Words from Washington

Thoughts, questions, and reactions from the pastor of Mount Vernon Place United Methodist Church, Washington, D.C.

Friday, September 25, 2015

God is Still Speaking - Even to the Speaker of the House

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Washington has been rocked this week. Traffic patterns were redefined. Barriers were constructed. So many people teleworked that Metro...
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Wednesday, September 23, 2015

Waiting for a Pope

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Our city is filled with a sense of expectation and excitement that I have not experienced in a long time. Some of us are glued to our tele...
Wednesday, August 26, 2015

Lessons in Hospitality

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"Tell me, what do you like about your new church?" I asked him. "Everyone is excited to see you when you walk in. They all...
Friday, August 07, 2015

What's Your Legacy?

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I've been thinking a lot about my legacy in recent months. The conversation was ignited last year through an Executive Certificate in Re...
Saturday, July 04, 2015

The Monastic Life

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I spent the last five days in silence with seven other people at Holy Cross Abbey . I make the journey to Berryville once a year, c...
Thursday, June 25, 2015

Unusual Company

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When Mount Vernon Place was given the opportunity to redevelop our property several years ago, a vision emerged for a facility that would b...
1 comment:
Friday, June 19, 2015

Let's Cross Over to the Other Side

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I did not need an alarm clock to awaken me this morning as my spirit started to stir a few minutes after 5:00. I had finished 75% of my ...
Tuesday, June 09, 2015

Saying Thanks

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A seminary friend reached out to me last week with a question. "You seem to have been able to develop many mentors in life. How do y...
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Tuesday, April 28, 2015

The Demons of the City

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We are in the midst of what has been a powerful sermon series for me at Mount Vernon Place , one that has spoken deeply to my soul, on ...
Friday, April 24, 2015

Leadership on the Court

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If a picture paints a thousand words, then this photo paints my description of leadership. It is a portrait of a coach, one of his assi...
Tuesday, March 31, 2015

The Power of our Promises

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Easter Sunday is a pastor's dream. Extra people  fill the pews as guests come for the first time and others return after a long time....
Tuesday, March 17, 2015

More Than A Meal

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"I placed a bag of food by your chair. It's chicken and dumplings. I made them this morning to take to a family who just had a...
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Tuesday, January 27, 2015

My Friend, Elizabeth

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My friend, Elizabeth, died this morning. Elizabeth taught me to love sliced avocados on my salad but would not allow me to eat too ...
Friday, January 23, 2015

Re-Examining Hospitality

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The building committee that designed the grand structure to hold the congregation known as Mount Vernon Place Methodist Episcopal Ch...
Sunday, November 30, 2014

A Different View

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Someone once told me about a practice Bill Hybels had when he was first starting Willow Creek Community Church. He would prepare his sermon ...
Saturday, November 29, 2014

Time to Heal

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While I cannot remember all of his instructions, I recall the exact words of the surgeon when he was explaining the timing of my recovery...
1 comment:
Thursday, November 27, 2014

Thanksgiving in the Dark

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"On the night in which Jesus gave himself up for us....he gave thanks."  My colleague, James Howell , reminded me of thes...
Monday, November 24, 2014

Held by God

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A dear friend sent this photo to me a week before I was scheduled for surgery to remove an invasive melanoma on my ankle. The photo was...
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Donna Claycomb Sokol
Since July of 2005, I have had the extraordinary privilege of watching an old church find new life. I have had a front-row seat to lives being changed, property being redeveloped, and God working in surprising ways. I ponder here about who God is, how God seems to work, why I love the church, why I'd love to change the church, and a variety of other things. I have been told that I am an external processor - perhaps this place is where I externally process what's on my heart and mind in hopes that some of what I share can be helpful.
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