Articles
Hinge Moments
By the time they have turned eighteen, most Americans will have moved at least twice. Most thirty-year-olds will have moved six times. By the end of our lives, most of us will have pushed that number up to eleven. This highly mobile way of life is mirrored in our...
The Power of One Peacemaker
I truly want to transform our internet dialogue, but it’s hopeless. We’re doomed. We’ll never make it! The internet is too powerful and social media is too corrupting for any of us to make a difference. Social media forms us into really divisive, dehumanizing,...
Forgiveness is central to the Christian story
At the core of our faith is the knowledge that we are broken people, incapable of restoring our relationship with God, or with each other, through our own efforts alone. And that admission of our own brokenness is foundational to understanding and navigating our...
Pastor swarmed and arrested by police
"If you are watching this video, it means that they have successfully arrested me." We are crowdfunding pastor Artur Pawlowski's legal defence please go to https://t.co/5RfUUBxoVx to donate! pic.twitter.com/1UAwXQLVy9 — Rebel News (@RebelNewsOnline) May 8, 2021 I’ve...
Pastoring Is About People
After months of sitting with the Enneagram and sharing in its insights, my mind turned to my work as the pastor of a church. What about the church? I remember thinking. Does the Enneagram have anything helpful to say about pastoring a congregation, working with a...
The Call to Radiance
In Matthew 5, Jesus steps on a mount and begins to teach. His prophetic words are drenched in love and wrapped in vision. It was a sermon unlike any other that has now found its home in what we call the Sermon on the Mount (Mt 5–7). In it, Jesus shares his dreams for...
An Application of the Prophetic Challenge with the Present
First, prophecy fulfilled is history and understanding it is a matter of study. Second, prophecy's future is an expectation, and understanding it is a matter of judgment. Finally, prophecy unfolding is a matter of discernment. And that, is the prophetic challenge,...
6 Church Trends for 2021
Now that we are over a year into the COVID-19 pandemic, we have a better idea of what church looks like in the “new normal.” While we still long for a return to the way things used to be, we also need to adapt to changing times. Here are a few church trends we’ll...
Training Wheels for the Great Commission
If there is a highway to the Great Commission most people need training wheels to get there. If you are like me, as a leader you have a Holy burden to see the bride of Christ get after her calling of making disciples of Jesus. You long for them to have the same...
How Churches Are Adapting to the Ever-Changing Dynamics of Hunger-Relief
As we approach the first anniversary of the original stay-at-home order, the emerging story is one that the church has known all along. More profound than our human differences are God-given commonalities, like the need for food, water, shelter – and hope. COVID-19...
The Power of Grief and Its Purpose
I have perceived two pervasive responses in our culture that seem to influence and dominate how we react to grief. The first treats grief as an unwelcome, uninvited trespasser to be shunned or dismissed. The gospel of John tells a story with which many are familiar....
WATCH: Sen. Tim Scott delivers GOP response to Biden’s address to Congress
The New Prosperity Theology
I’m afraid a look into popular Christianity in America reveals teachings of a religion far from what the early church would have recognized. This Christianity worships a god who wants us to achieve worldly happiness, make our dreams prosper, and reach our fullest...
Pastor: Thou Shalt Not Kill Thyself
Ministry is hard work, beset by temptation, difficulty, and weariness. Clergy are not immune to depression or suicidal thoughts. What follows is advice for pastors, designed to help prevent the depression that can lead to suicide. Fellowship It is all too common for...
The Federalist Press Number 87
To the Citizens of the United States The Covid-19 pandemic has officially surpassed the year mark in America. This last year has been extremely challenging for many of us. These challenges have manifested themselves in some of the most open-air attacks on our...
12 Powerful Ways Jesus Chooses to Not “Play Nice” Part 2
What happens before the Bible’s most famous verse, John 3:16? To Jesus, the master conversationalist, it’s all fair game toward one overriding mission. Nicodemus is confused. Jesus comes right back at him. “Pay attention. That which is holy and true to God is like...
12 Powerful Ways Jesus Chooses To Not “Play Nice” (Part 1)
What happens before the Bible’s most famous verse, John 3:16? To Jesus, the master conversationalist, relationship and meaning triumph over social norms…every time. He interrupts, He puzzles, He changes subject, He provokes, He monologues. It’s all fair game toward...
Making the Most Of Biblical Higher Education
It has been said that “An education cannot make the most of a person, but a person can make the most of an education.” Some of the greatest men in the modern history of Christian ministry were without any formal theological training. Such a list is too long to...
The 7 Rules of Rest
Pastor, you are called to preach. You are called to shepherd, you are called to lead. You are called to serve, you are called to sacrifice. You are also called to rest! This is especially important after this long season of stress we have all endured during the...
Praying Through Your Church Directory
The apostle Paul says that we should “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). Then, the apostle James tells us to “pray for one another” (James 5:16). Good ideas, but easier said than done. The sainted apostles didn’t have to work 8-10 hours a day, take care of...
