“Integrity” is an interesting word. It is a powerful word. It can be an elusive word. The president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary wrote in a 2020 piece that was published in the Baptist Standard not long after he arrived…
If you really respect law enforcement, don’t obstruct, obfuscate, object and misdirect on Jan. 6
I am one of those “put your money where your mouth is” kind of guys. Sadly, these are not easy times for folks like me. For example, if you really respect the service and sacrifice of our military, don’t call…
The peril of getting too comfortable in church
More than 65 years of “church going” has made me appreciate a comfortable “church.” My bum is not what it used to be, so a little padding helps — actually a lot. A good sound system that can fill in…
Lessons in hate and hopelessness
One of the compelling parts of the story telling of the TV series “The Chosen” is the reverent sharing of back stories that could have tied these scriptural people together. One of the best has emerged in Season 2, episode…
What I learned working in a Texas prison: Retribution, not reformation
I served as a pastor for 33 years and then worked nearly six years as a counselor at the most high-profile maximum-security prison in Texas. There, I ran the mental health department, nestled in the prison infirmary, which serves all…
How much wealth does America need before we’ll address homelessness?
In college I read a story by Leo Tolstoy called “How Much Land Does A Man Need?” Tolstoy’s story is about a peasant named Pahom, whose desire is to own enough land to make him wealthy. It did not start…
The ongoing epidemic of pornography in the church
My first experience with porn was vacuuming cars in my dad’s service station. I was about 10 at the time, and I found magazines under some of the customer’s company cars which had naked women on almost every page. My…
Four tools the church has to recover those who followed Trump’s siren song
I have had on my mind and heart the debacle that has been visited on Trump evangelicals: The “Chosen One” was “unchosen.” Donald Trump will be leaving office either by walking away or being escorted out of the White House….
In the first year of grief, walk the perimeter
In the counseling setting, I often tell my clients it takes a year to get a sense of the loss we have experienced. I compare it to a person who has purchased a piece of land and walked out the…