Blessings can come from unanticipated sources in places we might not expect. For the Rev. Dr. Jill Duffield and her family, the place was outside a Goodwill dressing room, and the sources were two older women unknown to the Duffield family. Read more »
July 27, 2021
An unexpected blessing
Blessings can come from unanticipated sources in places we might not expect. For the Rev. Dr. Jill Duffield and her family, the place was outside a Goodwill dressing room, and the sources were two older women unknown to the Duffield family. Read more »
La Oroya, Peru, is one of the most contaminated places in the world. Poisoned by the emissions of a U.S.-owned metals smelter, nearly 1,000 miles of surrounding land is contaminated as much as 4 inches deep with lead, cadmium and arsenic. 
As a Hispanic/Latin community in the United States, we are profoundly concerned about the events that have occurred in the Caribbean country of Cuba. We feel and share the pain of the Cuban people in light of the shortage. of food and medicines and health conditions worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic. 
The New York City chapter of the National Black Presbyterian Caucus was recently privileged to hear the prophetic voice of the Rev. Dr. James A. Forbes Jr. You too can hear Forbes’ talk here. 
Chapel by the Sea Presbyterian Church is where wedding dreams come true. Nestled among knotty pine trees on the rocky Washington coastline, the chapel, however, provides more than just nuptial photo ops. It provides a snapshot of hope for residents living in the hamlet of Moclips who struggle to put food on the table. 
Preacher, tell us a story.
People who listen to sermons week after week will usually sit up and take notice when the preacher launches into a good story, according to the Rev. Dr. Alice Ridgill, associate executive presbyter for the Presbytery of Charlotte. Ridgill spoke during the third installment of The Preaching Lab, a five-part online workshop offered monthly by New Hope Presbyterian Church in Anaheim, California, through a grant by the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship in Grand Rapids, Michigan. 
A year of shepherding God’s people through a pandemic has put a strain on pastors as they have had to rethink how to do everything from pastoral care to worship. And the strain of constantly thinking differently and creatively while tending flocks that are eager for some sense of normalcy can result in developing compassion fatigue. 
I’ve been on an intentional spiritual formation journey for most of my adult life. As a young person, I struggled to find a prayer routine that felt right for me — body and spirit. I followed the more traditional ways to nurture spirituality: worship services, prayer groups and Bible studies. I even tried to establish a personal devotion routine. For guidance, I looked into the practices of the most spiritual people I knew — my abuela, Jovina, and my abuelo, Edgar. My grandparents’ prayer routine included reading the Bible following a book of devotions and kneeling beside their bed to pray silently. I was convinced that, with some modifications, this would work for me. It did not. My attempt to follow this routine ended up with knee pain, wandering thoughts, climbing into bed and falling asleep, prayer unfinished. I woke the next day feeling frustrated with “my lack of commitment” to a life of prayer. 
He entered Jericho and was passing through it. A man was there named Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was rich. He was trying to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was short in stature. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to see him, because he was going to pass that way. When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today.” … All who saw it began to grumble and said, “He has gone to be the guest of one who is a sinner.” Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Look, half of my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much.” Then Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he too is a son of Abraham.” — Luke 19:1–9 
The Rev. Dr. Otis Moss III remembers the heartbroken grandmother of a man in denial of his drug addiction. “Son,” she told him one day, “until you name the demon, you ain’t never gonna be free.”