In the good ol’ USA, July 4th is a time to give thanks for our unrivaled freedom, and a great time to highlight and celebrate our religious liberty. Religious liberty refers to the right to worship freely without fear of persecution….
A prayer for Independence Day 2015
Freedom-loving God, you teach us through the prophets to “to act justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly with our God” (Micah 6:8). This week, as we celebrate our nation’s Independence Day, we are simultaneously grateful for our heritage…
The uncomfortable discipline of remembering
As a pastor serving in an active military community, I am privileged to serve alongside those who serve or have valiantly served our country. In recent days I have enjoyed conversations with two retired Army chaplains, I have dialogued with…
The day that Alice Cooper came to church
On President’s Day weekend, one of those long weekends when “School’s Out,” Mr. and Mrs. Vincent Damon Furnier, better known as Alice Cooper and his wife Sheryl, joined us for worship at First Baptist Pensacola, unannounced. In fact, there was…
De-toxifying charity: Taking steps to make your mission and ministry projects more effective
In his popular book, Toxic Charity, Robert Lupton challenges churches and other charities to reconsider and revise their mission strategies in order to make them more effective. If a church deems Lupton’s assessments to be valid, what are the steps…
De-toxifying charity
Many years ago, I was prompted to rethink my own presuppositions about stewardship after reading Ron Sider’s probing book, Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger: Moving from Affluence to Generosity. More recently many of us have been thinking more…
When God moved into the neighborhood
The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood. – John 1:14a MSG Occasionally called the “forgotten Christmas story,” the first chapter of John describes the incarnation of Christ in philosophical prose. In contrast Matthew and Luke give…
Finding Good Advent Devotionals Online
Moments of meditation, prayer, and devotional reading are crucial to faith development in all seasons. Advent, however, is a prime season for deepening one’s devotional life. And if you opt to go “paperless,” there are many excellent Advent devotional resources…
Advent: A Time to Slow Down and Listen Up
The long lines of Black Friday have finally gone down but the blitz of the hyper-commercialized holiday season is just revving up. This period of time from Thanksgiving to Christmas has become the “busy” season. There are trees to decorate,…