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A Requiem for the Twinkie
The mighty Twinkie could last through a nuclear war, but the company that made them could not. The company could not keep up with pension costs, plus healthcare costs for their employees. (The healthcare costs probably weren’t related to too much consumption of their own product.) Anyone remember the baseball trading cards we used to get on the bottom of the boxes?…
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Thanks for Incredible Partners in Ministry
This week I was able to take part in two meetings that continually bless my life. Every month during the school year we have our local pastors get together for lunch. That was yesterday. Not everyone can make it, but over the years we have built solid friendship in spite of our perceived theological differences. We love serving our churches,…
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Sin
“Sin is not a mistake. Our sin is our willing unlawfulness, our purposeful breaking of God’s law. In attitude and in deed, we rebel against God, and we have for that reason forfeited our right to live. We deserve to die for our sins. That’s what the death of Jesus is for; our deliberate unlawfulness. We all make mistakes, and…
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Enemies of the American Church
There are some huge gorillas in the room we don’t like to talk about when it comes to enemies of the Church in the U.S. These gorillas actually make us our own worst enemies. Tony Campolo has some insight on one: I have heard a lot of teachers condemn the secular humanism of our world. The truth is that secular…
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The Joy of Sacraments
“Sacraments are funny things. They are short and simple, they involve the simplest elements in our environment, and they require few words. The more we get out of the way the better. Yet they change people. People remember them for their whole lives.” — David Hansen, The Art of Pastoring (Revised Edition)
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Book Review — The Art of Pastoring
The Art of Pastoring (Revised Edition) by David Hansen. I have had the first edition of The Art of Pastoring on my shelf for several years and picked at it a couple of times, but never got into it for one reason or another. The revised edition allowed me a fresh look, and it is a look I have enjoyed. There are no…
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The True Impact of the Gospel
I am preaching on Acts 19 this morning. It is one of my favorite passages of Scripture. In this text I find hope for the Church. It is not a matter of political power. Rome was in power and no one could elect anyone, at least as emperor. But 12 people impact a city and a region. Lives were radically…
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Thankfulness
I understand from Facebook that people are trying to give thanks everyday for something. I thought I would just list these things in one fell swoop to avoid the anticipation. Coffee Coffee Coffee Coffee Coffee Peanut M&Ms Peanut M&Ms Peanut M&Ms Peanut M&Ms Peanut M&Ms Popcorn Coffee Coffee Coffee Coffee Coffee Coffee Coffee Coffee Popcorn Coffee Coffee Coffee Coffee Baseball…
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The Dream in My Heart
This particular article by Richard Stearns captures the dream that has been stirring in my heart. I only wish I had been able to find a way to act on the stirring as well as the pastor in the story. But that dream is still there. I’ve known in my heart the shift that has been happening and I’ve known…
