Tomorrow is the first Sunday after the horrific attack in Charleston, South Carolina. I will, with many other pastors across the country, be meditating on this terrorist attack in light of the Christian faith. It’s especially poignant in light of the Scripture I’d picked for this week in back in August of 2014, Ephesians 6:10-18…
Category: Pastoring
An Afternoon with the Ordained
Today I was privileged to head out to an ordination service for a pastor in our local association. As I was hopping into a friend’s car to begin the trek to the church, it dawned on me I hadn’t been to an ordination service for a while. In fact, I believe I accidentally slept through…
Planning Conversation
This past week I had a conversation with some folks who make up the worship circle at Central. We discussed two topics. First, how were we going to lead worship on Sunday’s I’m not present 1. This was handled quickly, and in a way which includes a larger body of folks who said they wanted…
Processing Humility
Yesterday was one of those days where I was woefully aware of how inadequate I am compared to the calling placed on my life. Please understand, I don’t view being reminded of that as a bad thing. In fact, it’s absolutely necessary. Yesterday had to be one of those days where I did my best…
Focal Points
I’ve spent much of my Christian life in churches which have been shrinking for decades, and that’s colored my understanding of what it means to be a part of the Church. What I’ve discovered, however, is that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It’s helped train me to help encourage positive change. There is a trap…
The Gospel in stained glass – Baptism
Jesus’ baptism is, perhaps, one of the most underplayed elements of the Gospel story. Christians seem to enjoy focusing on the amazing willpower of Jesus in resisting the Devil’s temptations in the wilderness, and so gloss over this watershed moment. We shouldn’t do that. Jesus’ baptism is generally regarded as the start of his public…
