Apprentice 2 Jesus

Church

  • We tend to think “theology” and it’s really, too often, “white theology”

    Theological frameworks have a tendency to get stuck. My own frameworks certainly have gone through that hardening over time. I need to realize my framework is certainly ONE framework, but not the only framework. In the past few years it has led to an expansion of theological voices in my life. Mainly at this point… Read more

  • Always reforming… this should be the Church

    First, distinguish between deconstruction and reform. The church is a Christ-made institution, but it is also a sinful institution. It always needs reform. If a person’s frustration with the church arises from the biblical vision of community, that’s not deconstruction. It’s calling the church back to the gospel. More HERE. There is a deep work… Read more

  • Deacons and serving

    I have been just over a year in ordained ministry as a vocational deacon in the Anglican Church. The main thing we know about deacons is… they “serve.” It’s that term “serve” that may need a little work because I think it may have atrophied. These are some initial thoughts and very much in process. Read more

  • Our spiritual blindness

    Mark 8:22–26 (NIV): They came to Bethsaida, and some people brought a blind man and begged Jesus to touch him. 23 He took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village. When he had spit on the man’s eyes and put his hands on him, Jesus asked, “Do you see anything?”24… Read more

  • Hacking our way to clarity

    The second half of this Holy Post Podcast has an interview with Philip Yancey. They feature his latest book, which is his memoir. Yancey has been a challenging voice for me for decades. (His interview comes around 49 minutes in.) With our current struggle with terminology like “deconstruction”, Yancey represents the understanding that some form… Read more

  • Our obsession with “winning”

    Decades ago I remember a column or opinion piece written about our obsessions and warped values. At the time it was referring to the way we lift up people who work hard, work long hours, and don’t have time to “take it easy.” The prime example for that article was Dick Cheney (long before he… Read more

  • Warning to the white American conservative church

    This passage leapt into my spirit as the Spirit said, “This is the warning for the self-righteous church in America.” Matthew 3:7-12 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?… Read more

  • Spiritual Abuse

    It doesn’t matter the denomination I serve in, spiritual abuse is a possibility. It is being exposed in my current denomination, the ACNA, in a diocese that is different in operation than my own… which is proving to be a bigger problem overall. Read more

  • The development of toxic leadership

    Scot McKnight, author A Church Called Tov, has a regular column he writes through substack, so this may be behind a paywall. His concern these days revolves around toxic leadership, how churches are blind to it and actually develop it, and how to change church culture to move away from that model when looking for… Read more

  • We will be held accountable for the abuse we have heaped on others inside the church

    I am working my way through the Christianity Today podcast series: “The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill.” As this podcast unpacks the undoing of Mars Hill Church and Mark Driscoll, we still see the same things playing out in real time… like we just can’t learn anything from examples that have gone before. Read more