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July 2026

July 09, 2026

Lions, Liars, and Shepherds

A woman in my neighborhood watches as her kids ride their bicycles. She wears a...

December 2023

December 12, 2023

Mary Weeps

We are familiar with the phenomenon of weeping statues of Mary. I once heard the...

November 2023

November 27, 2023

Does American Christianity Always Get It Wrong?

We do not always get it wrong. It just appears that way too many times....

September 2023

September 05, 2023

We Need To Talk

Church, we need to talk. I know we do a lot of it. We talk...

August 2023

August 31, 2023

Will You Be Loyal

United Methodists ask that question in our membership vows. Will you be loyal? Today, I...

August 24, 2023

Is Seminary Worth It?

Is a seminary education worth getting? It is a major commitment to earn the Master...

July 2023

July 10, 2023

Imagined Injuries

Church folk sure like going to court. Imagined injuries now make laws and policies. The...

June 2023

June 19, 2023

Consuming Worship?

Do lay people think of themselves as customers consuming worship? Pastors, like me, are appalled...

April 2023

April 24, 2023

Ultimately, It Was Love

My Annual Conference saw 264 congregations leave last Saturday. Love let them go. It was...

March 2023

March 23, 2023

4 Reasons Why You Need A Church

Progressive Christians do not feel at home in many churches anymore. There are reasons to...

February 2023

February 20, 2023

Out Of The Chapel: The Problem of Youth Revival

The round-the-clock 11 day revival worship in Hughes Auditorium has ended by order of the...

February 16, 2023

Populist Religion

People forget George Wallace was a populist. He is known as a white racist segregationist...

November 2022

November 18, 2022

Members Only

The Members Only jackets of my teenaged years illustrate how I view those times. I,...

October 2022

October 17, 2022

Conformity Is Easier

I ask myself every week. What would St. Paul think about the value the Church...

June 2022

June 02, 2022

Pentecost And Discipleship

Easter season ends with Pentecost. Often it is lost in the shuffle in church worship...

March 2022

March 03, 2022

4 “What Ifs” Church Leaders Fear

It is easy to criticize. I know that all too well. Being a pastor makes...

February 2022

February 07, 2022

Holy Disobedience Or Holy Initiative

Protestants do not have a clear idea of holy obedience. We leave that submission to...

January 2022

January 20, 2022

Christians Being Bad

Christians being bad is a common theme for bloggers. A few public examples come to...

September 2021

September 01, 2021

The 80/20 Rule In Community Saves People

I learned the phrase the 80/20 rule while in a meeting of Cub Scout leaders....

August 2021

August 23, 2021

The Wesleyan Commission of Anxiety

I want to talk about the Wesleyan Covenant Association. The organization claims to be grounded...

July 2021

July 19, 2021

Bigotry And Belief

The problem with bigotry and belief is that the two look alike. Many people easily...

July 15, 2021

The Mt. Bethel UMC Problem

Mt Bethel UMC is the latest focal point of the less than amicable divorce in...

June 2021

June 21, 2021

Keeping Communion Holy

My son was very upset with his grandparents one Sunday morning. Their church passed the...

June 01, 2021

3 Attitudes Are Killing American Churches

The churches are not coming apart and failing because of beliefs. It is happening because...

May 2021

May 27, 2021

Disciplining Christians

Yes. You read that correctly. Disciplining instead of discipling. I had an experience with this...