I’m asking this question because I used to be one of the “just hire the right man for the job” crowd. Then, I had lunch with a millennial. I asked him how I could reach millennials with the gospel. His answer was blunt, to the point, and surprising. He said, “Get a millennial to reach […]
What Should I do: Thoughts on Political and Cultural Engagement
I’m struggling. I’m struggling with how to engage culture for God’s glory. The recent nomination fight over Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh forced that struggle to the front of my conscience. There are five realities guiding my decisions on cultural engagement, and five action steps I’d like to take in the future. 5 Realities I […]
Women Can Speak in Church–1 Corinthians 14:34-36
I wrote an article earlier this week exhorting women to speak up in their churches and local association meetings. My post generated a fair amount of comments, accusing me of, among other things, being a leftist, feminist infiltrator, and not knowing God’s word. The scripture used to support a position in opposition to my post […]
Ladies, We Need Your Voice
I was moderating our association meeting when a resolution was brought to the floor. We almost never have resolutions submitted except for the obligatory thank you resolution to the host church. This resolution was heavy, and I knew the discussion would be emotional. The resolution was about abolishing abortion.. I moderated the discussion fairly. There […]
Thoughts on Depression Among Pastors
I talked to a friend a few days ago, and our conversation turned toward his pastor. His pastor is a mess, and not your typical everyone’s a sinner mess, but a dangerous mess. I immediately thought of Andrew Stocklein, the California pastor who took his life a few weeks ago. Two years ago, I struggled […]
Have We Taken God out of School?
I fell for it. I fell for it, hook line and sinker. I parroted this critique of the liberal public education establishment: they’ve taken God out of our schools. That was before I became involved with our local school. There are many who believe that the cause of our societal decline began when The Supreme […]
Encouragement for Churches?
Statistical data among churches is on an up-swing. Yes, you read that sentence correctly. There are many key statistics that should encourage beleaguered churches and pastors. The focus of this post is a summary of Dr. Thom Rainer’s podcast interview with Tony Morgan, head of The Unstuck Church Group. You can find The Unstuck Group here, […]
The Best of Enemies
Do you know the names Ann Atwater, CP Ellis, and Howard Fuller? I didn’t until I read the book “The Best of Enemies,” by Osha Gray Davidson. The book chronicles racial relations in Durham, North Carolina in the 1960’s. I heard about the story of CP Ellis and Ann Atwater during this year’s pastors’ conference […]
We Can Do Something – Thoughts on Protecting our Churches from Sexual Predators
When I was 16 years old, our church hired a new pastor. I was excited and intrigued because this was the first time I could remember our church hiring a new pastor. (Turns out there was a good reason for that, as the previous pastor had been there for 19 years.) The new pastor was […]
10 Predictions for the 2019 Annual Meeting
Dr. Rainer likes to devote a podcast episode or two at the end of the year to predicting current trends and their impact on churches in the coming year. He’s usually correct, and those episodes are some of my favorites. I’d like to take a page out of Dr. Rainer’s book and offer ten predictions […]
Why Dave Ramsey Was Not a Waste of Time at the SBC
My wife and I made sure we made it back into the convention hall Tuesday afternoon to hear Dave Ramsey speak. When we came in, he had already begun speaking. I was excited to hear him. I’m always excited to hear Dave speak; I’ll admit I see him as a bit of a hero. My […]
Thoughts on J.D. Greear’s Comments on Homosexuality
I was once asked to officiate a wedding for a young couple that had been attending our church. The young man had waited for me outside the building and he was very nervous. I knew the couple had been living together, and when he asked, I looked into his face and said, “I don’t normally […]