The Rev. Dr. Jeremy Berg is the founding and lead pastor of MainStreet Covenant Church in Minnetonka Beach, MN, where he has served since 2010. He is an adjunct professor of Biblical and Theological Studies who has taught classes at Bethel University, University of Northwestern—St. Paul, North Central University, Crown College, and Solid Rock Discipleship School. Jeremy earned a doctorate in New Testament Context under Scot McKnight at Northern Seminary (Chicago). He and his wife, Kjerstin, have three kids, Peter, Isaak and Abigail.
On my 45th birthday hike at Thrive Park in Nelson, Wisconsin, I gained a newfound perspective as I overlooked the village below. Observing the daily activities from high above, I was struck by the sacredness of life, particularly witnessing a funeral procession. I left with a deeper appreciation for my own life and calling and experiences. … More Birthday on the Bluff
I’m on a solo retreat at the Pepin Forest Treehouse cabin Keri booked for me for my 45th birthday. Feeling a bit nostalgic and retrospective in the treehouse this morning, I stumbled across an old journal entry and poem written by a 23-year old Jeremy just after college. This led me to thinking about aging instruments and Willie Nelson’s guitar. … More My Life Song & Willie’s Guitar
Physical touch has profound effects on well-being, as shown in studies, yet many feel deprived. This week’s Gospel lesson of the woman healed by touching Jesus’s cloak emphasizes the significance of physical contact. In today’s digital world, there is a growing need to prioritize face-to-face interactions and embrace the healing power of physical touch. … More Healing Touch & Touch-less Faith
I love reading familiar Bible stories with an eye for the odd and often missed detail that invites further inquiry. In the beloved story of Jesus calming the storm, we jump right over one strange detail and focus on the storm, the frightened disciples, Jesus sleeping on the cushion, and his divine power over the sea. But what ever happened to the “other boats” that set out on the seas with Jesus that stormy night? Buckle up. … More What about the Other Boats?
I just listened to a good interview with Fr. Robert Spitzer unpacking his new book “The Four Levels of Happiness: Your Path to Personal Flourishing.” I found his wisdom compelling and practical for charting the ultimate goal and diagnosing why so many of us get stuck in ruts that leave deep and enduring happiness elusive. Here’s a nice summary and overview. … More The Four Levels of Happiness
Sitting at my 9-year old daughter’s softball tournament recently, I was bookended by two other dad’s talking about life, family, and business. I often feel out of place with “successful” business men talking about their big boat, lake home, and country club lifestyle. I was caught off guard when the conversation suddenly turned toward my work and the question one of them asked me. … More The Hungry Preacher
On Isaak’s 11th birthday I want to share a lesson he is helping me learn about tough love vs. tender love. A strong person is described as “tough as nails,” which has me thinking about the One who took the nails for me. Those nails couldn’t have pierced the skin of Iron Man, Super Man or the Incredible Hulk. Their bulletproof exterior would have bent the nails in half and kept them from harm. That’s Ford Tough; that’s strength “like a rock.” But that’s not Christlike strength. … More Tender Love is Toughest: Happy Birthday, Isaak!
I am not a “funcle” – a “fun uncle” as they say. If I could show up at family gatherings and push a magic button that transforms me into carefree and social uncle who holds newborn baby nieces, rolls around on the floor with toddler nephews, and makes small talk with teenage nieces, I would push that button in a heart beat. Here’s an introvert’s apology. … More Funcles & Muncles: An Introvert’s Apology
My kids are learning to play the piano. While we could have had them watch YouTube instruction videos, we signed them up for private lessons. Once a week they sit side by side at the piano, Miss Liz “taking them by the hand” and tailoring lessons to their skill level and needs, manipulating their fingers, correcting and encouraging, addressing their questions and meeting each student where they are at. This reminds me of Jesus and discipleship. … More Parables and Private Lessons
Today I reflect on my two childhood pets, highlighting the contrast between their lives. Pierre, a wild outdoor cat, met an unknown fate during the Super Storm of 1987,, while Snoopy, an indoor cat, lived a long but sheltered life. Let’s ponder whether a safe but limited existence is truly fulfilling, linking the theme to a deeper contemplation of purpose and impactful living. … More A Tale of Two Kitties
Let’s dig into Genesis 3, a text ripe and juicy with deep insights. Humanity, estranged from God after disobeying, feels exposed and fearful, hiding from God. But God seeks them out, asking where they are not for location, but for the state of their souls. They are covered in grace, as God clothes them, revealing His relentless pursuit of His wayward children. … More Evening Breeze in the Garden
This morning I came upon a friendly painted turtle on the road and pulled over to help him to safety. Yesterday I joined several other cars pulled over to watch another more daring Good Samaritan helping a large and intimidating snapping turtle across the highway to his wetland destination. What is it about turtles that evoke such concern and compassion? I think we see something of ourselves in these creatures. … More The Turtle’s Shell
