Essays and reflections on spiritual formation, the church, music, and daily faithfulness — 638 pieces, gathered in one home.
This my column which appeared on the front page of The Arab Tribune on Thursday, April 9, 2020 during the Coronavirus pandemic. These are strange times. Just like almost everyone e
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
This is the "Palm Sunday Online" worship experience of Arab First UMC on April 5, 2020, during the coronavirus pandemic. Participants were invited in advance to place palm or green
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
During these strange times when we are only able to worship and fellowship online due to the Coronavirus pandemic, I am sharing devotionals every Tuesday morning on Facebook Live a
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
This is the sermon segment that was a part of the online worship experience of Arab First UMC on March 29, 2020, during the coronavirus pandemic. The building may not have been ope
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
This is my recent podcast on "Praying Through Music." I created for the "Pray Together" podcast series put together by members of the North Alabama Conference of the United Methodi
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
This blog post went viral and got 37,000 hits in the first month, plus it was picked up by Al.com and UMNews. A few weeks ago, hundreds of North Alabama Methodists that consider th
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
I have a gift from the family of the late Rev. Talmadge Clayton that has now taken up permanent residence in my study. It was written by Kenneth Goodson, the resident bishop of the
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
By my desk I keep the devotional book "A Year with Dietrich Bonhoeffer," which my daughter thoughtfully gave me for Christmas in 2007. I've never been regimented about doing one de
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
This is my column which appeared in The Arab Tribune on Wednesday, November 27, 2019. I was appointed to pastor my first church at the ripe old age of 24. Sandy and I had only been
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
“I live by two words, gratitude and tenacity. Tenacity gets me where I want to go, and gratitude does not allow me to be angry along the way.” - Henry Winkler Happy Thanksgiving!
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
This thought resonates with me today from Kahlil Gibran. “Speak to my soul, oh Lord. May it continue to unfold itself unhindered. May the treasure you have placed in me be revealed
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
“As a Christian, when confronted by a tension between a religious certainty which leads me to violate the law of love and a deep unknowing that still moves in the direction of ‘lov
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
This is my column which was published in The Arab Tribune on Wednesday, October 23, 2019. The photo of tokens identical to the ones in my collection appeared with the article in th
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
“For what is evil but good tortured by its own hunger and thirst?” - Kahlil Gibran This is an extremely wise saying. The farther I get in life, the more I see it. There’s a reason
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
Well, I made my very first attempt at Podcasting. I really enjoyed it! If you have about 20 minutes, join me in walking through some of the chapters of Jeremiah, exploring some of
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
Sunday my heart soured as our worship band did this song ... it’s my favorite now. It’s about prevenient grace, which warms my Wesleyan heart and reminds me why I am (and always wi
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
A friend asked “what is the most essential belief in Christianity.” This is what I said: I’d say the one essential belief (since you asked it that way) is we are created and called
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
This is my column which was published in The Arab Tribune on Saturday, April 13, 2019. Few things can be more mind-boggling than the dating of Easter. Who made that decision? And w
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
I prepared this for a Rotary Program on April 9. I hope you find it interesting! Easter is the first Sunday after the first full moon after (or on) the Spring Equinox. That’s the s
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
I have had this book for decades but have felt led to go through it again during my morning prayer time. This devotion met me this morning and strikes a chord, during difficult tim
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
This is my column which appeared on February 2, 2019, in The Arab Tribune. It was my third trip to Ghana, and I guess that means it’s becoming a habit. If you do something once, it
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
I am blessed with the opportunity to write a column for The Arab Tribune. I was pleasantly surprised, however, that they were able to make room for the pictures. Celebrate with us
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
This is my column that appeared in “The Arab Tribune” on Wednesday, December 19, 2018. Every year during the holidays, it seems that one story, one experience, or one conversation
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
I created this video after the Thanksgiving presentation I did for the local Rotary Club today. It's on the struggle for religious freedom in colonial America, using the case study
Originally at Musings of a Musical Preacher
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