I'm very excited about the "Go Underground" project coming up in February, and I would love to see you sign up! After our years in LA, in the Deep South, and partnering with various churches and leaders around Kansas City, my heart has never been more broken for racial tensions and disparities...
I was at a luncheon this week attended by local businessmen who desire to integrate their faith and their work. (It's a regular luncheon provided by CMBC, a Christian men's group.) One of the men present said what I feel increasingly each year, "I just don't have the Christmas spirit this year."...
There's a young man that I've been discipling for over a year, now - not someone who is a part of our church family. We've gone through a few books together and are now walking through the Gospel of John. We simply read the next section, make observations, ask questions, and talk about how it...
There's a fascinating theory that involves the omniscience of God (that God is all-knowing) that I repeatedly find helpful. It comes up in conversation here and there, and so I want to give it a very brief treatment here. However, you can read something much more complete and academic about...
Have you ever struggled to know how to pray for someone? You don't want to act like you know better than God does about what should be done. You don't want to only pray for temporal relief. You know God already knows, and you suspect He'll do whatever He wants no matter what you pray. One...
Thanksgiving is always a little awkward for me. I get it, and I like that we do it, and I like that it's a huge deal for many of us. But for me, there's always that awkward moment where we stop and say, "Well, we need to remember to be thankful at this moment..." It's awkward ... if I've not...
This week, Lynne and I worked at two different polling stations for the election. It was Lynne's first time, and my third. She came away with the same odd observation I made after my first time: There's a certain kind of honor helping someone to vote, even if they will vote differently than I...
A pastor friend posted this cartoon recently: Of course, the point is a little pastoral revenge for the microscope some pastors find themselves under. (Not every pastor has a perfectly gracious congregation like I do!) But as I gave the cartoon a second thought, I realized that unintentionally...
A commission is an instruction, command, or duty given to a person or a group of people. For example, my brother, who is a sculptor, is commissioned to create a work of art made from a tree trunk using only chainsaws as his carving implements. When a customer commissions him to execute a...
It's easy to criticize addicts. It's not loving nor respectful of the image of God within them, but it sure is easy. All kinds, too - substance abuse, food, alcohol, porn. We can poke at their lack of self-control, lack of self-respect, and the destruction they bring on themselves. Maybe we also...