One thing: Jesus. Three things to do: forget the past, focus on heaven, and press on till you get there.
Moralizing Food Is Hurting The Church
God created us and said "this is good." Yet, we all feel so bad. If you are fat or have fat you have failed.
Top 5 CHARIS Posts in 2017
I'm pleased to look back on 2017 and share with you these most-read posts last year.
Living Creatively in a Destructive World
The world seems to be tearing itself apart these days, and even the smallest act of creativity is needed. Good luck out there.
Shifting Focus (Part 2)
In our desire to avoid pain, we essentially create pain for others. It’s a dreadfully powerful cycle and we are scarily and impressively loyal to it.
How to Keep Your Rural Minister through the Harvest
The absence of adequate and regular field support makes for casualties and AWOLS on the spiritual battlefield of rural missions.
The Haze of Love
Our biggest strength is that we trudge about in a world filled with darkness and death and decay and desperately try to love.
A Litany for Those in Pain
O Jesus, man of sorrows and suffering, hear me.
From the desire of being known,
deliver me, Jesus.
Boxing Day Sermon
So, the question before us on Dec. 26 (or on any other day) is, “What does Immanuel (God with us) mean today?”
When God Shows up for Christmas
The story of Jesus entering into the world is a story of God disrupting the lives and plans of those God chose.
Living Stones: Recognizing the DNA of Your Church
A living and missionally-focused congregation must attend to all of its being – relational and programmatic. Ignoring one dimension or the other will diminish the whole!
A Light in the Darkness
All of them need a little light in the midst of the darkness. I want nothing more than to bring a little light into the darkness.
A Tale of Two Trees
Christmas is when we recall that the King was born, and reigns forever more, and that the arrival of Christ signaled the expiration date on all other kingdoms.
How Are You and Your Dreams Getting Along this Advent?
Jesus needs people who are willing to imagine a different future, and step out on faith. Jesus needs dreamers in his life. Always has.
The Way of Salvation: An Advent Reflection
Salvation is a way; along that path the very character of God is sprouting up—love, faithfulness, righteousness, and peace.
Envisioning the Dream of Ministry
We must have a vision of possibilities for the future. Local congregations ought to consider how they are helping others develop a vision for ministry.
Advent: A Season of Vulnerability
The season of Advent culminates in the arrival of God in the form of a very vulnerable Jesus.
3 Steps to Keep Your Children's Ministry Clique Free
My focus for this post is not why cliques are created, but how to dismantle a clique and how to create a culture in your ministry where bullying and cliques are unacceptable.
The Crossroads of Life and Death
The nearness of death fills the room, yet somewhere there is the joy and promise of a new beginning.
Do Not Let Baby Jesus Become Jesus Lite
If baby Jesus is all we present, we are showing a “lite” version of Jesus, and babies do not demand that you deny yourself, take up a cross, and follow them.