“Urkel is dead and I can’t breathe.” Those were the words Oprah spoke to the interviewer when they asked her about one of the most recent casualties of a senseless shooting. I couldn’t breathe either. How could Urkel be gone? He held the hopes of so many of us. He had achieved the dream and … More Communicating to Death (or some better title)
As I prepared my sermon for this Palm Sunday, I felt this sinking feeling. At first, I couldn’t figure out what it was. The truth is I’ve never been a holidays person. Even as a child I asked, “Do we have to do this Christmas thing every year. Actually, I get anxious during almost every … More Breaking Through Before Breaking Free
In a world where we are constantly reminded of the dangers that surround us, who among us has not imagined what we would do if we found ourselves in a dangerous or perhaps life-threatening situation? It seems like everyday we hear some story of innocent victims of unspeakable crimes. And whether it is a shooting … More Surrounded! – How Do You Respond Under Threat?
I am not a victim! I know this for a fact and at the same time I cannot deny that there have been people, systems, and deep ignorance aimed in my direction attempting to make me one all of my life. But not just me. Since people have been people, there have been those who … More How To Win At Losing
Will humans ever live into our highest potential? Why do we fight over scraps on a planet ripe with plenty? Why do we choose to accept the smallest of identities prescribed for us by those who have no idea who they are? Deceived by the idea that some outside authority can qualify our worthiness, we … More The Lie That Started It All
Racism doesn’t exist. There I said it. Now we can move on. Don’t you wish it was that easy? What if we could uncreate racism or all of the other divisive isms just as easily as they were created and create a new way of being together? Let’s call that effort #embracism. As I define … More When One “ism” Ends, #Embracism Begins
Living in Colorado, I see a lot of people taking extreme risks and pushing themselves to their physical limits. At least in the Boulder area, it is a way of life for many people. If I drive up the canyon, I see people taking risks on a rock face. They get a hold on a … More Raise Your Voice: Healing Society Through Conversational Risks
I am a minister now largely because working as a consultant on a “Diversity Recruiting” Program for a large multi-national company frustrated me so deeply that I enrolled into seminary just to see if I could learn what it would take for a person or organization to have a true conversion experience. Most people who … More “LieVersity” and “In-True-Sion”: What People Aren’t Saying About Why Diversity Programs Fail
On July 17, 2016, I preached a sermon entitled “Broken For You”. The idea behind the sermon came down to the idea that if people took 100% responsibility for their lives the whole world would be transformed in an instant. The spark for the sermon came from Jesus’ teaching that those who desire to follow … More If You Don’t Bear Your Cross, Someone Else Will Have To
In recent sermon, I chose to write a letter to my name in order to express to the congregation how in our society something as small as our name can be used by some people to discriminate. I further illustrated my point by giving them a list of famous people who changed their names because … More In The Name of Justice
