“Mom, can we leave now?” my four-year-old whispered (Thank God!) to me as the Sunday sermon began. “No, not yet,” I whispered back. “Ugh, waiting is sooo haaaaard,” she responded. This is a response she has been dolling out a lot lately—when I can’t stop…
Read MoreFor a number of decades in the United States, the church has worked hard to hold in tension a dichotomy between so-called “Traditional” and “Contemporary” worship. One could argue about the various sources of this dichotomy (and I commend to you the many liturgical historians who are charting the various liturgical…
Read More“Do you think we are going to make it?” Every vocation asks this eventually. When husband and wife see beyond the fig leaves that covered all the shame during courtship and early marriage, one asks “Are we going to make it?” When friendship hits that make-or-break moment, one asks, “Is this friendship worth it?” Some vocations…
Read MoreMinistry is unimaginable apart from community, not just in a community, but with a community. The rugged individualist, John Wayne, and the celebrity pastor are not models to emulate. Even the Lone Ranger had Tonto. Ministry doesn’t begin isolated in the pastor’s study, but in the heart of the Triune Community. The…
Read MoreAda Calhoun writes in her article, To Stay Married, Embrace Change in the New York Times on 4/21/2017, “Several long-married people I know have said this exact line: ‘I’ve had at least three marriages. They’ve just all been with the same person’.” It is the same in the…
Read MoreIt must have been destiny, or pre-destiny. I didn’t choose Ephesians, it chose me. Romans reached out and beckoned Augustine as those kids on the other side of the hedge sang “tolle lege—Take and read!” Romans had a similar effect on Luther and Lloyd-Jones. Chrysostom lived in John. Spurgeon was…
Read MoreLet’s play a game – you’re probably familiar with it. Would you rather…?
Would you rather sit with entrepreneurial leaders advancing innovation or sit in an empty circle of chairs embarrassed, confused, and alone?…
Read MoreThe long-time pastor’s wife at Trinity, Nordis Christenson, famously said, “The Christian life would be easy—if it wasn’t so daily.”
Human nature, according to the good book, is bad. Really bad. Some call it a low anthropology…
Read MoreBaby Christian was followed closely by Baby Annika who was followed more closely by Baby Samuel. When we found out that Baby Peter was following even closer, the Call from Trinity seemed like a Godsend for a very down-to-earth reason: we would be geographically closer to family.
Read MoreFor some reason, I was under the impression that it was a promotion to minister to adults. Youth and family ministry was an entry-level position. Gain some experience and someday you could become a real pastor. How misguided…
Read MoreSomething is wrong when more people expect to find grace at Cheers Bar in Boston than at First Church on Main Street. Cheers is where everyone knows your name. First Church has a reputation for being where everyone judges your failures…
Read MoreThe truth finally came out. Eventually, it always comes out. Like a soundtrack portending something shady is immanent, I had an ominous feeling for a while that something wasn’t right. Then I heard all the damning data from someone…
Read More“There is something different about this church.” Our friends, semi-retired and fully-vital, had agreed to come and invest in the ministry at Trinity for a few weeks at a time. Then they came again for a few more weeks. They kept saying, “There is something different about this church.”…
Read MoreThe Dean of the Community of Saint Anselm (COSA) and I talked on Skype. He was in his quaint study at Lambeth Palace, the home of the Archbishop of Canterbury and working centre of the Anglican Communion. I was wearing a Hawaiian shirt with my sliding glass door open…
Read MoreThe first commandment with a promise is not just for the domestic home but also the divine home. Both homes are meant to have fathers and mothers. It is one of the more compelling aspects of the church that all ministry is children’s ministry…
Read MoreAn early temptation was to perform. I don’t mean a song or dance. I mean, I desperately wanted to bring something of value to people’s lives. We all know pastors who are great counselors. I should be good at counseling. We all know pastors who are…
Read MoreI’m not really sure how it started. I just know it never stopped. The experimentation and play, the endless capacity for questioning and sense of wonder I had as a child were something I never quite outgrew. The impulse to create. The pursuit of the new.
Read MoreAn influencer tweets on Saturday night, “If your pastor doesn’t at least mention __________ today, you might want to find a new church!” A YouTube Religotician (religious politician), or is it Poligionist (political religionist), confidently proclaims that your pastor must…
Read MoreIf you have ever planted a church then you know it is nothing short of God speaking life into the daily laments of anxiety, despair, and uncertainty. Trust me, church planting is an exercise in utter self-conscious dependency.
Read MoreWe know that the gospel, while wholly in the Holy Spirit’s hands, can be extremely poignant when infused into someone's specific story. We also know that when a piece of art captures one story, it can speak to an unimaginable amount of people.
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