The Amazing No Rehearse Open Cast All Church Christmas Pageant An Idea For Your Congregation? by Ken Rummer “Nobody wants to direct the Christmas pageant this year. And Saturday rehearsal times are already claimed by kids’ sports and family activities. What are we going to do?” Back in my pastoring days, the Christian Ed Committee… Read more »
December 2, 2022
Sightings
The Amazing No Rehearse Open Cast All Church Christmas Pageant An Idea For Your Congregation? by Ken Rummer “Nobody wants to direct the Christmas pageant this year. And Saturday rehearsal times are already claimed by kids’ sports and family activities. What are we going to do?” Back in my pastoring days, the Christian Ed Committee… Read more »
Wind swirl and leaf dance From the study window by Ken Rummer *** The leaves are dancing today. It’s mostly a circle dance just off the southwest corner of the church, but from time to time there are skips and even high jumps as the winter-brown leaves whirl and spin to a music I can’t… 
Wisdom for Two Pair-bonding advice for next-level relationships by Ken Rummer Wind out of the northwest, crisp and chill. I’m wishing I’d worn one more layer for this morning’s walk, maybe a shell over the fleece. Brr. Autumn is here. Beside the trail, milkweed pods spill their tufted seeds. And across the second gravel road,… 
This is the way Reading sidewalks as a spiritual practice by Ken Rummer Fortune tellers read palms. Ancient Etruscans read the livers of sheep. I’ve been reading sidewalks. Dark purple splatters? Evidence of a mulberry tree near by. BB-sized rounds crunching under foot? Choke cherry pits. And that gray, leaf-shaped stain,… 
Does wonder have a shelf-life? Musings on wow-fade by Ken Rummer Does wonder have a shelf-life? Does it come with a best-if-used-by date? I’m asking because of the mountains. Just to be clear, we don’t have mountains in Iowa. Our elevation leader, Hawkeye Point, only makes it up to 1670 feet. We have bluffs, we… 
Of geese and bikes and Christian worship Learning the apprentice way by Ken Rummer A meadowlark sings from a tall prairie stem, rabbits dart back into trailside grass, and six young geese, webbed feet churning, push across the pond. They aren’t on their own. A parent goose leads the procession and another parent goose brings… 
Hope like a green shoot What I noticed preaching for presbytery by Ken Rummer “Like a green shoot pushing up through scorched earth.” I had just spoken these words when I noticed the listening. Heads tilted for a better view. Silence pooled in the pause. They were listening, really listening. I was preaching for… 
New leaves and old fears Reading spring with the help of Ezekiel by Ken Rummer When is it time to plant corn? When oak leaves are the size of a squirrel’s ear. I remembered this bit of Iowa folk wisdom on my walk this morning, so I gave the burr oak a closer look…. 
Preparing taxes A spiritual practice? by Ken Rummer With the April 15 deadline looming, my wife and I are once again taking on Form 1040 with its schedules and worksheets. We are tackling taxes. Early on in our marriage, we discovered two shared activities that really stressed our relationship: hanging wall paper and doing our… 
What the tree said Picking up on an invitation to pray by Ken Rummer Spanish moss hanging from branches like gnome beards. Palm fronds dancing with the passing breeze. Lizards darting from flower bed to sunny stucco. I’m looking out at my sister-in-law’s Florida backyard. One of her trees has grown a lot since our…