How a church died

Tonight our association held their annual meeting at a church which shut down several years ago. I’ve been in the building several times since it closed down, and it’s always depressed me — the musty smell, the empty space, the sheer amount of lost potential. Until tonight, however, I’d never quite figured out how the…

Hello 2013

The last several years as December has drawn to a close I’ve taken time to reflect on the year past. As I prepared to sit down this year and write my 2012 reflection, however, I drew a blank. Instead, I began to think about my hopes for 2013. So now I write to you my…

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.”…

Journey theme

I love the metaphor of a “spiritual journey.”  We move from one place – be it physical, spiritual, or a combination of the two – and wind up somewhere else entirely.  This sense of journey is present in a good many pastors (and other Christians) who come into a church and quickly discover that they…

If I could plant a church

I’m a small church pastor. In a lot of ways I like being a small church pastor. After all, the smaller environment allows me a lot more freedom to experiment and see what catches on. Larger congregations tend to be more corporate minded. I don’t do well in an environment which brings cubicles to mind….

Believe Different

The week Steve Jobs died was a bit of a whirlwind for me. I had been at a “vision day” with fresh expressions and came away incredibly encouraged, the next day Steve Jobs pass away and as I looked back on his life and accomplishments I was struck by (infamous?) passion to never compromise on…