This past year of doctoral studies for me has been focused on two related topics — 1) Slavery in the Ancient World and 2) Race & Ethnicity in the Ancient World — both with an eye to how grasping the ancient past can help better inform our Christian witness in the present day. Along the … More Racialized Religion
LECTIONARY REFLECTION | COLOSSIANS 1:1-14 This week’s New Testament lesson comes from Paul’s letter to the church at Colossae. Read full passage here. Paul does a couple things here that we can learn from and imitate. First, Paul takes the time to say thank you. Paul affirms who the Colossians are right now – “To God’s … More Two Go-To Habits (Mike Fox)
As many of you come to celebrate my 40th and enjoy the deep, soul-full, and just plain fun music of Ben Kyle and Romantica tomorrow night (July 3), I wanted to share a bit of his personal story. Here’s a letter he sent a while back sharing his dark season, and I’m grateful he’s back … More The Man Behind the Music
“Our culture has accepted two huge lies. The first is that if you disagree with someone’s lifestyle, you must fear or hate them. The second is that to love someone means you agree with everything they believe or do. Both are nonsense. You don’t have to compromise convictions to be compassionate.” -RICK WARREN
by Skye Jethani Jean Vanier, the founder of the L’Arche communities who died just a few weeks ago, often used a simple metaphor to explain his ministry with the mentally handicapped. With his hands cupped he would say, “Suppose I have a wounded bird in my hands. What would happen if I closed my hands … More The Space for Growth (Skye Jethani)
LECTIONARY REFLECTION | LUKE 8:26-39 In Western society the scientific method has been the standard for separating fact from fiction, truth from lie since the 1500s. For the last 500 years, anything that can’t be demonstrated in a controlled, repeatable experiment must not be true. Religion, faith, and belief in an unseen, spiritual world has been … More Fighting Demons (Mike Fox)
I’m concerned about the strong river current of ideas we are swimming against and the polluted atmosphere created by the larger cultural narratives we are breathing in uncritically. … More Happiness or Character?
I am just going to say it. I’m going on record. Even though I may need to cash in some “man chips” in doing so, Elton John’s “Your Song” as one of my all-time favorites. Not just Top 10. Probably Top 5. I’m gonna even risk losing friends and the respect of my musical comrades … More My Favorite Love Song
This Sunday I’m preaching a Pentecost sermon on our divided world, and the need for the church to learn, speak and embody a new language. I’m reposting an old seminary essay from 2004 on the same topic. (This one is for the Bible/Theology nerds out there.) “Your very lives are a letter that anyone can read by just … More The Church as God’s New Language
“These men who are turning the world upside down have now come here, and Jason has welcomed them into his house. They are all defying Caesar’s decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus.” (Acts 17:6-7) I spent some years as a youth pastor in a larger established church running a big youth program … More Plotting Revolution at Jason’s House
PENTECOST REFLECTION | Gen. 11:1-9; Acts 2:1-21 Can you imagine Facebook or Twitter without disagreement or conflicting viewpoints? Can you imagine a world without political division? Can you imagine a world united by one language and motivated by one grand purpose? We live in a cultural moment of unprecedented division. Some have said our nation … More Our Global Speech Impediment
The most formative influences in my life, after my parents, have been my professors. My life’s trajectory changed 20 years ago after sitting in Professor Holmes’ Life & Teachings of Paul class and Professor Eddy’s Historical Jesus class in college. My view of reality and the Christian faith was revolutionized by a paper I wrote for Professor Scourgie’s Intro to … More Call Me Prof!
Thanks for sharing this, Keri. :)
ASCENSION SUNDAY | Luke 24:44-53 One of the difficulties we have in reading and understanding the Bible is that we often unintentionally plug individual passages and key concepts into a controlling story that is foreign to the Bible. This results in making the Bible answer questions it was never interested in addressing. For example, many … More A Bigger Salvation Story
My amazing wife is giving me the greatest gift I can think of for my 40th birthday: the chance to share the beauty and joy of dancing and swaying, eating and drinking, together with family and friends to the live music of one of my favorite bands. (And my favorite part will be watching my mom … More The Best Birthday Gift is Live Music!
LECTIONARY REFLECTION | Acts 16:9-15; John 14:23-29; 5:1-9 Most of us have seen Warren Sallman’s famous painting Christ at Heart’s Door based on Revelation 3:20 where Jesus says, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock.” Jesus glows with the light of fresh hope while the dark thorns and thistles of sin threaten to overtake … More Are You Open?
“And a child shall lead them.” Isaiah 11:6 Our 7-year old, Peter Bjorn, made this precious cityscape that really caught my eye. It reminds me of a passage from Philippians. Followers of Jesus are called to cultivate a countercultural way of life that sets us apart from “a world of corrupt and sinful people.” Paul calls … More Peter Bjorn: Shining Like a Star (and van Gogh)
I’m reposting this from the deep archives as it is a lesson we seem slow to learn. By the way, did you hear about the ‘Preachers N Sneakers’ controversy? Below is an excerpt from a spot-on, timely and utterly devastating articles I’ve read in years about church leadership. I wish it never needed to be … More Dangers of Celebrity Pastors & Megachurch Cultures
by Malinda Fuller May you have clarity of thought and a morsel of sanity today. May you know that His grace is enough. For every season, every tantrum, every question, every failure. It is enough. Always. May you know that you are wildly loved by your Father, just as you are. Not because of what … More Prayer for a Stressed Out Mom
Do you remember a few years back when #Blessed became a wildly popular hashtag on Instagram? Many others concluded it was the most annoying and misleading hashtag on Instagram. … More #BlessedToBlessOthers
From Skye Jethani: Most of the characters in the Bible were scoundrels. King David, for example, possessed some noble qualities, but he was also a liar, adulterer, and murderer. Still, he was called “a man after God’s own heart.” The explanation may be found in David’s prayers. They run the spectrum from adoration to anger, … More Taking Off Prayer Masks
“Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and PROCLAIMING THE GOSPEL of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest … More Do Millennials Think Evangelism is Wrong?
Sitting around that table the hidden face of God suddenly becomes visible. The stranger becomes a dear friend. The empty hole in our heart is suddenly filled. The darkness is vanquished by piercing light. Hope is resurrected to dance a jig on the corpse of Despair. At that table the lump in our throat is replaced by an irresistible burning in our heart. … More Faces Downcast to Eyes Opened
FOURTH SUNDAY OF EASTER| Acts 9:36-43 Spring time in the upper midwest brings many good things back from the icy clutches of winter—including garage sales. As I was making my first couple stops of the season this week, I began to construct a kind of “Theology of Garage Sales.” I thought: What if the things … More Garage Sale Theology
Rachel Held Evans died on Saturday at the age of 37, leaving behind her husband and a 1 and 3 year old. Life is precious and fragile indeed. Never heard of RHE? That’s okay. Now is a great chance to check out her writings. I confess I have not read any of her books, or … More Searching For Sunday
Kingdom Harbor 