Words from Washington

I am getting married in exactly 66 days. And, like most brides I am very, very excited while also doing things that I normally don't do....

By far, the one event that has had the biggest impact on my life is my parents' divorce. My parents were married for 23 years before the...

My mother is visiting this week from Southeastern Colorado. She lives in a community where it is rather easy to get around. There is not muc...

The process of renovating the sanctuary at Mount Vernon Place is nearing completion. We'll be back in the building in less than four m o...

Two weeks later, I am still thinking a lot about my time at the monastery. A trip to the Washington National Cathedral this weekend brought ...

Last week was the most amazing Holy Week I have ever had. I continue to be awed and amazed by all of the ways in which God showed up - the r...

I think on Easter morning we should throw confetti in church! No? What about a little fanfare? A deafening drum roll? A three minute standin...

This entry is the fourth entry about my time at Holy Cross Abbey last week. You may want to start at the first one if you are reading for t...

I went to Holy Cross to find God again. I went seeking an encounter with the Holy One. I wanted to feel God in a tangible way and to fall ...

Each month, I gather with other clergy members from this annual conference for what is called "Discipler Group." We gather to tal...

Early Monday morning I was with a group of clergy who had met to continue planning the opening worship service for the Baltimore Washington ...

We resurrected another ministry at Mount Vernon Place last week when women from our church gathered for lunch. The men in our congregation...

There is an article on the front page of today's Washington Post titled "In Major Poll, U.S. Religious Identity Appears Very Slipp...

When I was preparing to come to Mount Vernon Place UMC nearly three years ago, I was told that my job would be two-fold by someone who knew ...

There is a great demand for change happening in our country. The pages of the Washington Post are covered with quotes from people seeking ...

Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the season of Lent.  Today is one of those days that I yearn to arrive.  It seems as though the mar...

I spent a portion of Saturday afternoon in a glass shop. It was not part of the plan. In fact, there were four things on Saturday's ag...

While working at Duke Divinity School, I was exposed to the topic of dying well time and again through the Duke Institute on Care at the End...

I am in Durham this week, working with four other pastors and a professor from Duke Divinity School.  Dr. Jackson Carroll is in the process ...

The property transformation continues at Mount Vernon Place UMC. The hole where the new building will go is getting bigger and bigger. The...