In Your Face, Winter!
This Sunday, we decorated the church and shared stories of beloved family ornaments. Then I preached this brief sermon on decorating with lights.
Who Jesus Is to Me
On the last Sunday of the church year, Christ the King Sunday, I opened my service with this reflection, song, and hymn. It’s about Jesus, but (spoiler alert!) it isn’t about Christ the King.
We Didn’t Start the Fire
I’m not usually a fan of the apocalyptic writings in the Bible. But if you’re feeling out-of-control anxiety and a powerless rage against injustice, maybe it’s time for you to get in touch with your inner apocalypticist.
Much More Important
Here’s something that’s much more important than anything else in our religious tradition. (Even more important than whole burnt offerings.)
Of Poetry and Prophecy
I don’t believe in biblical prophecy—or any other kind of prophecy. What I do believe in is the power of biblical poetry.
Yes, There Is Such Thing as a Dumb Question
I used to reassure my students that it was okay to ask questions. “There’s no such thing as a dumb question,” I would say. Obviously, I was wrong.
A Helper as His Partner
Here’s a sermon in honor of John Shelby Spong, who passed away last month at the age of 90. It deals with one of the passages he cites as a “terrible text” from Genesis: the story of the creation of Eve to be Adam’s helper.
How To Make Jesus Mad
Here’s one way to make Jesus really mad.
Wolf at the Door
Wolf at the Door, the third book in my fantasy romance series Tales of Corwin, is now available.
I finished Wolf at the Door while on vacation in New Hampshire. Yes, that is my idea of a vacation: getting to see more of my family … a little swimming … a little walking in the woods … a little listening to the loons … and a little writing of this kind. Not all writing refreshes and sustains me, but writing the Tales of Corwin does. I like the characters—most of them!—and I’ve enjoyed discovering and telling their story.
I hope you will enjoy reading it. It’s available from Amazon for Kindle and in paperback.
Guilty Pleasure
The other day, my wife caught me with my nose in a book and a silly grin on my face. It’s happened before, and it’s always embarrassing. She gives me a hard time about it, too—and justly so. It’s embarrassing to be caught enjoying your own writing.
I know: self-indulgent, isn’t it? But I can’t help it. I get a kick out of it, every time I dip into The Pastor and the Priestess, the first book in my fantasy romance series. But I had a good excuse, this time, for re-reading my own writing: I’m putting the finishing touches on Wolf at the Door, the third volume in the series, and just needed to check a few things for continuity. (That’s what I told Kelly, anyway.) I’m delighted with the way the latest story is turning out, and I’m excited about releasing it shortly.
But nobody’s going to be excited about the third volume if they haven’t read the first two. So today, I’m dropping the price of the Kindle edition of The Pastor and the Priestess to 99 cents. If you haven’t read it, I hope you’ll take advantage of this price reduction. Maybe a bit of happily-ever-after fantasy romance is just what you need.
And if you have already read The Pastor and the Priestess and Storms Over Corwin, thank you, and stay tuned! Volume three is nearly ready. Here’s the cover art:
And here’s the text from the back cover:
Sandra Shelby, high priestess of the Rose Feather Circle, and Mark Collins, pastor of the Corwin Congregational Church, are engaged to be married at last. They’ve set the date. They’ve chosen two people to perform the ceremony—a Christian minister and a Wiccan crone. Their friends are happy for them. Mark’s parents are happy for them. What could go wrong?
Plenty, as it turns out. Not everyone is as happy about the forthcoming marriage as they are. First, a mysterious Pagan organization sends two scouts into the town of Corwin to discover the secrets of the Circle and to lure Sandra away. At the same time, a faction within Mark’s church takes exception to his interfaith relationship and tries to get him fired. Then, just before Easter, a wolf comes to Mark and Sandra’s door with disturbing news: Joni, the youngest member of the Circle, has disappeared. To rescue little Joni, Mark and Sandra and their friends would go to the ends of the earth.
But they’ll have to go farther than that.
I’ll let you know when Wolf at the Door is available to order. Two weeks, I hope!