Category Archives: spirituality

O Little Town of Bethlehem

Posted on December 29, 2018 by tmrichmond3

In 1865, after the civil war, after Lincoln’s tragic death, a Philadelphia Episcopalian priest visited the Holy Land. While he was there he took a horseback ride from Jerusalem to Bethlehem on Christmas Eve, so he could attend Christmas Eve … Continue reading →

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Joy to the World

Posted on December 27, 2018 by tmrichmond3

Introduction A young child was once chastised by his minister father, for keeping his eyes open while he prayed. The boy said to his father,  A little mouse for want of stairs ran up a rope to say its prayers. … Continue reading →

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O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

Posted on December 26, 2018 by tmrichmond3

  Introduction I love Christmas for many reasons, but one is that during Christmas we get to see, very clearly, the link between the Old and the New Testaments. On the whole there two mistakes people make in trying to … Continue reading →

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Mighty Mites

Posted on November 13, 2018 by tmrichmond3

  Lucifer vs. Tit for Tat During the Cuban missile crisis in the early 1960s, social scientists were working on how to respond to the nuclear threat in ways that would stop either side from blowing up the world. If … Continue reading →

Posted in Church, Church Growth, Community, Compassion, Courage, forgiveness, Jesus, ministry, Mission, Pastoral Ministry, Preaching, Sermons, Social Justice, Social Ministry, spirituality, Theology, Wealth | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Making the Right Mistakes

Posted on October 27, 2018 by tmrichmond3

The great jazz musician Thelonious Monk once told one of his sidemen, “You’re making all the wrong mistakes!” Monk was known as musician who did things differently, who played with a kind of dissonance that sounded like he was making … Continue reading →

Posted in Church, Compassion, Jazz, ministry, Mission, Musings, Pastoral Ministry, Social Ministry, spirituality, Thelonious Monk | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Leading From Below

Posted on October 22, 2018 by tmrichmond3

  An old friend of mine, Joe Moran, took his son to a Catholic worship service when he was visiting his family in New York State. Joe was a former priest, and his family was very Catholic. After Joe left … Continue reading →

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What Does God Care About?

Posted on October 22, 2018 by tmrichmond3
Posted in Church, Church Growth, Jesus, Meme, ministry, Mission, Presbyterian, Spiritual Growth, spirituality, Worship | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Diner Theology

Posted on October 20, 2018 by tmrichmond3

I love eating in diners. You how to tell if you are in a good diner? Your coffee cup is never empty. There is always a waitress coming by to fill it. You get to half a cup and this … Continue reading →

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A Holy Yielding

Posted on October 17, 2018 by tmrichmond3

    This is a piece I wrote in 2008, after doing a workshop for the Quaker national gathering. At the time I was worshiping at a Quaker meeting, and considered myself to me more Quaker than anything else. I … Continue reading →

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That One Thing…

Posted on October 15, 2018 by tmrichmond3

  I was 17 when I had a faith encounter that changed my life. The story of the encounter was not so dramatic, but what happened immediately after was. At the time I was working in a professional summer stock … Continue reading →

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