel of it.” Read More...
This week’s gospel reading contains another tale of Jesus healing.
19/Aug/2010 22:50
This week’s gospel reading contains another tale of Jesus healing. He’s in a synagogue teaching on the sabbath. He sees a woman unable to stand up straight. Eighteen years, she’s been this way! Read More...
“Do you think I have come to bring peace? No, I tell you, but rather division!”
12/Aug/2010 08:51
It is important to note that Jesus in Luke’s Gospel for this week is being descriptive, rather than prescriptive. Jesus, whose role among us according to Luke, is to “guide our feet in the way of peace” (1:79), is describing what he sees in the world around him. Jesus, who after the resurrection appears among his followers offering a benediction of peace (24:36), is telling it like it is, not offering a vision of how God intends things to be. Read More...
Isaiah speaks, “…learn to do good; seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow….”
05/Aug/2010 22:35
Our readings this week resonate with demands:
Isaiah speaks, “…learn to do good; seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow….”
And Luke’s Jesus calls, “Sell you possessions, and give alms. …Be dressed for action and have your lamps lit.”
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Isaiah speaks, “…learn to do good; seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow….”
And Luke’s Jesus calls, “Sell you possessions, and give alms. …Be dressed for action and have your lamps lit.”
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Jesus speaks of a rich man who hoards his abundance and builds new barns, but who dies before he can enjoy it.
30/Jul/2010 22:30
I am struck by the closing line in this week’s Gospel lesson: “So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God.” Jesus speaks of a rich man who hoards his abundance and builds new barns, but who dies before he can enjoy it. The man’s life ends and his preparations are for naught.
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People seem pretty worried about getting it right --
22/Jul/2010 22:32
People seem pretty worried about getting it right -- the lawyer who tests Jesus, Martha demanding help, and this week we have the disciples asking Jesus, “Teach us to pray.” As Luke tells it, they’ve seen Jesus pray and they ask him to teach them how to do it. They want to get it right. And we have been bickering about correct wording ever since.
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I wonder if Martha’s house was clean when Jesus was teaching there.
15/Jul/2010 22:26
Oh, how I recognized the words: “We've been very busy lately, and unfortunately the state of our house reflects that, or else we would have you over at our place. Looking forward to seeing you…” I’ve said them myself, embarrassingly often.
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Occasionally this summer, folks have mentioned missing church, for good reasons:
08/Jul/2010 09:21
So I’m sitting here under the redwoods in sunny, cool northern California, thinking of you. A little bit of distance, a little bit of relaxation, and the mind wanders… Here’s an idea:
Occasionally this summer, folks have mentioned missing church, for good reasons: weekend trips take them out of town, or the bliss of a relaxed moment with good coffee and an engaging read is too inviting to abandon, or some such. People feel the loss of corporate worship. People feel guilty for missing Sunday worship. Read More...
Occasionally this summer, folks have mentioned missing church, for good reasons: weekend trips take them out of town, or the bliss of a relaxed moment with good coffee and an engaging read is too inviting to abandon, or some such. People feel the loss of corporate worship. People feel guilty for missing Sunday worship. Read More...
Naaman has control issues.
01/Jul/2010 22:16
Naaman is a successful army commander of Aram, a powerful confederation of states that vied with Israel for control of the region in the first millennium before the Common Era. He has leprosy. And he has a servant girl from Israel who knows that God heals. Read More...
So, if gospel means “good news,” how come we find more hard words in our reading from Luke this Sunday?!
24/Jun/2010 06:21
Jesus is talking to the disciples as the journey toward Jerusalem and his passion, death, and resurrection. He’s asking them to follow him. This is his sales pitch?! “…nowhere to lay his head.” “…(Not) fit for the kingdom of God.” Read More...
“What is your name?”
17/Jun/2010 20:51
I walked past a man sitting on the sidewalk Monday. He was sitting in sunshine in long scruffy sleeves and worn pants, reading on a blanket. I don’t see a lot of homeless-looking folks in Green Valley. Read More...
Sitting in a chair before the altar on Maundy Thursday for a foot washing.
10/Jun/2010 23:26
It is an awkward grace which some of you know personally: sitting in a chair before the altar on Maundy Thursday for a foot washing. There is an intimacy to the act which leads some to avoid it all together. Read More...
In this week’s Gospel, we hear another story about Jesus of Nazareth raising a man from the dead.
03/Jun/2010 20:17
This was His personal response to witnessing a mother’s grief at the loss of her only son. Our first reaction, upon reading this story, was, “Awesome! Now, why doesn’t he do that anymore? Read More...
Memorial Day began as a decoration of the graves of the civil war in 1868 and has grown into a remembrance of all the war dead.
27/May/2010 19:59
It seems fitting to pause and remember those who give their lives in service to our country. Some do it unto death. Some just give their lives or a portion of their lives. All deserve to be remembered. Read More...
