For a while now I’ve been feeling more and more out of touch with contemporary Christianity. It feels as if the problems it’s trying to solve, and the concerns it has, aren’t part of the world in which I live. This sense of displacement is felt more keenly in the way people perceive worship. I…
Tag: Worship
An Introspective Heart
As I wrote some notes Wednesday night on the passage I’m preaching this Sunday 1, I found myself listening to music written by Rich Mullins. I don’t typically listen to Christian music, and usually can’t stand any music with lyrics while I write, but there’s something about Rich Mullins’ music which captures my heart. Rich…
The Value of Worship
Christmas is on a Sunday this year, and I’ve been hearing a good deal of chatter about what a “problem” this creates. There is an assumption people won’t come because “Christmas is family time 1.” This notion of a Sunday Christmas being a problem is actually a sign of a larger problem which spans across…
Remembrance
Today being 9/11, I wrestled with how to properly reflect on this day in our country’s history. As a rule I do not allow patriotic celebrations in worship, as the actions we take in worship reveal to what or whom our worship is directed 1. And yet it is right to remember this day —…
Sick day
I am well into my 14 year as the Pastor of Central Baptist Church, today will be only the second time I’ve missed worship because of illness. Some people might think, “Yay, day off!” But that’s not me. I look forward to worship, and feel unbalanced when I’m unable to participate. To me, worship is…
Keeping promises
Today I’m preaching on the “Song of the Sea1.” It’s an important song of victory, as it’s theology helps create the ethos of Ancient Israel. It reiterates the delusions humans make of their own power using Pharaoh’s voice. It highlights the LORD’s immense power over all things – even to the point of causing the…
