Sunday, August 10, 2025

I Have Learned So Much

"I have learned so much from God that I can no longer call myself a Christian, a Hindu, a Muslim, a Buddhist, a Jew. The Truth has shared so much of Itself with me that I can no longer call myself a man, a woman, an angel, or even a pure soul. Love has befriended Hafiz so completely it has turned to ash and freed me of every concept and image my mind has ever known." Hafiz, From: ‘The Gift’

What a liberation! What release! What a true acceptance of the Divine, however it is that we name such. I truly wonder if this is the greatest call of Christianity: to live a life so filled with love, to live in ways that are so Christ-like that labeling ourselves as anything other than “The Love of God” will be shortsighted.

Of course, for me, I understand this love most clearly through Jesus and his stories. It is through Judeo-Christian texts that I came to hear about God and Christ. The context of all those stories can be reduced to (or expanded to, depending on our mindset) “The Love of God.” The familiar John 3:16 reminds us that, “God so LOVED the world” that God showed up to be here with us. God’s presence is rooted in love. God showed up to remind us of love and the extent to which God would go to express that love and save us from ourselves.

Perhaps it is time to let go of our labels, identifying those who are in and those who are out, our dichotomies and our limitations and instead come to Hafiz’s realization: The “Love of God” is so boundless and transformative that it transcends any label, meets us right where we are, and awakes within us a love that is boundless and present in all of creation.

Mark

Sunday, July 20, 2025

Dear Friends,

Every summer, media outlets race to crown the “song of the summer.” This year, the winner seems to be up for debate (though a quick Google search suggests the strong contenders might be “Ordinary” by Alex Warren and “Manchild” by Sabrina Carpenter).

Yet when I think of the summer songs that have stayed with me over the years, I’m drawn to a different kind of soundtrack. These are the songs whose lyrics never change, but somehow I do. They take me back to who I once was, even as they ground me in who I am today. They remind me of what remains constant—and of the miracle that everything changes, including me.

There are songs that carried me through heartbreaks that once felt insurmountable, songs that reminded me that joy still existed in lonely seasons, and songs that encouraged me to dance the night away when my body moved with a little more ease than it does today.

Church music has its own kind of earworms. These melodies and messages mark our faith journeys. Some hymns become anchors, resurfacing when we need them most. Perhaps you’ve even encountered a “pop” song in worship that helped you see your spiritual life in a new light…or a hymn that hums in your mind long after the service ends…or a line of music that gave voice to your heart when your words had run dry.

What are your songs of the summer? What are your songs of the soul?

I look forward to seeing you this Sunday as we celebrate the connecting power of music, community, and faith.

Love,

Cheryl

Sunday, July 13, 2025

Dear Friends,

You are already being saved. A faint gleam of heaven is already inside of you. 

CS Lewis took, in my opinion, a very pragmatic approach to faith. He supported his ideas with scripture, he was clear on good and evil, heaven and hell. As a literature professor at both Oxford and Cambridge, his approach does not surprise us, right? It seems in line with my images of these institutions: proof, theory, process…maybe even….stuffiness? Then he writes something like the passage above and I realize, again, the balance with which Lewis approached his faith: Learning coupled with wonder. System coupled with mystery. Heaven and hell coupled with humanity. Mere Christianity coupled with Lions, Witches and Wardrobes.

Consistently, the reading of any of Lewis’ writings taps into my intellect and my giddy wonder. Scripture does the same. At once, I am implored to recognize my brokenness while also having my holiness uplifted. I am a child of God positioned to witness the horror of the cross. I am called by God and humbled by my own denial. 

This is a vital process for our faith journey. We must find balance. We must know that this gleam of heaven is inside of us while remembering that the fullness of goodness remains a goal rather than a current reality. While redemption is already ours, we are still actively being saved. While we are sure of God, our faith must be open to doubt so that we continue to grow. We must know the foundation of our faith while embracing the mystery.

This coming Sunday, we will take a look at the story of the Good Samaritan. A story about a person who was “bad” doing good things. A story about those who are holy doing unholy things. A story that addresses doubts about heaven with glimpses of where heaven may lie. A story which broadens our understanding of salvation. In short the story of the Good Samaritan invites us to find the balance. For a moment, we are the injured, then the Levite or priest, sometimes we are the Samaritan. Always, we possess a gleam of heaven. Always we are being redeemed.

Sunday, June 29, 2025

Dear Friends,
 
I am so happy that I will be with you on Sunday!
 
I’m feeling renewed and hopeful, not only by a positive trajectory in my treatment, but by all the affirmations of God’s love that keeps showing up in surprising ways, especially from you. It has been both holy and healing. My heart is full.  
 
Catholic priest Henri Nouwen wrote about the joy we experience when we encounter the love of God.  He says, “joy is a gift that is there even when we are sorrowful, even when we are in pain, even when things are difficult in our lives. The joy that Jesus offers is a joy that exists in very, very difficult situations…. It is something that remains with us.”  
 
I look forward to seeing you on Sunday and sharing some of this joy in person.
 
Love,
Cheryl

Sunday, June 15, 2025

Dear Friends,

I am currently in Louisville, KY, at the National Presbyterian Center. We are planning the Presbyterian Youth Triennium (PYT), a joint event between the Presbyterian Church (USA) and the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. I’ve worked with this event over the years in different roles. This year, I am working alongside a friend and artist to create the visual installations for the PYT.

This is a ton of work. Many late nights, flights to Louisville, time away from home, planning followed by rethinking and replanning, starting and stopping, starting again, and so on. There are vendors, decorators, riggers, volunteers, and so many other pieces of the puzzle. It can be overwhelming at times, but the inspiring moments far outweigh the challenging ones.

Through it all, the sentiment that arises over and over again is hope. Each time I witness the thousands of young people coming together to learn and worship, to dream and share, I have hope.

I have hope, first, for the church. I know that as long as we encourage this type of programming, encourage young people, and invest in their well-being, the church will survive and thrive. I also find hope for humanity. These youth are not only the future; they are the now. Through their volunteerism, activism, curiosity, compassion, and faithfulness, they model what it means to be engaged citizens. They are not simply watching the world; they are living fully. 

It is not difficult to hope when a part of the PYT.

Today, I pray that this will inspire you. Hope is unfolding, and new generations are grasping the possibilities this hope offers. If you are young, live fully. If you are old, do the same. And in the midst of it all, let us encourage one another to hope. God is faithful to us and, I believe, giving life to this hopefulness so that we may be closer to becoming that which God is calling us to be.

Mark