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The end is near! Or… A revival is coming!
Two very different takes on just how Christianity is “doing” in different parts of the world show our tendency toward tribalism. In the Middle East there are dire warnings of Christianity becoming extinct in the Middle East. Meanwhile, Manhattan seems to be on the verge of a new revival! So, which is it? As Anthony Bradley points out on the Manhattan side…
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The Church That Ate Its Own
We really like this stuff. (I was so tempted to say, “We really eat this up.“) Tales from the crypt about horrible church experiences. Bad church. BAD CHURCH! And we shake our all too righteous fingers at it like it’s a dog that just wet the carpet. But… it makes headlines… and we eat it up. (Sorry. The metaphor is too good.) Write…
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When the saints come marching in
I grew up in a very fundamental Assemblies of God church. I have no bitter stories to tell. I have no scarred past… tattoos… rebellious drug-induced stories… I have good memories. For all the good, the bad, and the ugly, I have fond memories. What I remember most fondly is great preaching and the old gospel songs. Today we rip…
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The Irony of This Pope
The more I read about Pope Francis, the more I deeply admire him. He just visited the home of his name sake: Francis of Assisi. What I find so challenging is here is a man who heads the biggest “institutional” church in the world, but lives with such prophetic joy. He challenges the religiosity of his own structure, which ends…
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Calling out the dream
This past weekend I called out the dreams of God in a way I’ve just never tried before. I declared completely irrational things that I can truly blame as “the anointing.” 😉 Besides that, I sensed a strong call from the Lord to speak out the dreams HE is giving me. It’s not my ability and when these things happen,…
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Why I pastor a great church!
In our small church, we had 17 leaders go on our retreat. Among our leaders is Ida. She is a board member. On the day before her 82nd birthday she got on the zip lines with 10 others. She is fearless! This is the church I love!
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Where Was the Church?
Sobering questions from the latest news out of the Middle East. The saddest audience question was from a young man who I’m guessing was Egyptian-British. He asked: ‘Where was world Christianity when this happened?’ Nowhere. Watching X-Factor. Debating intersectionality. Or just too frightened of controversy to raise Muslim-on-Christian violence. Too often the response I hear, and the one I too…
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What the Pope SAID
The Pope wants to see the Church as a “field hospital.”
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This is what we do
The power of the Kingdom of God can have an impact in so many ways. The kingdom is seen in a store line. Last night at Target as we were checking out, a man in the express lane was buying milk. Something with his transaction didn’t work. A young couple behind him noticed he couldn’t pay right then so the…
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The difference between success and fruitfulness
There is a great difference between successfulness and fruitfulness. Success comes from strength, control, and respectability. A successful person has the energy to create something, to keep control over its development, and to make it available to large quantities. Success brings many rewards and often fame. Fruits, however, come from weakness and vulnerability. And fruits are unique. A child is…
Category: Church
