• Key themes for the Advent season include expectancy and expectations. Mario Albertinelli's The Visitation captures the one and leads us to reflect on the other. As you observe Mary and Elizabeth, in this poignant depiction of the narrative found in Luke 1 - perhaps you can anticipate the senses of expectancy and expectation that both women carry. Reflections on Mary and Elizabeth Consider, that both women are pregnant for the first time - Mary in her young age as a virgin and Elizabeth in her old age as one who has been barren. Both women have been divinely told that they will have sons. Both women have been given a glimpse of their son's future. Both women are alone - Mary

    Dec 14,
  • While the offseason can mean many things for professional athletes the most integral part of this time is to capitalize on the opportunity to find rest. With the Major League Soccer season beginning preseason preparations in February and the championship game being held in mid-December, there is little true rest to be had for the players and their families who endure such a lengthy season. Even the offseason, with its time away from the game presents many different opportunities that get in the way of taking that rest. For some players, they can spend several weeks overseas training with other clubs. Others will be invited into camp for their respective national teams to play in friendly matches. Still others have

    Nov 09,
  • During seminary, I recall a particular moment when I was contemplating what future ministry would look like: one scenario, meant fundraising for salary and ministry to work with the Colorado Rapids as chaplain; the other scenario, meant working and doing the chaplaincy within the "margins" of life and work. As I relayed my fear and aversion of trying to raise money to my best friend, he simply said, "Oh, you must be an Ezra." His statement caught me off-guard and I begged an elaboration. He proceeded to share that in looking at different personality types, it had been helpful for him to compare the contemporaries of Ezra and Nehemiah. Both men of God, they both made a return to Jerusalem in

    Sep 14,
  • At the most recent Colorado Rapids home game, the club recognized the 5th member of the Gallery of Honor, current coach and former player Pablo Mastroeni. As a player, Mastroeni was the Rapids' most decorated player - named to the MLS All-Star Team in his first seven years with the club (2002-2008) he earned Rapids MVP honors in 2007, 2008 and 2010. He currently holds club records for most regular season games played (225), games started (217) and minutes played (18,669), and served as the Rapids captain from late 2004 until mid-2013. His tenure as coach, just beginning, he has a record of 8-6-6 as of this posting. Mastroeni joins Marcelo Balboa, Paul Bravo, Chris Henderson, and John Spencer whose names

    Jul 27,
  • The red line - it is every coach's nemesis in Major League Soccer. It's simple: teams above the red line when the season ends gain entry into the playoffs for the MLS Cup. Teams below the red line go home early. Every coach handles the red line differently - some watch it closely from the beginning of the year to the end. Others pay it no attention (or, so they say) choosing rather to take it "one game at a time." Some coaches play through a thousand scenarios and calculate how many points are needed to be above the red line when the season ends. But amidst formulaic calculations and all manner of worry and concern, the red line represents

    May 04,

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