A Church Is Born!

January 16, 2012

After a full two years since Keri and I began this church planting journey with God, we celebrated the official launch, or Grand Opening, of MainStreet Covenant Church this Sunday at The Gillespie Center. What a joyful, energetic, Spirit-filled celebration it was. We had 180 people attend, and had to use the overflow parking lot … More A Church Is Born!

Rekindling the Legacy of E.A. Skogsbergh on Lake Minnetonka

January 9, 2012

That night Paul had a dream: A Macedonian stood on the far shore and called across the sea, “Come over to Macedonia and help us!” The dream gave Paul his map. We went to work at once getting things ready to cross over to Macedonia. All the pieces had come together. We knew now for … More Rekindling the Legacy of E.A. Skogsbergh on Lake Minnetonka

Podcast Pastors

December 30, 2011

Found this at Jesus Creed.  I think this is an important topic needing to be addressed. From Trevin Wax’s post as reported at CP: There’s a dangerous trend among Christians today, according to one Christian: Podcast sermons are increasingly replacing real pastorship. “What is dangerous is not listening to podcasts, but thinking that pastoring and shepherding is … More Podcast Pastors

Cremation vs. Burial: A Worldview Case Study

December 28, 2011

I heard a commercial on the radio this morning for The Cremation Society. It said something like only 4% chose cremation back in 1960, increasing slightly to about 8% in 1980. Then they proudly announced that today over 50% are choosing cremation over traditional burial! So, what? What’s the big deal? Does it matter one … More Cremation vs. Burial: A Worldview Case Study

Appreciating Rob Bell: On the Occasion of His Final Sunday at Mars Hill

December 20, 2011

Rob Bell’s final Sunday at the church he founded has now come and gone. I am looking forward to listening to his final words to his beloved Mars Hill on my drive home today. I should take a moment to share some of my own appreciations for Rob’s ministry that has been so influential to … More Appreciating Rob Bell: On the Occasion of His Final Sunday at Mars Hill

QUOTABLES: N.T. Wright on the Jesus we want

December 15, 2011

The disciples wanted a kingdom without a cross. Many would-be “orthodox” or “conservative” Christians in our world have wanted a cross without a kingdom, an abstract “atonement” that would have nothing to do with this world except to provide the means of escaping it. Many too have wanted a “divine” Jesus as a kind of … More QUOTABLES: N.T. Wright on the Jesus we want

Are Calvinists Right?

December 6, 2011

Scot McKnight is sharing his own journey of wrestling with Calvinism at Jesus Creed.  Here’s  a snippet, and I recommend you read the rest of the forthcoming series. I found two major weaknesses in Calvinism’s theology (and also a disorientation in its architecture): first, the emphasis of its architecture is not the emphasis of the … More Are Calvinists Right?

Messages from Santa

December 5, 2011

A friend shared this with me. This is very cute, well-done, and the message is…well…perhaps the best message we can muster up without Jesus anywhere in view. (Note: I’ve only viewed the first 4 videos…so maybe (please God) it takes a radically Christ-centered turn in the end away from tapping into our own “santa within.”) … More Messages from Santa