No institution is more uniquely positioned to care well for those experiencing domestic abuse than the church. The church offers something no hospital, courtroom, counseling office or government agency can fully provide: Enduring relationships, spiritual guidance, practical support, hope through…
Could Jesus preach in our churches today?
“Will our congregations even allow us to preach sermons that change people?” It was a passing comment in the middle of a conversation with a friend over coffee. He didn’t ask whether pastors were capable. He didn’t ask whether seminaries…
Can the church practice the spiritual virtue of contentment?
A person close to me who is an ardent follower of Jesus and pretty cynical about church asked me recently, “Can the church practice the virtues it teaches, for example, contentment?” The question set me thinking: Are we ever content…
When ‘everyone is welcome’ comes with fine print
After my lifelong connection with evangelical faith, midlife has unearthed surprise skepticism about what once was sacred ground. Unexpected questions crowd my thoughts about church and what it means. This includes questioning the fine print beneath the slogans I once…
Churches, pay attention: Americans gave $617 billion last year
When I meet with pastors and ask how giving is going, the answer is pretty much the same: Giving is down, and not just during the low seasons churches are used to experiencing. The decline in giving is no longer…
Congregational responsibility to LGBTQ members during pastoral transitions
I was baptized on the final Sunday before my pastor left my church in 2016. As a queer person, I had found a church community willing to wrestle honestly with questions about LGBTQ inclusion. The congregation was engaged in discernment….
What the church got wrong about queer people
The ACLU is tracking 530 anti-LGBTQ bills in state legislatures this year. Five hundred and thirty. In Kansas, a new law immediately invalidated the driver’s licenses of transgender people and authorized anyone, anyone, to sue someone they suspect of being transgender for using the…
What’s the status of ICE and ‘sensitive locations’? Confusing
A federal judge refused to block immigration actions near Minnesota schools while other courts consider Trump administration appeals to rulings in other lawsuits against raids at or near sensitive locations. The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship alerted partner congregations this week that…
Women’s rights are at risk and the church cannot be silent
“Speeches do not protect girls,” Malala Yousafzai said as she addressed the United Nations at the opening of this year’s Commission on the Status of Women hosted by UN Women. When I heard her say it, I was sitting in…
12 ways to shepherd courage in divided communities
In early 2026, I was invited to participate and help facilitate a conversation with clergy from around the country as a part of a Zoom conversation hosted by Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty. My breakout session was on how…
Healing from LGBTQ exclusion requires acknowledging past pain
The faith experiences of many Queer Christians have unfolded in churches that once described themselves as “welcoming,” “inclusive” or “loving” yet stopped short of full affirmation. Some of those congregations have since changed. They now perform same-gender loving weddings, ordain…
When the church confuses vocation with calling
Across several denominations, pastors are leaving congregations at accelerated rates, citing burnout, conflict and misalignment between their sense of calling and the realities of congregational life. Much of that conversation has focused on workload, compensation and leadership fatigue — all…