“I am old and ready to die. To be truthful, I have been ready to die for years, but right now, I feel ready as I have never been before.”
This quote was taken from one of David Leininger’s sermons titled “Simeon: A Monologue,” in which he takes at one of the most well-known stories in the Bible, Jesus’ Visit to the Temple, and looks at it from a new perspective. Throughout
The 2000 Year Old Preacher, he invites his audience to do the same, observing this holiday season from a new angle.
Consider the story of Mary, the mother of Jesus, and her status as the favored one of God. In his sermon, “Mary’s Complaint,” Leininger references how the favored mother of Jesus does not complain during her complications as she carries the Son of God, but continues to praise His name and remain grateful for the privilege that she had been given.
Leininger uses a variety of topics to ask his congregation to view their lives from a new perspective, using sermons such as:
- Advent 3: Hark the Herald…What? (John 1:6-8, 19-28)
- Nativity of Our Lord: God Bless Santa! (Luke 2:1-20)
- Epiphany 5: Heroines of the Faith (Mark 1:29-39)
So take a step back from viewing the forest and look at the trees, have a seat at the feet of God, and experience new worlds that Leininger paints with his words of wisdom throughout
The 2000 Year Old Preacher.
David E. Leininger was planning to be a "pastor out to pasture" by now having planned retirement from active ministry at the end of 2008, but God had other plans. He and his wife Christie live on Hilton Head Island, SC, a lovely resort destination that is particularly attractive to couples planning destination weddings which has allowed an extension of ministry in officiating these unions. In addition to marrying hundreds of couples, he has served as occasional preacher for nearby congregations. He has previously served parishes in Pennsylvania, Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas. His degrees include the Master of Divinity from Lutheran Theological Seminary in Columbia, South Carolina and the Doctor of Ministry from Erskine Theological Seminary in Due West, South Carolina. Dr. Leininger is the author of six previous books:
A Colorblind Church,
God of Justice: A Look at the Ten Commandments in the 21st Century,
As We Believe, So We Behave: Living the Apostles' Creed, and three volumes of
Lectionary Tales for the Pulpit. He and his wife, Christie are the parents of two grown children and proud grandparents of an ever-growing brood.
