Last week, we used our senior discounts to see a movie for grownups. Carol and I were 40% of the audience. The one other couple there was 20 years older than we are. The ticket-taker apologized to them: “I’m so…
Better to have fasted and failed than never to have fasted at all
I tried fasting from coffee two consecutive years but never made it past the second or third week. Best fasts I ever did. I learned it was next to impossible for me to be productive without obscene amounts of caffeine….
Dear church people, work toward church vitality
Dear people in churches, When your pastor, church staff and lay leaders try transforming your church into a more vitalized body of Christ, they will inevitably encounter resistance, push back and sometimes attacks and character assassination. Our role is not…
Bless your heart for producing professionals and satisfied saints when radical prophets are needed
A recent webinar with my alma mater made me realize theological schools and the church face the same challenge today: How to be risk-takers in a world that only values stability. Let me say upfront, I’m not someone you’re likely…
Jesus Revolution helps us remember and calls us to hope again
In the second weekend at the box office, Jesus Revolution far surpassed expectations with a cumulative earning of $30 million. The movie is well done by Lionsgate and Kingdom Story Company and stars Kelsey Grammer, Joel Courtney and Jonathan Roumie….
The great breakup in the American church and the political uses of religion
In a recent article in Politico, Joshua Zeitz begins with the decision of 400 Methodist churches in Texas alone to leave their parent denomination, The United Methodist Church, to join the new, more conservative Global Methodist Church. This reflects the…
I agree with Pope Francis: True revival will fulfill the Social Gospel
Two disparate events occurred recently disturbed by normal calm. The first was the national news coverage of a revival breaking out at Asbury University in Kentucky. The second event was a social media event where Jordan Peterson wrote a post…
Challenges for Baptist women in ministry today
I first saw a clergywoman in 2007 visiting a small, rural Church of England church in Yorkshire, UK. Brought up in mostly Catholic Poland, with limited religious literacy, I only had a vague idea that this was possible in other…
EQ, SQ and MQ are the key to an effective search process
Over the course of the last 14 years, the leadership of the Center for Healthy Churches has assisted hundreds of congregations in their searches for new ministerial leadership. While every one of these search processes is unique and has its…
Four ways to be in helpful relationship with those living with infertility
I’m not sure who started the phrase, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me,” but I’d like a word with them. Most of us who have been through the experience of middle school know…
The difference between ‘He Gets Us’ and the Asbury revival
During Super Bowl LVII, nestled among ads for chips and beer came a profound message: Jesus Gets Us. The Servant Foundation, a Kansas organization backed in part by Hobby Lobby, has produced a campaign designed to humanize the Lord. The…
Misogyny is in your church too
In the movie Talladega Nights, race car driver Ricky Bobby (played by Will Ferrell), gathers his family for a celebratory meal after a big win. Quieting the people gathered around the family dinner table, Ricky offers a prayer, a special…