With Glad and Generous Hearts – Jennifer Hosler Acts 2:42-47; Colossians 3:12-17 Our news media has the unfortunate tendency of focusing on things that go wrong. Violence, crime, oppression—these things sell papers or bring hits to websites. While these problems exist, focusing on them in the news media means that other stories do not often…
Tag: Jennifer Hosler
Victor, King, Servant?
Victor, King, Servant? – Jennifer Hosler Psalm 118: 1-2, 19-29; Matthew 21:1-11 Today is Palm Sunday, as we have already seen and heard and waved our palm branches. Palm Sunday, the Sunday before Easter, is the name that the church has given to mark the events in Scripture which are referred to as the Triumphal…
Who is That Shiny Person?
Who is That Shiny Person? – Jennifer Hosler Exodus 24:12-18; 2 Peter 1:16-21; Matthew 17:1-9 When thinking about today’s gospel passage, I spent time musing on surprise encounters: those times when you run into someone you know, in a place where you least expect them to be. Running into someone you know is delightful in…
Waiting for the Bulb to Flower
Waiting for the Bulb to Flower Jennifer Hosler Deut. 30:15-20; Ps. 119: 1-8; 1 Cor. 3:1-9 Last Sunday was a big step for us as a congregation. While we had made the decision to proceed with the new ministry model at the end of July, this was, finally, its official implementation. As we all know,…
RESOLVING TO LOVE, TO HOPE, TO SEEK GOD IN 2014
Resolving to Love, to Hope, to Seek God in 2014 – Jennifer Hosler (Ecclesiastes 3:1-13; Matthew 25:31-46) It’s that time of year—time for New Year’s Resolutions. Many websites have had resolution articles (what to make, how to keep them) for the last week. The day after New Years, I was on the Washington Post website…
”GOD’S KINGDOM IS HERE” OR ”ALREADY AND NOT YET”
“God’s Kingdom is Here” or “Already and Not Yet” – Jennifer Hosler Isaiah 9:2-7; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14 (15-20) This week the world is celebrating the remarkable life and work of Nelson Mandela, who died on Thursday. In South Africa, he led the way for forgiveness to triumph over revenge, for choosing the path of…
Rivers Clap and Mountains Sing
Rivers Clap and Mountains Sing (Malachi 4:1-3; Psalm 98) Jennifer Hosler Of all the times I’ve had what could be called a “holy” experience, most of them have occurred outdoors. When I’ve been struck by the near presence of God, when I’ve felt wrapped in God’s love, when I’ve marveled at the beauty of…
Root-Bound
Root-Bound (Joel 2:23-32; Luke 18:9-14) Jennifer Hosler Very rarely do we hear news stories about genuine repentance. We often hear PR statements, statements regretting the fallout of actions, words that express regret for the pain caused – but often not apology and claim to wrong action. We might hear “I’m sorry that my words…
Sheep, Pennies, and People of Disrepute
Sheep, Pennies, and People of Disrepute (Luke 15) Jennifer Hosler Some of you might know that there exists a satirical newspaper called The Onion. Like all satire, it uses irony, sarcasm, and twists on current events to shed light on everyday absurdities, politicians’ shortcomings, or to make us think about human situations that we…
Barns, Birds, and Urban Homesteading
Barns, Birds, and Urban Homesteading – August 4, 2013 Luke 12:13-24 Jennifer Hosler When we consider the denominational tagline of the Church of the Brethren, “Continuing the work of Jesus: Peacefully. Simply. Together”, we see that “simple living” is, apparently, an important part of who we are. But since we moved away from plain…
Washington City Church of the Brethren 