Author: John Willingham
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More Important Than Getting Wet
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” –Psalm 119:105 I have a friend from my college days named Elliott who served for a time as a mission co-worker in Port Edward, South Africa. He was an economics major as was I and his work after college was in Read more
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The Blessing of Community
“For where two or three are gathered together in my name, I am there among them.”–Matthew 18:20 One of the blessings of this blog for me has been its reach over the four months since launching. Counted among subscribers and others who see a post through social media are family members and individuals from each Read more
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The Power of Hymns
“When they had sung the hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.”–Mark 14:26 One Sunday morning, early in my pastoral career, while leading worship I became aware of a commotion in the sanctuary. Looking to my left, I saw that an older woman in the congregation named Frances Wright had slumped over. I Read more
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A Fearless Faith
“So with many other exhortations, he proclaimed the good news to the people.” –Luke 3:18 One day during my North Carolina pastorate, our Clerk of Session invited me to accompany him to a golf tournament called the Masters. It’s held each April in Augusta, Georgia. I had ridden by the course many times as a Read more
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Signs and Wonders
“Now on that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus …talking with each other about all these things that had happened.” –Luke 24:13-14 A year or so ago, I stopped by a gas station on my way to the church. While I had been to that station many times before, Read more
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Talking About Death
“Thanks be to God, who give us the victory, through our Lord Jesus Christ.” –1 Corinthians 15:57 On October 30th of last year my phone signaled an incoming FaceTime call. The name on the screen identified it as coming from my daughter-in-law, but when I answered it turned out to be our 7-year-old granddaughter. She Read more
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Words of Healing
“Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed.”–James 5:16 Late in my junior year of college, a group of friends and I were planning our strategy for dorm assignments. Seniors in those days had first dibs in the room lottery. It wasn’t unusual for juniors Read more
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The Second Time
“Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you.”–Ephesians 4:32 In this blog, I am using the term “grace” in a broad sense. That is intentional and reflects my understanding of the variety of times when we receive a gift in those everyday encounters of life. Yet in Read more
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When We Can’t See It
“The LORD God helps me… therefore I have set my face like flint, and I know that I shall not be put to shame.”–Isaiah 50:7 “When the days drew near for him to be taken up, Jesus set his face to go to Jerusalem.”–Luke 9:51 Ten years ago, a man named Don Wright died. He Read more
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The Place to Start
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son.” –John 3:16a During a clergy gathering years ago, I had the opportunity to visit Transitions of Columbia, South Carolina. That group helps move individuals from homelessness to permanent housing. Since its founding in 2011, Transitions has placed more than 3400 persons. It’s a Read more