For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. (Eph. 1:4)
Our calling as followers of Christ is secure. Our calling is sacred.
God treasures m. My life is to be spent treasuring him.
Treasuring Christ
Narcissism and church leadership
Power in the Church is so corrosive, and those effects are being played out constantly in front of the world in our American protestant churches. This interview with Skye Jethani and Scot McKnight is sobering. The interview starts around the 40 minute mark.
As I work my way through the end of Galatians 5 and the beginning of chapter 6, I am reminded of the ways we love power grabs in the church… and how we need to cultivate a new way in the power of the Spirit.
Take the time to listen to that dialogue on the Holy Post Podcast.
The paragraph that broke me
I am far more able to slowly make my way through Eugene Peterson’s biography than most other books because I have to stop and repent so often.
Read more“Build another building”
Reading in Eugene Peterson’s biography (and remembering this story from his memoir), there was the time in beginning Christ Our King church that they finally built their building. It was a glorious time. Then, people began to disappear.
Read moreChurch as commodity
This morning a thought in prayer was this: The church must always be subversive. It needs to always be in the servant role.
Then I continued my meandering through A Burning in My Bones, the biography of Eugene Peterson.
Read moreDealing with Q Anon and Those Involved
This series has been challenging. It’s about history and current events. It’s about heresy and finding ways to love others. It is not easy stuff to deal with, but it is necessary stuff.
This particular episode begins with the background of where Christianity fell first into nationalism and the inherent dangers ever since that time. We need these lessons. This podcast is worth your time.
I need more “pain in the mind”
In an age of sound bites and Twitter feeds, many Christian leaders are so busy trying to keep up with current events that few of us take time to stop, to study, and to struggle for the sake of teaching God’s people. All too often, we take a side and stick to it without the discipline of listening or questioning our instincts. The thin veneer of our discipleship is showing cracks as a result. (MORE HERE)
Read moreThe big lessons in prayer
I continue to meander through Eugene Peterson’s biography, A Burning in My Bones. (I think he would have meandered, so I’m trying not to hurry.)
Read moreI will not cease to call for repentance
A year ago there was hope. The shock of Ahmaud Arbery’s mugging, then Breonna Taylor, and then George Floyd provided a time when there was hope that white evangelical America was actually listening. I loaned out books. I bought books for others. I invited folks into conversation.
Then… well, we got tired. White fatigue set back in.
Read moreThe toxicity of white space
How hard have we made it, as white evangelicals, for people of color to be in our supposed multi-ethnic spaces? How hard have we made it for black brothers and sisters to voice their concern, their pain, and even their joy in our spaces? Some examples:
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