We had two fortune cookies after our meal on Monday with two fortunes
22/May/2010 15:59
Two encouraging sayings acknowledged the darkness and worry of the world in a few small inches and called for something different. It was an amusing resonance with earlier conversations and felt like a bit of grace.
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I absolved my friend yesterday of making rude gestures at another driver.
13/May/2010 18:49
There is an incredible amount of life unfolding in our community right now: warm, joyful news of birthdays and budding romance and cancer in remission, of graduations and project completion and pregnancy… and heavy, heart-breaking news of isolation and terminal cancer and divorce, of the sundry human failures… not to mention the normal, day-to-day exhaustion and heroics of existence together… Life is full.
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I listened to parents at the baseball game last night:
06/May/2010 18:45
I listened to parents at the baseball game last night: “Bring it down, Nick!” when the pitch flew over the batter’s head… “Get it to him, Dillon!” as the catcher’s return throw dropped midway between home plate and the pitcher’s mound… Read More...
Our reading this week from the book of Acts is a redundancy.
29/Apr/2010 20:41
Luke tells us again the story he just told in chapter 10: Peter has a vision that
breaks open his thinking about what is acceptable to God, Cornelius has a
vision that leads him to Peter, and a whole Gentile family comes to know
the saving power of God’s grace in Christ. Read More...
breaks open his thinking about what is acceptable to God, Cornelius has a
vision that leads him to Peter, and a whole Gentile family comes to know
the saving power of God’s grace in Christ. Read More...
God who made the stars, galaxies, suns and this fragile earth
22/Apr/2010 20:55
To think that our God will wipe away the tears of those who come out of the great ordeal is an awesome thought. Humbling. Read More...
‘Lots going on in the readings this week: Paul gets converted from persecutor to proclaimer…
15/Apr/2010 22:32
‘Lots going on in the readings this week: Paul gets converted from persecutor to proclaimer… Every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea sings… Jesus appears to Peter and others, filling their nets, feeding them, and claiming Peter in thrice-repeated connection…
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I wonder if they winced. The other disciples.
08/Apr/2010 15:07
I wonder if they winced. The other disciples. There they were in the upper room, the doors closed when Jesus appeared again. “Peace.” Read More...
‘All things are lawful’, but not all things are beneficial.
01/Apr/2010 22:24
April 1, 2010 -- Maundy Thursday
1 Corinthians 11:23-26
23 ‘All things are lawful’, but not all things are beneficial. ‘All things are lawful’, but not all things build up. 24Do not seek your own advantage, but that of others. 25Eat whatever is sold in the meat market without raising any question on the ground of conscience, 26for ‘the earth and its fullness are the Lord’s.’
Reflection:
I don’t receive commandments very well. I tend to be a do-it-my-own-way sort of gal who wants to know the reason for something before I obey an order.
But this day is about commandment. Maundy Thursday, from the Latin mandatum, “command.” Jesus commands us to remember what he did and who he was and how he was among us. “Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.” Paul reminds us what we know.
So I’ll go to church today and participate in the liturgy of Maundy Thursday. There will be prayers, scripture readings, preaching, foot washing, Holy Communion … and then the stripping away of the accoutrements of our worship.
At the end of the service, everything that we can carry will be removed from front of the sanctuary. And the bare altar will be washed and oiled in semi-darkness. Then I’ll walk out silently on my clean, bare feet – a powerful stop to an important liturgy.
Maundy Thursday is the start of the Triduum, the three days of the Passion and Resurrection of Christ. The stripping of the altar is our liturgical way of acknowledging the emptiness in which Jesus made his sacrifice.
It calls me up short, this stark halt in the liturgy. It gets my attention. By God’s grace, the richness and starkness of the Maundy Thursday liturgy invite me to ponder the depth to which I must reach if I am to obey the commandment to love. I must empty myself of everything and trust in the sufficiency of God.
O Jesus, I want to follow your commandment to love… Humble and strengthen me. Amen.
Helen McPeak, struggler
1 Corinthians 11:23-26
23 ‘All things are lawful’, but not all things are beneficial. ‘All things are lawful’, but not all things build up. 24Do not seek your own advantage, but that of others. 25Eat whatever is sold in the meat market without raising any question on the ground of conscience, 26for ‘the earth and its fullness are the Lord’s.’
Reflection:
I don’t receive commandments very well. I tend to be a do-it-my-own-way sort of gal who wants to know the reason for something before I obey an order.
But this day is about commandment. Maundy Thursday, from the Latin mandatum, “command.” Jesus commands us to remember what he did and who he was and how he was among us. “Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.” Paul reminds us what we know.
So I’ll go to church today and participate in the liturgy of Maundy Thursday. There will be prayers, scripture readings, preaching, foot washing, Holy Communion … and then the stripping away of the accoutrements of our worship.
