There are sometimes that I wish there was no such thing as a sermon. I love to be able to preach, but I have found that when I got nothin', when the mental tank is empty, it's difficult to actually say anything that remotely feels or sounds like, in a set period of time, words that are meant to uplift, empower, and/or challenge. I have not always been one to not have anything to say. But, at this moment, I feel like my life is has been moving so fast, and has accelerated to light speed this past week, that I have not actually had time to reflect on how I can even use a moment of my life as an example in this upcoming sermon I am to preach this weekend. SO, I got nothing.

For example, in the church year, this upcoming weekend is known as "Christ the King" weekend. It's basically a time in which we are told once a year just how Christ is the king of the world, as opposed to Jack extending his arms out on a doomed ship's nose. And so, in order to somewhat challenge me and to forgo the sheer boredom of this weekend (don't shoot...it's just my opinion), I chose to preach on the New Testament lesson from Colossians 1:11-20. The first four verses in this group do not add anything to the overall story, so I chose 15-20 instead. I have read the first chapter of Colossians since seminary and have never really grasped its full meaning. Try reading anything in Arabic, and you will know what I mean. And now, I am choosing to preach on six verses and it's almost driving me to drink...alot (strange dichotomy of wanting to drink and wanting to write a sermon).

At this point, I have written around eight pages and I have still not arrived at a point where I can begin to wrap it up...not that I am saying too much, but because I don't know where to go next. UGH! You know, it's like trying to write some kind of serious extemporaneous speech for high school senior English EVERY WEEKEND! I have found that when a sermon bombs, it bombs badly. There really is no sermon that is so-so. It either really holds together and is solid. OR, it is really painful to speak and to hear. Let me tell ya, there is no sensation in the world like when a sermon is falling flat and you know it. I just shrug my head and think I did the best I could. So, if any of you theologians, agnostics, or even atheists want to give me a hand at this awfully thick biblical text, by all means and under the grace of Kierkegaard himself, may it be preached with zero knowledge of how the hell to do so. Can you tell I am banging my head against the sacristy closet door on this one? Although, the sacristy holds the communion wine, so maybe a drink or two... Nah, I get my own big chalice full during church. I will wait 'til then after I have preached this doosy! More later...