Wings of the Morning

Wings of the Morning By Rev. Alicia Randolph Rapking His name was Johan Conrad Goldtman, born in Gundheim, Germany in 1653 he died in Canada in 1711 and he was my 8th great grandfather. Over 360 years is a long time ago and it surprises me, still, that I have been able to trace my … Continue reading Wings of the Morning

God is Not Absent

On the first Sunday of Lent, the Gospel lectionary reading was Luke’s recording of Jesus in the desert, the Wilderness. Each year, the Gospel for the first Sunday in Lent is one of the three recordings found in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. It is a powerful reading for me, one that I never tire of … Continue reading God is Not Absent

Seeking Truth

At the beginning of this year I learned that several of my friends were choosing words to claim as their word for the year. Claiming a word would give opportunities for exploring the deep meaning of the word and what the word would mean to their lives. I thought that the practice was interesting and … Continue reading Seeking Truth

Snowy Stillness

Snowy Stillness By Rev. Alicia Randolph Rapking This morning I awoke to 18 inches of snow in my yard and snow still falling from the sky. There is the prediction that the snow will last into the evening hours. Could it be that we will receive the 20-30 inches that are now possible? My southern … Continue reading Snowy Stillness

Emmanuel Still

For me, already, it had been a difficult fall and I was looking forward to some time after Christmas and New Year’s when I could rest and reflect on the events that had made the fall difficult. I remember that year to be a year when I buried so many people from the churches and … Continue reading Emmanuel Still

We Need Advent!

We Need Advent! I have one great fear in life and many, many smaller fears. I am terrified of flying. I fear the loss of control that I feel as soon as I walk onto an airplane. I fear the small chance of crash every take off and landing. These fears are huge for me … Continue reading We Need Advent!

By the Light of the Moon

Celebrating Thanksgiving this past week has been sheer joy for me! On Tuesday of last week, my family traveled down to join my cousin Jane and most of her family at Myrtle Beach. We haven’t celebrated a Thanksgiving together since the 1980’s and so I had been anticipating this time together for months. As I … Continue reading By the Light of the Moon