At the end of the service, everything that we can carry will be removed from front of the sanctuary. And the bare altar will be washed and oiled in semi-darkness. Then I’ll walk out silently on my clean, bare feet – a powerful stop to an important liturgy.
Maundy Thursday is the start of the Triduum, the three days of the Passion and Resurrection of Christ. The stripping of the altar is our liturgical way of acknowledging the emptiness in which Jesus made his sacrifice.
It calls me up short, this stark halt in the liturgy. It gets my attention. By God’s grace, the richness and starkness of the Maundy Thursday liturgy invite me to ponder the depth to which I must reach if I am to obey the commandment to love. I must empty myself of everything and trust in the sufficiency of God.
O Jesus, I want to follow your commandment to love… Humble and strengthen me. Amen.
Helen McPeak, struggler
It is written: "I believed; therefore I have spoken."
25/Mar/2010 22:09
2 Corinthians Chapter 4 verses 13-18
It is written: "I believed; therefore I have spoken." With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak, because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you in his presence. Read More...
It is written: "I believed; therefore I have spoken." With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak, because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you in his presence. Read More...
For the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ.
18/Mar/2010 22:08
For the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by one spirit we were all baptized into one body-whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free-and have all been made to drink into one Spirit. For in fact the body is not one member but many.
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I awoke to the voice of Archbishop Desmond Tutu
11/Mar/2010 20:20
“I am learning to shut up more in the presence of God.” I awoke to the voice of Archbishop Desmond Tutu on my clock radio this morning. He was speaking of how his relationship with God has evolved over the years. Read More...
1 Corinthians 6:12-20 ‘All things are lawful for me’, but not all things are beneficial.
04/Mar/2010 22:47
1 Corinthians 6:12-20
12 ‘All things are lawful for me’, but not all things are beneficial. Paul was speaking to the citizens of Corinth, where prostitution was legal and very common. We also live in a state where prostitution is legal, and a culture that often celebrates the idea of being sexually “free”. Read More...
12 ‘All things are lawful for me’, but not all things are beneficial. Paul was speaking to the citizens of Corinth, where prostitution was legal and very common. We also live in a state where prostitution is legal, and a culture that often celebrates the idea of being sexually “free”. Read More...
1 Corinthians 2:14-3:15 Those who are unspiritual* do not receive the gifts of God’s Spirit Those who are unspiritual* do not receive the gifts of God’s Spirit
25/Feb/2010 19:43
1 Corinthians 2:14-3:15
Those who are unspiritual* do not receive the gifts of God’s Spirit, for they are foolishness to them, and they are unable to understand them because they are discerned spiritually.
Reflection: You are God’s Building
“You are God’s building, but take heed how anyone builds on it, for no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” Imagine that. Read More...
Those who are unspiritual* do not receive the gifts of God’s Spirit, for they are foolishness to them, and they are unable to understand them because they are discerned spiritually.
Reflection: You are God’s Building
“You are God’s building, but take heed how anyone builds on it, for no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” Imagine that. Read More...
The presence of Christ in our lives makes us “perfect,”
18/Feb/2010 19:58
The presence of Christ in our lives makes us “perfect,” that is, completely human and completely divine as Christ is both human and divine.
St. Paul writes: “I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (verse 14). Read More...
St. Paul writes: “I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (verse 14). Read More...
We are approaching Transfiguration Sunday.
11/Feb/2010 20:11
Our lessons include the description of Moses’ face glowing after he’d been up Mt. Sinai to talk with God as well as the story of Peter, John, and James seeing Jesus aglow atop the mountain, flanked by Moses and Elijah. There’s a lot of glowing going on in our scripture this week.
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Jesus is walking by the lake, teaching the crowds.
04/Feb/2010 20:34
Jesus is walking by the lake, teaching the crowds. He sees available fishing boats and uses Simon’s to step away from the press of the people. The fishermen are finishing their work after a long, fruitless day. Read More...
The deadline for the Lenten devotional submissions is approaching
28/Jan/2010 21:22
I know you are struggling. The deadline for the Lenten devotional submissions is approaching and some of you have not yet found the words. It is hard to come up with something reflective of God, worthy of your audience, and concise. Yes. Read More...
Our Old Testament lesson this week is from the story of Nehemiah
21/Jan/2010 20:41
When I first looked at our passage from Nehemiah this week, I took it for granted: another story of people encountering and appreciating God’s proclamation… Read More...
Jesus’ first miracle, the transformation of water into wine
14/Jan/2010 20:37
Our gospel reading for this coming Sunday is the story of Jesus’ first miracle, the transformation of water into wine at the wedding in Cana.
