– Reflections from a spouse for ministers who support their communities during a season of funerals and tragedies Clergy, beware the calling and tread carefully before you enter into its wake. Beware the calling for it is disguised in nobility,…
Bible: The Pope and Jeb Bush
[This is the fifth of a nine-part series on empowering a faith community to impact the world. Already hospitality, evangelism, missions, and ethics have been explored.] Did you hear Pope Francis? “Jeb!” was all over it. Immediately following the released…
Riding the winds of change: How we can adjust to the same-sex marriage ruling
Goodness! There has been a virtual flood of words since the U. S. Supreme Court proclaimed that same-sex marriage could not be outlawed by the states. So much so, that I hesitate to add to the mix. But, like any…
How to be a family of faith
Twenty years ago our congregation adopted five core values. The one which speaks to our internal relationships says, “In relationships…Family.” Our church covenant expands this core value: As a group of gathered believers, we understand ourselves to be a part…
In organized Christianity, some people are gone and others are done
Do we need another category to describe people who are either no longer related to organized Christianity or never were? Probably.
It’s time to talk
It’s time for a conversation. Not more talk, but a conversation. There is a massive gap between these two related items. “Talk” is plentiful and abundant. It is the stuff of comment sections and social media and message boards. It…
Time for panic or hope?
The Southern Baptist Convention’s annual meeting wrapped up last week. As usual there have been several statements and statistics which are causing at least minor stirs. Their announcement of a court petition to uphold the traditional definition of marriage may…
Congregations on the edge of Christian faith
We need more congregations on the edge of Christianity who avoid becoming a churched culture congregation, but rather focus on the edge where the “gones”, dones, and nones dwell. In a previous post entitled Are You Really as Progressive a…
Three signs of a healthy church
After thirty-seven years of working in and alongside churches, I believe church health may be the best lens available to assess the culture of today’s church. It doesn’t matter how sophisticated the strategy, how talented the staff, how plentiful the…
Are you really as progressive a Christian as your congregation?
Progressive Christian congregations I encounter are very proud of being progressive. Almost too proud. They are glad they are not like other congregations who are less liberated. They almost sound Pharisaical. When I have a strategic leadership coaching relationship with…
Ethics: Have you ever cheated on your taxes or your spouse?
[This is the fourth (ethics) of a nine-part series on empowering a faith community to impact the world. Already hospitality, evangelism, and missions have been explored.] Have you ever cheated on your taxes or your spouse? Have you ever disregarded…
Why liberal Protestantism should quit living in fear of its own death
By Derek Penwell I’ve grown accustomed to the popular ecclesiastical trope, which argues that liberal denominations are dying because they’re liberal. As somebody who writes about this stuff, I can spot the whole liberals-are-killing-the-church thing from a mile away —…