08/14/2025
What’s In A Benediction?
Last Sunday I used one of my favorite benedictions.
It was inspired by a saying from about ten years ago:
Dance like there's nobody watching,
Love like you'll never be hurt,
Sing like nobody's listening,
And live like it's heaven on earth.”
It was popular in part because it fit so well with the Christian virtues of Joy, Love and so on. I latched onto it immediately, but of course fiddled with it over the years. The benediction I used this last Sunday is my current and favorite version:
May you Believe like you’ve never known doubt,
Forgive like you’ve never been hurt,
Give like you’ll always have enough,
And Live as if God is right there with you,
which of course He is and always will be. Amen!
A benediction is sometimes called a dismissal with blessing.
And what I like about these blessings is that they are very much at the core of who we are as followers of Jesus. The only one missing from the list is love (which was mentioned plenty in the sermon). There’s faith, forgiveness, generosity, and the promise of God’s continued presence.
When I think about what is unique and essential about the teaching and ministry of Jesus I usually say that he:
Accepted the unacceptable
Forgave the unforgivable
Loved the unlovable
So that we might believe the impossible—
(That we may do all the above ourselves, through his grace.)
There are so many moments in worship that we don’t usually pay close attention to, but are important nevertheless. Calls to worship, pastoral prayers, affirmations as simple as “the word of God for the people of God,” the poetry of the hymns and praise songs we sing, and everything that goes along with the sacraments.
It is worthwhile to stop and reflect on them every once and while.
Maybe even a short, pithy benediction.
Archived Posts
What just missed the cut for Sunday’s Sermon
Naaman’s servants may actually become one of the hidden gems of the sermon. They say, essentially: “If the prophet had told you to do something difficult, you would have done it.”
One of the Longest Benedictions I Ran Out of Time to Share
Maybe you know the story of how Joseph and Mary accidentally left Jesus at the gas station on their way home from Jerusalem. Well, not the gas station bathroom in Jesus’ case. Joe and Mary are far down the road before they realize Jesus isn’t with them...
So many quips and quotes...
So little time to preach
I wonder what Mary and Martha’s phones might look like:
* Martha = the open browser with 27 tabs
* Mary = the single window that matters
* Psalm 46 = God saying, “Close the tabs.”
Quotable Outtakes That Didn’t Make the Sermon This Week
“When you try to control everything, you don’t just exhaust yourself—you quietly replace trust in God with trust in you.” & more
There is a challenge when it comes to preaching the Word of God.
Preachers are called to open up and interpret the word—inspired and written down thousands of years ago—and make it relevant to a very different world. On top of that there’s a degree of persuasion that goes along with the process.
What Jessica Really Meant to Say in Her Sermon…
When Jessica or Rick or a guest preacher takes the pulpit it’s hard for me to write a One More Thing Blog. I can’t share with you what didn’t make it into the sermon because I have no idea, not having written or delivered it.
Jesus Keeps On Ruining Funerals!
I didn’t have anything this last week that didn’t end up in the sermon. No catchy illustrations that didn’t make the cut. No theological insights that slowed down the main point. No one can ruin a funeral like Jesus. Told as I saw it and that was it. So I did some quick research and I thought I’d share just a reminder of what Easter is all about.