We met Triff and Mary at the flower festival at St Mary’s Church in Topsham, a village in the southwest of England, which was identical to the image in your mind right now of a flower festival at St Mary’s Church in Topsham, in the southwest of England. Years ago Mary had seen their house, a place called Wixels, on holiday in Topsham while Triff was still a practicing architect in Norwich on the other side of England.
The outstretched hands of Tom Lee and the white man in the water, the outstretched hands of Jesus and Peter, are reminders that the story of our faith is God reaching out with hands of love to lift us up.
Being a child of the age, my morning newspaper ritual involves a cup of coffee and opening the Daily Memphian app on my phone. Which is where, on Wednesday, I saw that the final lineup for the Beale Street Music Festival had been announced.
Dear Jesus, son of Joseph,
Congratulations on writing your first sermon and submitting it for publication here at Pulpit Press, Inc.
Getting a call late on Saturday afternoon to preach, I was relieved to remember that today we celebrate the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple. It is a sweet story and one I need to hear. Though I don’t know about you, I expect you, as I do, feel the need of a story of hope and optimism, of promise and completion.