I'm kinda over the phrase, "seminary didn't prepare me for this. I know that clergy use it as comic relief and a way to take out frustration, but the truth is that my seminary education (along with other life experience) DID prepare me for leadership during this time. A big shout out today to Candler…
No More Apologies (or Labels)
"Oh, I'm not that kind of Christian." I have uttered those words more times than I can count. As a child, playing with neighbors, in the halls of middle and high school, in social gatherings in college, in offices I've worked in, and now, as an ordained minister, seemingly to most every person I meet.…
The First Birth Annoucement
We love to get birth announcements in the mail. The announcement usually arrives with a picture of the baby, the proud parents and sister and brothers' names and their weight and height. For a baseball card comparison, it's life's rookie card. Jesus' parents didn't have to send out a birth announcement because of an angel…
Let Every Heart Prepare Him Room
I get it. I really do. The recent terror attacks abroad and the Syrian refugee crisis is a tough issue. Our elected leaders have a really difficult task, in terms of deciding how to balance welcoming people into our country while maintaining a level of security that protects our nation. I get it. The terror…
The Church’s Game 7 Moment
There has been a great article going around the web that originated with the Humans of New York site, written by a women in New York studying to be a rabbi. She makes the correlation between being in the crowd at an important baseball game and feeling the emotion and contentedness that comes when people…
Not Knowing What to Say, But Saying It Anyway- Random Thoughts on Gun Violence
To be honest, I am not quite sure what to say. Perhaps that is not the best way to start a blog where you are trying to say something. So, this may seem like a post made up of random thoughts. I think that's okay. I know many people do have a lot to say when…
#Kellyonmymind, the Bible, and Capital Punishment
Today is a sad day because one of God's children, one of God's beloved, has been executed by the state of Georgia. Capital Punishment is nothing new of course; Jesus was executed by the empire, the prevailing kingdom of the day. Kelly Gissendaner's story was unique in that is was not her crime that was…
The One Thing That Really Bothers Me About Kim Davis
One could see this was coming. When the SCOTUS ruled that same sex marriage was legal in all 50 states, we knew that someone, somewhere would refuse to issue marriage licenses to same sex couples. We know now that it isKim Davis, in Rowan County, Kentucky. There has been a lot of really good stuff…
From Danny- Lord, Teach Us to Pray
In any relationship, what happens when you don't communicate? The relationship grows stale, it doesn't grow. This is why prayer is so essential to the spiritual life. Phillip Yancey writes, "prayer is cooperation with God, a consent that opens the way for grace to work." Many make the mistake of believing that Christianity is about…
That Old Time Religion(s): College Football and Church
The southern part of the United States has two old time religions-college football and church. Our neighbors homes are currently adorned with different flags from about fifteen different teams. The truth of the matter is that in the fall, a large number of people spend their time doing two things on weekends, attending football games…
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