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Pushing labels, rejecting labels
We have tendencies to get people “slotted” into our categories so we decide quickly if they are “in” or “out” to us.
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I still remember
I still remember where I was 18 years ago. It was a Tuesday morning at a prayer retreat. The morning session had just begun when someone came in and gave us news that a tower had been hit in New York City.
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Is Jesus worth following?
One of the great phrases I use from Dallas Willard is this: “There is a cost to following Jesus. There is a cost to not following Jesus.” We need to weigh both costs.
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The power of praise
18 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, 20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. (Eph. 5:18-20) Some thoughts on…
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The downside of evangelical American Christianity
My reading has me in Micah for a few days and as I read it I get this picture of Israel that the prophets portray over and over. Israel is “weary” of serving God. They have some sense of obligation, but they are in love with the gods of the age and want to pursue other lovers. Yet, they know…
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We fear what we don’t know
It is so easy to pick on immigrants from a majority white congressional district. It is so easy to blame “the other” when you’ve never sat down with someone “in opposition” to you and had an actual conversation. These are the challenges… and too often we are not up to these challenges. (And social media makes it SO much easier…
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Busyness blinds us
“Our busyness can blind us to other people or at least make us feel less guilty for turning the other way and walking past someone who needs help. When we create margin, we give ourselves the opportunity to notice and truly see people. The way we spend the margin we have affects the people being pushed to the margins themselves.”…
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Book Review: I See You by Terence Lester
“Privilege has a way of blinding us to the realities faced by those society has made invisible, and in true incarnational fashion, Terence takes us with him on a journey to uncover the true experiences of our most vulnerable neighbors.” (Chad Wright-Pittman)
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The charismatic and contemplative traditions
I have been introduced to the thinking and ministry of Brad Jersak by a friend. I began listening to podcasts where he was interviewed and I have been wonderfully impacted by his thoughts thus far.
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Confronting our misconceptions about “the poor”
We may have heard these generalizations about the poor, or held them ourselves. (Or, still hold them.) — They are lazy and uneducated.— They chose to be poor. They could pick themselves up by their bootstraps and get out of it if they really wanted. — The poor are the government’s responsibility. — It’s their own fault they are poor.
