tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347530952008-05-07T17:25:53.530-07:00Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comBlogger29125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-25417608515956036162008-03-31T11:36:00.000-07:002008-04-11T16:49:15.119-07:00

With the wonder of today's technology, we can introduce the world to Ellie. It's like the scene in the Lion King when Rafiki runs to the top of the mountain and presents Simba to the animal kingom, only I don't have to face the hyenas! Our new family is doing really well, Erica and my eyes could stand to see a little more of the inside of our eyelids, but we're figuring it out every hour.

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-68236969915514450432008-03-24T09:14:00.000-07:002008-03-24T10:26:21.490-07:00

In the Christian tradition, Good Friday is usually reserved for a solemn remembrance of Jesus' death on a gruesome cross. Christian denominations with roots in the 16th and 17th century are well accustomed to feeling empty on this somber occasion. As gruesome a death as Jesus had, it does not compare to the abundant life and love that comes through the cross to Easter, and Jesus' resurrection.

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-62880567553903052662008-03-23T20:54:00.000-07:002008-03-23T20:54:26.780-07:00

So it has been 39 wonderful weeks of development and growth for this image we see above and the time for her to come into the world is approaching...but not yet. I can hardly wait to greet this daughter of mine and give her the love that I have been feeling since we first new she was coming. It is not only my wife and I that wait, but family and a whole community of people that anticipate

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-22488482465306496372008-03-10T10:17:00.000-07:002008-03-10T10:42:52.443-07:00

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-79279260114696316642008-02-27T13:41:00.000-08:002008-02-27T14:06:35.138-08:00

I preached this sermon on February 24th, at People of Hope in Rochester, MN. The sermon is based on John 4:5-42 Thirsty? The woman comes to a point in her exchange with Jesus that leads her to tell others, “Come and see a man who has told me everything I’ve done! He couldn’t be the messiah could he?” One has to wonder why this woman is so excited about someone who knows everything about her.

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-65658913171549056622008-01-03T13:40:00.001-08:002008-01-03T13:44:47.208-08:00

A new year has dawned and with it new reflections to be had on living life with joy and hope. This year I want to make it my practice to live less frenetically. Those who know me will say, "yeah, right! Fatherhood is going to make you less crazy and scattered?" I accept that my life will change greatly this year as I continue to settle into the life of ministry and the new role as father.

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-12616332537142019822007-10-18T07:54:00.000-07:002007-10-18T08:08:32.111-07:00

I have had this prayer above my desk at home since I was in seminary. It speaks to the core of faith and doubt and is honest about an unwillingness to completely submit to our Creator and Savior. And you know what...I think that's ok, even with God. Lord, I want to love you, yet I'm not sure. I want to trust you, yet I'm afraid of being taken in, I know I need you, yet I'm ashamed of the

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-29765975863954843332007-09-28T11:49:00.000-07:002007-09-28T12:10:45.108-07:00

Yesterday I was on my way to work, listening to NPR, like every morning. There was a story about this college student who was doing astronomy research with a prof and caught something quite amazing...a .005 second radio flash located about 1 billion light years away from earth. It doesn't sound all that amazing, does it? But think about it. They measured something as short in time as a 50th of

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-52962678429864541402007-09-28T11:45:00.000-07:002007-09-28T11:48:08.252-07:00

So, I took my dog for a walk yesterday and when we came back to the house I saw him eat the neighbor dog's poop. I don't get it! What possesses an animal to eat poop? I suppose if we let toddlers play with their poop, they would eat it too. I still don't get it.

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-12293744352316023832007-07-23T14:37:00.000-07:002007-07-23T14:56:49.220-07:00

This sermon is based on Luke 10:38-42 and Colossians 1:13-28 Arriving in New Orleans a few of weeks ago, I knew things would be different, I just didn’t realize how different. I had come to this place for fun in past times, but this time, I was with a group of people who had a different purpose. We were on a mission bring hope to people whose lives had been torn apart by Hurricane Katrina

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-72084538011360184332007-06-05T13:49:00.000-07:002007-06-05T14:12:18.059-07:00

I went over to my wife's coworker's house last night. She had some boxes to give us because we are moving next week. While we were there she asked if I would help her try to figure out why her garbage disposal and outlet by her sink wouldn't work. As she was talking I saw a reset button on one of the other outlets and dumbly pushed it. As I did that, she was saying, "See it just stopped work...

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-1176571252255200122007-04-14T10:00:00.000-07:002007-04-14T10:58:47.220-07:00

I recently read an article by the leader of a evangelically minded group within the ELCA. (I would hope that we are all evangelically minded.) I am so glad this group exists and is getting positive attention from the wider church. I consider myself a partner with them in raising up the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the world beyond the church. However, there are a couple of terms used by groups like

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-1176517198850777252007-04-13T19:06:00.000-07:002007-04-13T19:19:58.860-07:00

Friday is typically the day I take off. Today, I took a mental holiday that would rival any other's. I vegged out so much that I hardly came into the day. Mindlessness and pure emptiness, with interspersed episodes of good intentions to do things, but really never developing was the rhythm of the day. I should feel guilty...nah. Sometimes I think that I can be washed over with the desire for

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-1172759317049908002007-03-01T06:11:00.000-08:002007-03-01T06:28:37.056-08:00

Lent is the the 40 days before Easter when Christians have historically taken spiritual inventory of their lives and repented for sins. Sin isn't a four-letter word, it is simply an honest statement about being human. We sin. As a kid, I loved Lent. I remember how we "put away" the Alleluia, sometimes even physically in a box. The thing I remember most is the way the music changed.

