By Doyle Sager What is it about church life and all things religious which cause us to take ourselves so seriously? Jesus seemed to have lots of fun at the expense of the self-important religious leaders of his day. He…
Gandhi and the Baptist preacher
By Doyle Sager While attending the Baptist World Congress in Durban, South Africa, this summer, some friends and I took advantage of our free afternoon and enlisted a guide for a tour of some local history. Two surprises greeted me….
Sermon mistakes
By Doyle Sager I misspoke in one of my recent sermons. I know. You’re not surprised that a preacher flubbed up. You’re only surprised that said preacher would admit it! Yes, I made a mistake in the pulpit! I was…
Looking for new ways to measure ministry?
By Doyle Sager Last month, I wrote in this column about the limitations of the old metrics for tracking congregational vitality: attendance and budgets (or, if you prefer, nickels and noses). These numbers record some things, but perhaps not the most…
Some new metrics, please
By Doyle Sager An old Sunday school register hangs on the wall in my church office. Throughout my childhood, this is where my home church, Maple Grove Baptist, faithfully recorded important church metrics each Sunday: Number on the roll; attendance…
Where’s Barnabas?
By Doyle Sager One of my favorite scenes from the movie Christmas Vacation has Clark Griswold standing in his front yard with wife, children, parents and in-laws. They are shivering in the December cold, admiring the gaudy but brilliant Christmas…
All things bright and beautiful
By Doyle Sager Let’s face it. For most of us, beauty has never been at the top of our “most important doctrines” list. Perhaps we should reconsider. But let’s remember that our Maker probably sees spatial beauty and facial beauty…
Suicide: many questions, few answers
By Doyle Sager Springtime — a season of hope, right? Not for everyone. According to studies, more suicides occur in the warm, sunny days of spring and early summer than any other time of year. In the northern hemisphere, suicides…
What do Jimmy Fallon, Ernie Banks and Pope Francis have in common?
By Doyle Sager OK, so maybe we can’t draw straight lines connecting TV celebrity Jimmy Fallon, the late baseball great Ernie Banks and Pope Francis. Perhaps the task will require more looping circles than straight lines. But it occurred to…