A friend at the YMCA where I work has some struggles with his hip. Even so, he is regularly in the gym building muscle, the pain notwithstanding. He smiles on the way into the gym even though he is hurting….
Training as spiritual athletes
As the Summer Olympics begin tomorrow, we will watch men and women who put in years of sacrifice and training, pushing their bodies to their very limits, culminating in those few moments to compete against the best of the best….
The SBC’s trustee system is broken
We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again now: The Southern Baptist Convention’s system of electing trustees to oversee its agencies and institutions is broken and in need of dramatic reform. The latest evidence comes from the bizarre turn…
Leadership reminders from a country cemetery
Recently I returned to Mississippi to preach at the United Methodist church I served immediately out of seminary. I turned 23 shortly after moving in. It’s a country church in Southwest Mississippi not unlike the one where I grew up….
1964
Kamala Harris and I both were born in October 1964, which means we have no living memories of Martin Luther King Jr., the moon landing or the Vietnam War. According to most dividing lines, we were born in the last…
If only First Baptist Dallas could rebuild with more love and less hate
The past week has been a roller coaster of emotions. Every time I’ve refreshed a news app or checked my social media feed, something shocking and groundbreaking has occurred. In a world where the words “breaking news” have felt cliché,…
Re-read the Constitution
As I was watching my grandson play baseball a couple of weeks back, I spotted the following on the back of an acquaintance’s T-shirt: “The Constitution does not need to be rewritten; it needs to be re-read.” I thought to…
The cat ladies are with her
The last couple of weeks of U.S. politics has taken us on a ride. From an assassination attempt to pressure for the long-time statesman President Joe Biden to relinquish his re-election campaign, to the announcement of JD Vance as the…
Biden and Trump are poor choices, but there is a better one
Editor’s note: This column was written on July 20, one day before President Joe Biden withdrew from the 2024 presidential race. The Democratic and Republican parties have served up two poor choices to American voters as the 2024 presidential…
Did God protect Donald Trump?
Immediately after the horrific assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, some people of faith began claiming God protected him. For example, Franklin Graham unequivocally pronounced, “God spared his life.” But that popular affirmation raises difficult questions, which even Graham…
Franklin Graham is the poster child for Christian nationalism — and he’s a liar
To understand the insidious nature of Christian nationalism, look no further than Franklin Graham’s appearance at the Republican National Convention last night. Graham already has demonstrated he knows no shame in endorsing, blessing and lionizing the most corrupt president in…
On being a post-evangelical, ecumenical church in the Baptist tradition
Now that headline is a mouthful, but it feels like a way forward for congregational life today. That may be too many labels. The story is told of a rancher in Texas showing a friend his huge spread which combined…