The term “national emergency” has recently taken its place in our vocabulary. The President declared a national emergency in response to what he considers to be a crisis at the US border with Mexico. Of course, there is way more to this declaration, but that’s another discussion for another day. While I don’t disagree that... Continue Reading →
The Privilege of Merely Being Cold
I woke up this morning in my warm, heated house. The first thing I did was turn over and look at my iPhone, which told me the temperature was -7 degrees with a wind chill of around -20. I took a hot shower, picked from an abundance of clothes in order to get dressed, and... Continue Reading →
4 Ways Your Church Can Empower New Leaders
No matter the size of the congregation or the size of the staff, the ministries of a church are primarily carried out through those who make up the church community. Many congregations experience a leadership vacuum, with long-time leaders burned out and newer members not being offered a seat at the table. We make it hard to... Continue Reading →
Reflections for the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr Holiday
Growing up in metro Atlanta meant being aware of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. holiday at an early age. The state of Georgia observed the first MLK federal holiday in January 1986. As a 5th grader, I was stoked to receive a new, additional day off school so soon after the winter break. I grew... Continue Reading →
5 Resolutions for the Local Church in 2019
For most, their experience of the Church universal is the local church. The local church remains the most powerful vehicle through which to spread God's love and grace. Despite what many numbers tell us, I still believe that some of the local church's best days are still ahead of it, especially within mainline traditions. Today,... Continue Reading →
10 Books for 2018
I typically try to read around 50 books each year. Some are for ministry or work, some are for pleasure, and some are academic. Since we are closing out 2018, here are the 10 books that made the biggest impression on me this year. These were not necessarily published this year, however all of these... Continue Reading →
The Important Truth in Every Hallmark Christmas Movie
I enjoy bad television. i don’t mean legitimately bad television, rather television that knows it’s bad, but pretends to be good in a tongue-in-cheek kind of way. During Christmas, that means lots of time spent with the various Hallmark channels. I can’t believe I just wrote that! Mary Michael and I have even come up with our... Continue Reading →
5 Ways to Really Keep Christ in Christmas
Yesterday, I saw a forgotten bumper sticker on the back of a car- Keep Christ in Christmas. It made me think of the manufactured “war on Christmas” that some groups have perpetuated in the last few years. Honestly, it doesn’t really matter if we are saying “Happy Holidays’ or “Merry Christmas” if we ignore the... Continue Reading →
5 Things You Can Do for Your Pastor at Christmas
The administrator at church got in the habit of clearing my calendar and marking me out during the second week of January. The first time it happened I asked her about it. She was smart enough to observe that I put so much into and ran so fast during the Advent season, that once the... Continue Reading →
