All Past Reflections

Ninth Sunday after Pentecost"Things Hoped For, Things Not See" – Rev. Brent Gundlah First Reading (Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16/NRSVUE)Gospel Reading (Luke 12:32-40/NRSVUE) “Do not be afraid,” is what Jesus says in the opening words of today’s gospel reading. Yeah, easy for...

Rev. Brent Gundlah In late seventeenth-century England, a religious movement began that came to known as “deism.” One of deism’s central premises was that religion should be solely based in reason (by what we’re able to observe in the world) rather than on revelation...

Sixth Sunday after PentecostDistractions – Rev. Brent Gundlah First Reading (Ecclesiastes 3:1-8/NRSVUE)Gospel Reading (Luke 10:38-42/NRSVUE) When I was in seminary I did my ministry internship at a UCC church in the town next to the one in which I lived; it was a...

Fifth Sunday after PentecostNeighbors – Rev. Brent Gundlah First Reading (Colossians 1:1-14/NRSVUE)Gospel Reading (Luke 10:25-37/NRSVUE) When they were in high school, my two daughters worked at the same place, about five miles from home, which made for a pretty good...

Fourth Sunday after PentecostHospitality – Rev. Brent Gundlah First Reading (Galatians 6:1-16/NRSVUE)Gospel Reading (Luke 10:1-11,16-20/NRSVUE) When I was a kid, we generally went over to my grandparents’s house for major feasts — Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter and...

Third Sunday after PentecostOpen & Affirming Sunday First Reading (Isaiah 43:1-3/NRSVUE, adapted)Gospel Reading (Matthew 5:13-16/NRSVUE, adapted) At last weekend’s Rocky Mountain Conference Annual Celebration I decided to participate in a workshop entitled...

First Sunday after Pentecost"Trinity" — Rev. Brent Gundlah First Reading (Psalm 8, NRSVUE)Gospel Reading (John 16:12-15, NRSVUE) I was an English major in college but was required to take about half of my classes in other subjects — ones with which I was far less...

Pentecost"The Spirit" — Rev. Brent Gundlah First Reading (Acts 2:1-21, NRSVUE)Gospel Reading (John 14:8-17, NRSVUE) I was in my office this past Tuesday morning, struggling mightily to come up with something to say here today, when it dawned on me that a change of...

Seventh Sunday in Easter"One" — Rev. Brent Gundlah First Reading (Acts 16:16-34/CEB)Gospel Reading (John 17:20-26/CEB) During this season of Easter — which ends next week with the celebration of Pentecost — most our first readings have been from the Acts of the...

Sixth Sunday in EasterEyes to See — Rev. Brent Gundlah First Reading (Acts 16:9-15/CEB)Gospel Reading (John 5:1-9/CEB) The theologian Karl Barth once gave this bit of advice to preachers: “Take your Bible and take your newspaper, and read both. But interpret...