today shalom
Today Shalom: The Fruit of Right Living
When I was a kid, I remember a preacher saying that the “big word, righteousness” simply meant to do what was “right.” That’s a good shorthand definition.
Relational peace
When Fences Fall
"How good and pleasant it is when God's people live together in unity!" - Psalm 133:1 -- The fence between their yards had stood for thirty years, a silent reminder of an argument neither neighbor could fully remember. Then came the storm that toppled it.
bless the world
Sermon: What Does the Lord Require of You?
I'm preaching this sermon tomorrow based on Micah 6:1-8. In light of current events, and the divisions within our culture, God's people need to hear again the call to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God. I hope your Sunday is glorious!
bless the world
The Care of Souls as Outreach
My latest interest focuses on exploring pastoral care as outreach. I talk to lots of small church pastors and leaders, picking their brains for stories of smaller churches doing effective ministry. More and more I'm hearing stories of people helping people -- people caring for people -- as
Creativity
We will all be connected forever
"People today are going to stay connected forever," says Jeff Jarvis. Jarvis, journalism professor and author of What Would Google Do? made that observation in a talk to Google employees recently. Jarvis's point is that Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, Plaxo, FriendFeed, Twitter, Flickr, and a host of
church as abbey
One reason small churches aren't growing: saturation
Thumbing through an analysis of our community today, it hit me. There are too many churches in our area. Within a 5-mile radius of our church, there are 25 other churches. And, this doesn't even count churches without telephones, which include at least 8 more that I know
Community
Praying for the sick
Our Wednesday night schedule is pretty typical for a Baptist church. About 25-30 of us eat together at 5:45 PM, then prayer and Bible study takes place around the tables at 6:30 PM. Choir follows prayer meeting, which is the schedule in about every Baptist church I can