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-1172180989432196802007-02-22T13:49:00.000-08:002007-02-22T13:50:01.353-08:00

The other night, I decided to stop into a Bible Study that is led by Pr. Gary. We were talking about the Last Supper, it's Jewish roots and the way that it has been celebrated throughout the centuries in the church. When Jesus celebrated the Lord's Supper, it was really a celebration. Passover was a commemoration of God's deliverance of the Jews from slavery in Egypt. There was wine and

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-1169791528003133882007-01-25T21:11:00.000-08:002007-01-25T22:14:18.330-08:00

In the opening session of the conference, Rob Bell made the claim that as the body of Christ, we are the Eucharist. We have our bodies and our lives broken or given and our blood poured out for the sake of the world. This is a defining experience and activity of the Church. Paul explains this phenomenon in 2 Corinthians 4:10-12. As followers of Jesus, we give our life over to death for Jesus'

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-1169616889217294742007-01-23T21:21:00.000-08:002007-01-23T21:52:17.776-08:00

What if the world saw what the church, the people of God was doing and said, "Isn't she beautiful!" What if the church took seriously the life to which Jesus calls all disciples to reach out to the lost and be compassionate to the marginalized? What if the church stopped measuring itself by the three Bs, buildings, budgets and butts? What would the church look like? Over the last two days,

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-1167254656379437252006-12-27T13:12:00.000-08:002006-12-29T09:45:12.083-08:00

I thought I would post a couple of pics from Christmas Eve. One is Erica, and our little chickens that we had for dinner. It looks like she already ate one of the legs. We have a habit of taking pictures of food. I guess we'll remember them that way. On the right is the Americana Christmas picture, which may be our Christmas card picture for next year...you never know. Christmas Eve was an

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-1167153147743001382006-12-26T08:36:00.000-08:002006-12-26T09:12:27.816-08:00

I am becoming increasingly convinced that technology has both a saintly and satanic side to it. It seems that every device or website that I discover and fall in love with (i.e. cell phone, wireless Internet, MySpace, Blogger, NY Times, YouTube, etc..) it will eventually turn on me. I was once naively convinced that technology was supposed to make our lives easier, more streamlined. I am no

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-1165812898992190002006-12-10T20:29:00.000-08:002006-12-11T07:42:47.586-08:00

What difference do words make anyway?! I have been thinking a lot about language lately. You see, I just got out of seminary and I realize that I have been tooled with a particular language that is really only relavent in seminary. What conception do most people have when they hear terms like apocalyptic, liturgical, perichoresis, grace, forgiveness, the peace of Christ, eschatology, or even

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-1164062995433324262006-11-20T14:16:00.000-08:002006-11-20T14:49:55.583-08:00

In the last couple of days I have connected with some friends from my past. I talked to my friend Melanie. She and I met when we were in high school at a church leadership event in Chicago. We went to college near one another and stayed in contact until a few years ago. We have talked once in the last three years, until last night. I am in awe of relationships that pick up as if no time had

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-1162228041238510342006-10-30T09:06:00.000-08:002006-11-07T13:55:43.876-08:00

I, like many in America, have a love/hate relationship with politics. On the one hand, politics leads to law and order (sometimes). Politics serves as the platform for public debate which shapes the ethos and attitudes of the diverse collection of people who call themselves Americans. It is an incredible privilege to participate in the political process on election day. However, there is a

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-1162225555481161022006-10-30T08:17:00.000-08:002006-10-30T08:25:55.500-08:00

This is the text of my sermon from this last week. To read the Bible text for context, click here. Get Lost…in the Truth – John 8:31-36 Rick Warren, of Purpose Driven Life fame said in an interview this week, “A satisfying life is what you experience when you’re doing what God created you to do.” This quote seems to be a twist on what Jesus is talking about in the reading this morning

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-1161097071292144412006-10-17T07:47:00.000-07:002006-10-24T18:49:11.103-07:00

It was great to spend the second half of last week on retreat with the staff. There was plenty of hype about how fun and beneficial the previous retreat was, and this one did not disappoint. It is amazing how gathering together to learn about each other can ground people into a new way of being. Centered in worship and sabbath, we opened ourselves to the wonder of God and asked God to be with

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34753095.post-1159850060809628862006-10-02T21:18:00.000-07:002006-10-02T21:42:58.770-07:00

I had a profoundly wonderful day today. It was one of those days that did not lend itself to grandiose strides in any one project, and nothing too out of the ordinary happened. However, I have been washed over with thanksgiving and joy today. I am so thankful to be a child of God today. I have felt the unwarranted and undeserving love of God, as if God has said today, "J, you really are mine

Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09839989929560599809noreply@blogger.com