We just wrapped up our “Imago Vita” series on the role of imagination in spiritual transformation. In this post I share my “imago vita” and spiritual journey and yearning to become a more joyful and carefree sower of God’s Word. I have found inspiration in an AI-generated Van Gogh-style portrait of a happy sower, which symbolizes my desire to be a more joyful worker in God’s field. … More The Happy Sower
When I graduated from high school someone gave me a copy of Dr. Seuss’ Oh the Places You’ll Go! The optimism of that coming-of-age moment was wrapped up in the promise near the end of that book: “And will you succeed? Yes! You will, indeed! (98 and 3/4 percent guaranteed.) KID, YOU’LL MOVE MOUNTAINS!” This graduation season, I’ve been thinking and praying about a group of graduates for whom success seems a lot less certain than Dr. Seuss’ appraisal. … More Immigration, Dreamers & Moving Mountains
Somehow the church tends to pick up the idea that we’re supposed to win. That our place in the world is not one of suffering love, but victorious power. It’s so easy for the church to forget that Christ did not call us to rule but to serve. He called us, as Dietrich Bonhoeffer put it, to come and die. … More A Long Defeat … into Victory
This week a PGA golfer was found dead in his home by suicide at the age of 30. He had battled depression and anxiety for years, being quite open about his struggles. I have also faced recurring bouts with depression and anxiety. I call it a “dark cloud” that occasionally settles over my thoughts and emotions, blocking out the light and leaving me in the shadows. Psalm 139 can help us through the darkness and back into the light. … More Weighty Thoughts: On Depression
Politics are dividing our churches like never before. Preston Sprinkle’s new book reminds us that the first-century church was not an apolitical gathering, where Christians left their Roman politics at the door. It also wasn’t a place where Christians mounted a Roman flag next to—or above—a Christian one. Church was a place where God’s plan for governing the world was revealed, where one could witness what it means to follow the Creator’s design for human flourishing. … More Exiles: The Book We’ve Needed
Congratulations Graduates! You are probably experiencing an array of shifting emotions right now: excitement, relief, anxiety, fear, joy, doubt, regret, gratefulness, confusion and more. The season of your life that, at one time, seemed like it would never end has now snuck up on you. In the blink of an eye, a tossing of the … More “Sheepish” Advice for Graduates
These are the ridiculous, tongue-in-cheek thoughts of a person foolish enough to bring the noise and rancor of human politics with him on his walk into the quiet and peaceful world of nature. The main lesson to glean from this is to not repeat my mistake and let nature be a temporary respite from the politics of the City of Man. … More Fallen Birds & Politics
My mom took us three kids to the mall when we were at prime begging age. Mom probably intended to simply return something and come home empty handed. Instead, she came home with a kitten from the mall pet store. That lucky kitten was rescued from bondage, adopted into a new family, and brought into a new realm of life and possibilities. Let’s explore Romans 8:12-17 in this light. … More “Here, Kitty, Kitty!”
Mainstream media fails to depict the true reality of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from a Christian perspective. The “Theology in the Raw” podcast features diverse viewpoints, including a Gazan Christian theologian advocating for nonviolent resistance, an Orthodox Jewish Zionist working for reconciliation, and a scholar questioning blind support for Israel from a New Testament perspective. The media coverage’s failure to capture the complexity of the conflict is also highlighted. … More The Israel-Palestinian Conflict with Preston Sprinkle
While carpenters and civil engineers, building codes and inspectors have good reasons for requiring straight walls and level foundations, the Creator of the universe seems to have other ideas. Humans prefer flat roads and level bridges and right angles and flush edges and symmetrical designs. Meanwhile, God delights in crooked lines and twisted branches and snaking rivers and sloping hillsides and asymmetrical formations. … More Crooked Lines
Today I compare God’s transforming power to a home renovation project, emphasizing the importance of visualization and imagination. Did you know Ezekiel’s vision of the valley of dry bones played a pivotal role in the launch of MainStreet? I share how and explore the need for God’s transformative breath to revive and transform souls, and the need for a vivid, colorful vision of God’s desired future for us to enliven dead faith. … More Dry Bones TV Network
She wore a white jumpsuit with red lettering and had a sprayer on her back—a modern day ghost buster save the modified 1959 Cadillac Miller-Meteor Sentinel ambulance. And she was exterminating bugs, not trapping ghosts. She was spraying around the church as I parked my car one morning. She had a pleasant face and innocent demeanor—not the look of a mass murderer. … More The Exterminator
I like this image of walking into nature, sauntering in search of Holy Land—our own enchanted forest, a private Holy of Holies by a bubbling brook, a stairway descending from Heaven where we sense God’s angels among us. Like Jacob awakening from his wilderness dream in Gen. 28, we go sauntering in hopes that God will use nature to rouse us from our spiritual slumber and make our trail the gate of heaven. … More Holy Ground
Kingdom Harbor 