On June 30, I concluded 4+ years of service as Director of Adult Education at Naples United Church of Christ (a tenure that also included a shorter stint as IT Manager). This ministry role was my first in the United Church of Christ after serving congregations affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Lutheran (ELCA), and Presbyterian (PCUSA) traditions. Naples UCC Naples UCC is among the flagship churches in the United Church of Christ denomination. Just over 1% Read More …
United Church of Christ
Sermon: Living Well, Living Wisely (#1568)
Sermon Text: James 3:13-18 (The Message) Sermon Excerpt Last Sunday I shared that our denomination – the United Church of Christ – was in the middle of something called General Synod. Held every two years this national gathering affords an opportunity for many in our tradition to come together in one place for several days of worship, learning, and decision making. At this General Synod – our thirtieth, held in Cleveland – delegates voted on more than a dozen resolutions. By Read More …
A Call for Marriage Equality (#1546)
Currently I serve as Transitional Minister at Fort Myers Congregational United Church of Christ. In March of 2013 our congregation became the denomination's 1090th Open and Affirming congregation. Earlier this year we rejoiced when marriage equality arrived in Florida. We are hopeful that it will soon become a national reality. The following is an excerpt from the portion of yesterday's worship service focused on marriage equality in support of the Religious Institute's Read More …
My New Role: Transitional Minister (#1488)
I am delighted to announce that effective January 1, 2015 I will begin a new role as Transitional Senior Minister at Fort Myers Congregational UCC (Fort Myers, FL). Process Their current minister, Rev. Phil White, is retiring at the end of this year after serving in that role for the last decade. I have known Phil for several years, and am thankful he extended an invitation to me to serve as a guest preacher this summer. July 20: A Holy Invitation July 27: Persisting for the Read More …
Connecting Beyond the Local Church (#1470)
Davida Foy Crabtree completes her service as the Interim Conference Minister for the Florida Conference of the United Church of Christ later this month. As one who has benefited from her leadership, I share her parting prayer (the prayer originally circulated in the e-Celebrate newsletter dated September 3, 2014): Behold, God, your Conference, the United Church of Christ in Florida! Filled with life and hope, struggling at times to see the future, but faithful and strong, these Your Read More …
Popular Presbyterians (#1462)
Last week I happened upon a chart showing how common certain words related to mainline Protestantism appeared in the New York Times. I was immediately intrigued to see that Presbyterians have received better coverage than others since 1860 and that the use of the term peaked in 1937, appearing that year in 2,149 articles. After determining how to create my own charts, I made one reflecting the names of the four traditions with which I have had formal affiliation: Christian Church Read More …
Fort Myers Congregational UCC (#1458)
This summer continues to be marked by new opportunities. I am currently spending four Sundays (July 20, July 27, August 3, and August 10) as the guest preacher at Fort Myers Congregational UCC (Fort Myers, FL). Check out last Sunday's message: "A Holy Invitation." Read More …
Summer Shifts (#1449)
Summer has always been one of my favorite seasons of the year. It is also a time when many people temporarily shift their normal routine. I will be making shifts in several areas for the summer, including: Blogging I have published one blog post a day for the last 10 months, and a total of 1,450 since launching this blog in 2009. This will be my last daily post for the summer. I will continue to post on occasion rather than taking a month off as I did last year (a much Read More …
The End of Interim Ministry? (#1444)
Later this month I will conclude a 10 month interim role as the Senior Minister of United Church (Marco Island, FL): a congregation affiliated with the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches and the United Church of Christ. This year long journey has afforded the congregation an opportunity to process the past, understand the present, and prepare for the future. I firmly believe it will enable the new settled minister to begin well from day one knowing that folks Read More …
Spiritual Prodigies (#1437)
Vince Amlin, associate minister at the United Church of Gainesville (Gainesville, FL), recently suggested that we need more spiritual prodigies. More specifically, he wrote The Church could use a generation of spiritual prodigies. The UCC needs them. The world needs them – kids hungry for a second helping of soul. So What? I agree wholeheartedly with Amlin that the church is ready to benefit from a new generation of spiritual prodigies. I wonder, however, what it is that your local Read More …