As a pastor’s kid, I grew up reading the Bible. I want to tell you it’s because I was so holy. The truth is that when you were in church, as … [Read more...] about How to Overcome Polarization: Resist Idolatry
The Long, Slow, Complex Work of Loving Each Other
2024 has arrived. As a kid, I realized that exciting things would happen every four years: an Olympic year (which I love) and an election year, which … [Read more...] about The Long, Slow, Complex Work of Loving Each Other
What to Call Your Elephant
You’d think it would be easy to spot an elephant, but not if you’re looking in the wrong direction. Years ago, I led a mission team to … [Read more...] about What to Call Your Elephant
How Can This Be? – Engaging the Nones in the Spirit of Advent
I am a data guy. While I smile knowingly at the words of Mark Twain who supposedly said that “statistics may not lie but liars always use … [Read more...] about How Can This Be? – Engaging the Nones in the Spirit of Advent
Diving Deeper into the Great Resignation
Over the past few months, a slew of articles has come out talking about the Church’s experience with the Great Resignation. Barna published the … [Read more...] about Diving Deeper into the Great Resignation
Missional Fervor: Telling Our Story
Does the name Kirk Christiansen mean anything to you? Born in Denmark in 1891, Christiansen was a carpenter by trade. By mid-life, however, he … [Read more...] about Missional Fervor: Telling Our Story
7 Traits of Thriving Congregations: Relevant Practices
Timeless or timely…which would you rather be? It was the mid 1990’s and my friend was in her first semester of seminary. She went to the … [Read more...] about 7 Traits of Thriving Congregations: Relevant Practices
7 Traits of Thriving Congregations: Humility
A few years ago Jim Collins (author of Good to Great) partnered with the Harvard Business School to do a study of what he … [Read more...] about 7 Traits of Thriving Congregations: Humility
7 Traits of Thriving Congregations: Hope
In the 1950’s a somewhat morbid experiment was conducted by a professor at Johns Hopkins University named Curt Richter. He put wild rats in a … [Read more...] about 7 Traits of Thriving Congregations: Hope