bless the world
One of the things I learned while I attended seminary in Texas was that dominoes are for more than lining up and knocking down. Be that as it may, we're headed for an ecclesiastical domino effect brought to us by an economy in recession -- a recession, we
Creativity
Once Carl Sandburg remarked about a preacher: "I won't take my religion from any man who never works except with his mouth." I wonder if Sandburg would give us preachers a break if we also worked with pens, and not just with our mouths. Since Sandburg
Community
This week I was asked to pray at the swearing in of our new county treasurer, who is also a member of our church. I wrote Prayer for A New County Treasurer for that occasion. I also wrote Prayer for the Opening of Court a couple of years ago. Both
Culture
"In wildness is the preservation of the world," wrote Henry David Thoreau in his groundbreaking book, Walden. With Thoreau as a starting point, Bill McKibben has assembled the finest, most comprehensive anthology of American environmental writing one could hope to find. The combined work of 101 authors, running
Creativity
I got tired of lugging my laptop to meetings, so I got a Blackberry before I went to NOC2008 in San Diego. Of course, when I got there, everyone I saw had an iPhone or a BB, so I'm not exactly on the cutting edge here, but I&
bless the world
Here's the powerpoint I used in my NOC2008 workshop, Small Churches Make Good Neighbors. I'm using the abbey church model, and discussing the 10 aspects of the ancient celtic abbeys applied to churches today. The ppt is on SlideShare, so you can view and download the
church as abbey
A friend of mine sent me Seth Godin's new book, Tribes . All Godin's books pack lots of new thinking between their small covers. I'll post more about it after I'm finished, but already I've run across these gems: * "A
Community
Here is the sermon I preached this morning from Psalm 78:1-7, titled The Next Generation. The Next Generation Psalm 78:1-71 O my people, hear my teaching; listen to the words of my mouth. 2 I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter hidden things, things from
Culture
Wow, what a great kickoff to NOC08 yesterday. The small church discussion group I led had an overflow crowd and lots of great ideas. Erwin McManus delivered a powerful and compelling message. McManus said that most of our effort is spent trying to make Sunday worship just a little less
Congregation
I'm reading Forces For Good: Six Practices of High-Impact Nonprofits by Leslie Crutchfield and Heather Grant. The authors studied hundreds of successful nonprofits and distilled these six practices of the best ones: 1. Advocate and serve. High-impact nonprofits do both -- serve through programs and advocate for systemic
Culture
As November 4 approaches, US voters by the millions are casting ballots ahead of the traditional election day. Estimates place early/absentee voting at 30% or more of the total vote this year. Voters are increasingly choosing to vote on their own schedules rather than on the one day traditionally
Culture
I've been writing about the coming, and now present, economic crisis since last year (here, here, and here). Popular financial advisor, Suze Orman, speaking on Anderson Cooper's show tonight, said that the economy is in "intensive care" right now and will be for a