Have Courage (Even When It’s Hard) Each week, at the end of worship, I typically offer the same benediction. It starts, “Go in peace. Have courage.” And every time I say it, a small part of me wonders if that simple phrase, “Have courage” makes me sound crazy. Certainly, many would say it makes me naïve considering the world we live in. Because let’s be honest courage is not easy. It never has been and may be more difficult now than it has been in a long time. I mean our worl

In 2nd Corinthians 8:12 Paul talks about giving, and for once he puts it plainly: “If the eagerness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what one does not have.” This text which was actually saw at another church while attending a Christmas’s concert on their pew offering envelopes really made me think. And what I realized is there is a temptation many of us carry around like a segment of Marley’s chain when we consider our giving. This