Dear Church: In my Easter message I quoted the poet Ranier Maria Rilke: “Go to the limits of your longing.” The line comes from his Book of Hours. The full poem is as follows:      God speaks to each of us as he makes us, then walks with us...

Dear Church: University Baptist Church was founded as a mission of First Baptist Church to the University of Texas in 1908. On the occasion of the church’s 75th anniversary in 1983, the congregation expressed its gratitude “to those great-hearted people who conceived the dream of the University Baptist Church with...

Dear Church: Earlier this year we inserted into the church’s announcements a prayer request: “Please pray for our Discernment Committee, the staff and the congregation as we step further into the wonder and fear of what the Spirit is doing at the corner of 22nd and Guadalupe.” The prayer request...

Every spring I watch astounded by the new life that sprouts from the trees, flowers, and vegetables in my back yard.  Little miracles are happening everyday in my back yard. And at the same time, I cannot help but also think about the death and decomposition that is happening in...

Friends, Of the Christian holy days, Easter is my absolute favorite. The music is loud (and we know I love some loud music), the words are triumphant, the flowers are fresh and blooming for Springtime, and there is the incredible joy of the resurrection. But Lent is heavy, Y’all. This...

Dear Church: This Sunday following worship the congregation will continue its discussion about extending the interim process. I realize now that this is how we should have framed the discussion — “extending the interim process” rather than “extending the interim pastor’s contract.” I am a resource for the process, but...