At the start of the 2020s I had been blogging for 10 1/2 years, and was committed to continuing to provide new content focused on matters of faith that matter.
While I started the 2000s and 2010s as someone engaged in full-time ministry in the local church, I started the 2020s leading a faith-based non-profit that is supported by many congregations (as well as a wide variety of other donors and supporters). In the 2020s (so far) I’ve continued on this path serving two organizations focused on providing for basic human needs (food, healthcare, clothing, shelter) and helping people achieve economic self-sufficiency (employment services, empowerment coaching, education, and advocacy):
- Mansfield Mission Center (Mansfield, Texas)
- White Rock Center of Hope (Dallas, Texas)
Even though I am no longer serving in full-time ministry in the local church, I’ve remained connected to the local church in a number of ways. Recently, I’ve served as an adult education teacher at First Presbyterian Church (Fort Worth, Texas). Currently, I’m involved in Cathedral of Hope‘s (Dallas, Texas) small group ministry as a small group leader and as a team leader for the in person small groups. And, I’m connected to many congregations that support the ministry of White Rock Center of Hope.
As a result, my focus of providing relevant new content for use by individuals and congregations continues. So What Faith – in the 2020s – is all about discussing matters of faith that matter, asking thought provoking questions, and inspiring people to live out their faith.
Top Series
While most posts stand on their own, I’ve also written some thematic series ranging in length from a 6 to 35 posts. The most popular series from the 2020s are listed below with a series title, date of publication, and a brief explanation. Popularity was determined by adding the view counts of all posts within the series (limiting eligible posts within a series to those published in the 2020s).
- Pandemic Posts: Wisdom for Ministry During the Time of COVID-19 (2020-2022) – an occasional series of 35 posts focused on doing ministry during a pandemic
- Giving Up the Church I Always Knew (2021) – a series of six posts focused on what I plan to leave behind as we move toward a post-pandemic church
- Top 10 Books of the Year (2010-2021) – an annual list of the 10 best new books I read that year
Top Posts
The top 10 posts written during the current decade follow. Following each post, I’ve included publication year and the posts rank (based on unique page views) all-time (a metric capturing all views of all posts on So What Faith since 2013) and in the 2020s (a metric designed to provide a better comparison to these more recent posts with those published and therefore viewable for a decade or more – unique page views of all posts on the site since January 1, 2020).
- Presbyterian Decline: PCUSA -The First 35 Years (2020) – 80th all-time/ 8th in the 2020s
- My Seminary is Closing (2020) – 123rd all-time/ 13th in the 2020s
- My Seminary is Closing – The Bigger Picture (2020) – 144th all-time/ 16th in the 2020s
- May Love Overcome and Justice Roll Down (2020) – 167th all-time/ 20th in the 2020s
- Dear HSU Trustees (2020) – 180th all-time/ 22nd in the 2020s
Interestingly three of the top five were written in what could have become a series focused on the closure of Logsdon Seminary at Hardin-Simmons University. The top post considered the membership decline in the Presbyterian Church (USA) during it’s first 35 years and the fourth post introduced the music of Daniel Deitrich.
So What?
The 2020s are just beginning. As I write these words we are roughly 25% of the way through the decade.
I learned long ago not to be overly specific in projecting long-term aspirations. I do, however, have confidence in the general direction of the blog: continuing to consider new data about American religious belief, behavior and belonging; sharing the best new books I read; and encouraging people to live out their faith in ways that make the world a better place for all people and all of creation.
And, since the journey forward is marked by collaboration, I’d welcome your input. Let me know if there are specific topics you’d like me to discuss more in the months and years ahead.
