Apprentice 2 Jesus

Culture

  • We will, quite simply, change your mind

    It thought of that line in relation to how I want us to live as believers. It is too easy to get caught up in the blogosphere, the media, entertainment, etc., and form our opinions. There are some incredibly strong opinions about the church, and those with any measure of angst blog about it. The… Read more

  • We get torn apart by our terminology

    Richard Stearns, head of World Vision, wrote a response on a perceived attack on the term “radical Christians.” This was in response to a Christianity Today piece on the “new radicals.” Stearns’s response is basic: “Yep, we’re radical, and we’re not radical enough!” It’s gone back and forth in a way that reminds me of the days… Read more

  • Race and Fear

    I’ve written very little on the matter of Trayvon Martin and George Zimmerman because it’s far too complex to button hole either person into the extremes I read about every day online. But this article had some thoughts I resonated with. This thought in particular: Fear is not a complex human emotion—it’s a primal one.… Read more

  • An Honest Conversation from the President

    President Obama gave some very personal thoughts on how African American men feel things in America. After reading books like The New Jim Crow and listening to friends dialogue on my Facebook and Twitter, along with reading some of their blogs, I am way past even thinking, “Isn’t it time to get over it?” When I’ve watched… Read more

  • So, Pastor, what good are you?

    Some of my favorite cartoons for church have a line that goes something like this: A parishoner sees the pastor’s wife in a grocery store and asks the wife, “So, does your husband work, or he is still pastoring?” Those always give me a smile. But the perception is more reality than we, as pastors,… Read more

  • Malala Yousafzai — a TRUE hero

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  • Allegiance

    I love July 4, fireworks, patriotic songs, movies about the Revolution… all of it. That cop that sings “God Bless America” at Yankees games gets me every time I hear his wonderful tenor voice. But my allegiance isn’t here. It is in another land. Another place. Another kingdom. The country of my birth is a… Read more

  • Paying attention where we give

    Too often we are ready to give emotionally off an appeal and we don’t often think about just how much money actually gets to the need. This story chronicles 50 really low percentage charities. Low percentage would be the amount of money they pay to solicitors and how much of the money raised actually gets… Read more

  • The Fallacy of 100 Percent Security

    As an American, we are going through the embarrassment of a government that is actively violating our privacy and then saying things like, “If you’re not doing anything illegal, you shouldn’t be worried.” The president then offered the explanation the other day that Americans can’t have 100 percent security and 100 percent privacy. That’s true.… Read more

  • Reflections on a Murder One Block from My House

    There was a shooting yesterday morning one block from my house. It was a party going late and a man was shot while sitting in his car across the street. Police know it wasn’t random. There are several things swirling in my head as I process the thought of a murder one block away. 1.… Read more