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Nevada Public Radio
07/Jan/2010 20:34
“Now after the wise men had left…”
31/Dec/2009 18:09
This Sunday, our gospel lesson begins “Now after the wise men had left…” and has Joseph taking his family to safety in Egypt. On Wednesday, we celebrate our titular feast, the Epiphany, marking the observance of a star and the journey of wise astrologers to Bethlehem to honor a newborn King. Read More...
Your vestry worked hard last night.
17/Dec/2009 17:14
Your vestry worked hard last night. We set the 2010 budget which will be presented to you for our Annual Parish Meeting on January 10th. (Mark your calendars and come!)
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Rob and I ran/walked the Las Vegas half-marathon on Sunday
10/Dec/2009 22:47
Rob and I ran/walked the Las Vegas half-marathon on Sunday, a demanding and invigorating exercise. People lined the 13.1 mile route to cheer on sundry friends, family and team members. Rob and I didn’t know any of the folks cheering, but we appreciated the good energy. Read More...
“I thank my God every time I remember you...”
03/Dec/2009 20:30
“I thank my God every time I remember you...” Thus begins our reading from Paul’s letter to the Philippians for Sunday. Read More...
Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?
02/Dec/2009 11:50
'When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean? Read More...
I thank God for...
26/Nov/2009 22:33
I thank God for healthy food in abundance and the ability to share it with others. I thank God for... Read More...
How About A Haiku
19/Nov/2009 09:54
Ah, friends... your vestry and priests have been doing hard work this week. My weary soul and brain offer the following haiku to tempt you with this coming Sunday’s Scripture: Read More...
Your vestry articulated some of the core values of Epiphany
12/Nov/2009 20:16
In a recent ministry review, your vestry articulated some of the core values of Epiphany. Integrity and excellence and faithfulness, I expected. Playfulness and authenticity seemed apt. But vulnerability was an eye-opener. It rang true. Read More...
The widow’s trust in God
06/Nov/2009 08:53
I listened to the radio pledge drive chatter on the way home from the bus stop Wednesday morning: Read More...
Spiritual But Not Religious - The Rev. George Anne Boyle
01/Nov/2009 17:17
In the wake of the New Age, and the ever-growing love affair our culture has with all things spiritual, a new mantra has emerged: I’m spiritual, not religious! Read More...
Reflections from Mike
30/Oct/2009 13:34
If you were a first century Jewish-Christian, you would have believed the dead will rise when Jesus returns. Read More...
W.W.J.D.?
22/Oct/2009 12:19
W.W.J.D.?
Some stories make this question easier to ask and answer than others. The story of the blind beggar Bartimaeus in this week’s Gospel lesson (Mark 10:46-52) is one such story. Read More...
Some stories make this question easier to ask and answer than others. The story of the blind beggar Bartimaeus in this week’s Gospel lesson (Mark 10:46-52) is one such story. Read More...
A “Thursday Reflections” on a Friday?
16/Oct/2009 20:32
A “Thursday Reflections” on a Friday? What’s up with that?!? Somewhere between out of town guests and uncooperative copy machines and car accidents and the stuff of life, here it is: your reflection arrives on Friday. We are an imperfect people! Read More...
I had one of those terrible, horrible, no good, very bad days recently.
08/Oct/2009 13:33
I had one of those terrible, horrible, no good, very bad days recently. The toilet was stopped up when I went use it in the morning. The car wouldn’t start. On our way to the morning bus stop, another bus stop mom called to say that the bus was arriving early. There was no juice to drink breakfast. The cat threw up on the carpet. It was one of those days.
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I danced in the chapel last night.
01/Oct/2009 13:23
I danced in the chapel last night. After corporate worship, after wine
and chocolate and stories, I returned alone to the stillness of the gently
lit Gothic arches, the worn oddity of the choir chairs, the clean cushion
of Catholic carpet, and I danced, my body stretching and leaping, spinning
and striving, giving voice to the hope and joy and frustration and sorrow
and love that fill my heart. Read More...
and chocolate and stories, I returned alone to the stillness of the gently
lit Gothic arches, the worn oddity of the choir chairs, the clean cushion
of Catholic carpet, and I danced, my body stretching and leaping, spinning
and striving, giving voice to the hope and joy and frustration and sorrow
and love that fill my heart. Read More...
How did Esther know?
24/Sep/2009 13:30
How did Esther know? How did she know the difference between
unreasonable, dangerous hubris and faithful saltiness when she asked for
the lives of the Jews in Persia? Read More...
unreasonable, dangerous hubris and faithful saltiness when she asked for
the lives of the Jews in Persia? Read More...
A Capable Wife, who can find
17/Sep/2009 14:42
An incredibly talented, generous, committed woman who meets the every need of her household with aplomb. Wow! What a gal! She has autonomy, mastery, and clarity of purpose! How does she do it? Read More...
Reflection from Helen
13/Sep/2009 12:47
In his gospel, James tells us of the dangers of the tongue to poison relationships. Read More...