We need Advent as a reminder that Jesus’s coming makes great things possible. Light that first Advent candle, and imagine a world without swords and spears, without missilies and tanks, and look forward to the One who comes to bring light into the dark world, trailing plows and fruit hooks with him.

It was a privilege to be invited by Rev. Todd Harris, District Superintendent of the Northwest Texas District of the North Texas Conference, UMC, and Rev. Johnny Irish, retired pastor from the North Texas Conference, to be the lecturer for a Holy Land Tour November 7-10, 2022! We planned it as a preaching pilgrimage, whose purpose was to help pastors process their firsthand experiences of scenes from the first Testament and from Jesus’ life to share them with their congregations back home.