This is an approximation of the words I shared during my sermon on May 31, 2020 on Pentecost The Holy Spirit as Agitator We need an agitator in our collective lives. This has been a tragic week in our nation with the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. On a day when we celebrate the…
The Myth of “Seminary Didn’t Prepare Me for This”
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…
We Don’t Agree…Now What?
“Go along so we can get along” How many times in your life has someone told you that? It’s never felt very good to me, when another tells me that I should conform to expectations, just so we can move along. It does not create a fulfilling life nor needed change. We like unity. We…
4 COVID-19 Church Discoveries
Confession time, I don't like the term new normal. Normal is subjective to one's experience and the word normal implies that we all have the same experiences. We are using so much these days because we simply don't know what else to say. We also don't know what life will look like in the coming months, maybe even years.…
A Pastoral Response to Coronavirus
It seems unreal that a couple of months ago many of us had never heard the word coronavirus.Today, that word dominates much of our conversation, our thoughts, even our actions. I write this as a pastor, not someone with any infectious disease knowledge. You don't need me to tell you to wash your hands. Two…
Smudge
What are those on your forehead? What are you giving up? Two questions you rarely hear asked except for one day out of the year- Ash Wednesday. A smudge on your forehead or your hand is always a good conversation starter. I love the act of mixing ashes- the oil, the ash under your fingernails, the smudges…
5 Resolutions for the Church in 2020
2020 is here and if you attended a religious community this weekend, you have perfect attendance for the year. Congratulations! A new year brings new opportunity and a chance to reset our priorities and practices. Church folks are busy taking down the Advent and Christmas decorations and thinking about what 2020 might hold. Many are…
Five Things: Guatemala Trip
Whenever I return from any mission travels, people want to know, "How was the trip?" Even though I practice my elevator speech, it never feels quite adequate enough to fully describe the experience. Earlier this month, 10 of us from Geist Christian Church traveled to Panajachel, Guatamala to work with Porch de Salomon in building…
4 Things You Need to Do to Prepare Your Church to Welcome New People
By Tuesday, pastors and lay leaders have put last Sunday in the rear-view mirror and are thinking and planning for next Sunday. The thing about Sunday is that it always comes and there are no re-runs. Many are looking at visiting a church, perhaps your church, this Sunday. Welcoming these guests isn't as simple as opening…
3 Reasons Why More People Are Doing Lent
Several years ago I was talking with someone who attended the local mega-church. He was excited to tell me that his pastor had started a new tradition leading up to Easter called Lent. I asked if he meant that the church had started to observe Lent this year. "Oh no, he invented it for this year. Isn' t it…
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