By Jim Denison “Never discuss religion or politics in public,” my mother used to warn me. Today’s column probably proves the wisdom of her advice. Last week, USA Today reported that four Christian lawyers who vowed to be God’s ambassadors…
Grandpa’s gift of mistaken identity
By David Wilkinson Sometimes being mistaken for someone else is a high compliment, especially when it puts you in some good company. Some of my fondest memories are the times I went quail hunting with my dad and grandfather outside…
Is discomfort at church good or bad?
By Bill Wilson Here at the Center for Congregational Health, we spend many hours each week helping clergy and congregations navigate the tricky waters of expectations and living together in positive and encouraging relationships rather than confrontational ones. I’ve recently…
Worship spaces should be sanctuaries
By David Stovall What has happened to reverence for God and respect for the sanctuary of God? Before we can answer, we need to understand the meaning of reverence, respect and sanctuary. To have reverence is to have a deep…
Be a church that invests
By Bill Webb The strongest and most effective churches give a lot of attention to investing. They have a biblical mandate for doing so. One such passage is in Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 6:19-21: Do not store…
Clashing visions of marriage
By David Gushee On Saturday morning, June 5, 2010, I read that Al and Tipper Gore are separating after 40 years of marriage. On Saturday afternoon, I stood at the front of the First United Methodist Church in Jackson, Tennessee,…
Being Baptist — in the best sense of the word
By Amy Butler I work right around the corner from The Gallup Organization’s headquarters here in Washington, so I’ll just say up front that the informal poll I recently took on Facebook should not be considered strictly scientific. That being…
Another Prostate Prayer — Recovery
By Ed Sunday-Winters Six weeks ago, my urologist told me that I had prostate cancer. A week ago, I had surgery to remove my prostate. Today I am recovering from that surgery and marveling at the medical technology that has…
When churches jump the shark
By Derik Hamby When does a church “jump the shark?” That phrase refers to the time Fonzi, the star of the TV comedy “Happy Days,” jumped a shark (literally) and has served as an example of a TV show that…