by jakeowensby | Aug 11, 2023 | Matthew 15:21-28, Proper 15 A
When my daughter was diagnosed with autism, I had a few choice words for God. On a long evening walk under the stars, I railed at the unfairness of it all. At God’s unfairness. “Honestly, the kid’s barely out of preschool and she’s already undergone open heart...
by jakeowensby | Feb 20, 2023 | Uncategorized
Kate Bowler had been suffering bouts of debilitating intestinal distress for some time. Eventually a specialist diagnosed her condition as cancer. Stage IV cancer. She was 35 years old. A rising star at Duke. Married to her high school sweetheart. And the mother of...
by jakeowensby | Jan 19, 2023 | Lenten Study, Matthew 4:12-23
Despite the heat and humidity of late-July Florida, I strapped on my shoes for an afternoon run. The relief of getting out of the house and capturing a few quiet minutes on my own outweighed the threat of heat stroke. Andrew, our firstborn, was just a few weeks...
by jakeowensby | Oct 14, 2022 | Luke 18:1-8
When we returned to the room, Meredith was sitting up in bed. Puffy—her lovingly battered stuffed rabbit—was tucked under one arm. She was sipping apple juice from a straw. A Barney video was playing on the TV. And every nurse on duty in the Pediatric Cardiac ICU...
by jakeowensby | Sep 30, 2022 | Luke 17:5-10
Don Armentrout stood tall enough to ride the big rollercoasters at Disney World and Six Flags. His balding head formed a kind of natural tonsure, and he peered through eyewear that resembled twin magnifying glasses. When I was a seminarian at Sewanee, Don delivered...
by jakeowensby | Sep 9, 2022 | Luke 15:1-10
My maternal grandparents Joseph and Marie were joined at the hip. My mother and I spent a segment of my childhood and all of my teen years under their roof. They continued to speak German to each other and to my mother. They used broken English with me. Nevertheless,...
