Where’s the hope?

Driving home today I spotted some Christmas decorations adorning a house around the corner from mine. Prominently displayed in the set up were three words – Peace, Love, and Joy. As decorations go, I’ll take prominent displays of these words over all the inflatable Santa Clauses on the planet. These words also match up nicely…

Worldly Focus

This photograph fascinates me. In the foreground is a parking meter, a symbol of the power of money in our culture. In the background is a church building, which is supposed to be a symbol of the power spirituality, specifically Christian spirituality, has on our culture. It would be easy to talk about the contrast…

Considering the other

This week I preached on Hebrews 10:19–25. The sermon was ok but, for me, the most compelling section was the last paragraph – so I’ll spend some time unpacking it’s ideas a bit more fully this morning. More and more I’ve been hearing, from Christians near my age and younger, how we don’t need the…

I am weary

To my fellow disciples of Jesus Christ. I am weary. I am weary of being viewed as “suspect” because of the translation of the Bible I read, my ignorance of the latest Christian music, or because I have a mistrust of large-event evangelism. I'm your brother in Christ, and we are called to proclaim the…

Consolation

After the results of the election came in I started noticed a trend in my social media steams. It was a trend which, to be honest, I've come to expect – yet I found it jarring all the same. The trend was this. Among my more conservative friends I began to see remarks like, “Depressed,…

Pastoral Expectations

Today I was out at a party where a member of central was also attending. At one point he joked, “I need to watch what I say, I'm sitting next to my pastor.” This brought forth a cry from the other side of the room, “Pastor's shouldn't judge, they can't judge you, pastors shouldn't judge.”…