Vocational Ministry’s Forbidden Question

Vocational Ministry’s Forbidden Question

    Church leaders, have you ever asked yourself the forbidden question in ministry? You know the one—it goes something like this, “Am I really made for this?” If you have, then you likely felt some level of frustration, guilt, shame or condemnation toward...
Evaluating Our Ministry’s Fruit

Evaluating Our Ministry’s Fruit

    Like many areas of professional experience, Christian churches have utilized standardized methods to determine effectiveness and decision-making. Pastors are inundated with record-keeping designed to help leadership determine the success or failure of...
What Christian Theology Has to Do with My Reality

What Christian Theology Has to Do with My Reality

I was born the day before my father started seminary. My dad loves to quip, “My mentors recommended I not start a family and grad school at the same time, so I started my family on Sunday and seminary on Monday!” It must have been a nightmare at the time, but the...
Covered Glory

Covered Glory

I couldn’t understand why the more we talked about Jesus, the more outwardly pious my friend Imani became. When I first met her, she rarely bothered to cover her hair with a headscarf. She wore shirts not long enough to conceal her hips, and she didn’t seem to care...
God’s Plan for Renewal to the Ends of the Earth

God’s Plan for Renewal to the Ends of the Earth

The word renew means to continue something after it is paused. This is what happens to God’s plan to fill the world with His presence through His children. They again renew, re-engaging their calling to partner with God in the spreading of His presence in the world....