If Protestants had saints, Dietrich Bonhoeffer would be one of them. And Feb. 4 would have been his day. He was a German pastor and theologian, a prolific writer and an early opponent of Hitler. He ultimately paid for his resistance with his life, when
I absolutely love Christmas music. As early as possible each year, I begin listening to it. In fact, I’ve decided that if merchants can begin airing holiday commercials on TV right after Halloween, I can start listening to Christmas carols, too. Have you ever pondered
Is your congregation receiving all its spiritual vitamins and minerals? We all know how crucial a balanced physical diet is; our spirits also need a healthy mixture of “the whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27). But before you stop reading this column because
Over time, praying the Jesus way roots out our tiny, timid and unworthy goals and gradually aligns us with God’s heart and God’s purposes.
A church social justice committee can keep members informed and educated on issues confronting the community and can work with social justice committees of other congregations to have a powerful impact.
No, the title of this column does not imply that your pastor is illiterate. No offense intended. My challenge is that all of us pastors need to read wider — much wider than we normally do.
Sometimes, God will allow the disruptions to remind us that we are not in charge. If things always go our way, we never learn patience. If our human-contrived security is enough, we never learn to trust God.
Take it from me.
The old joke goes, “Baptists believe the Bible; they just don’t know what is says!” In my more mature years, I’ve stopped worrying whether or not people take the Bible literally and started asking if they take it seriously.
Heard any good jokes lately? Early Christians customarily celebrated Easter with joy, laughter and lots of jokes. Someone once said that humor is our response to seeing the proud lord of death step on a banana peel. That proud lord of death (Satan) thought he
Like many people, I was appalled the first time I heard the story of how Thomas Jefferson, one of our nation’s founding fathers, personally edited the Bible. He took a pair of scissors and cut up his copy of Scripture, removing the parts that
