Last week I had the privilege of participating in a Week of Hope alongside a group of eighteen middle school students and two adults from my church. We were a part of a larger team of eighty-seven participants (middle school students, high school students, and adults) from five churches across the country affiliated with three different denominations. This short-term mission opportunity is open to middle and high school students across the country and is facilitated by Group Read More …
Review of Who Stole my Church? (#0011)
MacDonald, Gordon. Who Stole my Church? What to do When the Church You Love Tries to Enter the 21st Century. Thomas Nelson, 2007. ISBN: 978-0-8499-2153-7. Meet the Author Gordon MacDonald is a well respected pastor, teacher, and author. In thirty-five years of pastoral ministry, MacDonald's served five congregations. He has been an adjunct professor at Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary for many years and is also a sought after speaker. Read More …
What is the Purpose of a Sermon? (#0010)
Scot McKnight's latest blog entry invites discussion: What is the Purpose of a Sermon? McKnight, a New Testament scholar as well as a prolific author and blogger, asks the question as he follows those who are live blogging about a preaching conference at Mars Hill with Rob Bell, Pete Rollins, and Shane Hipps. So What? Share your answer to the question: What is the purpose of a sermon? For me a part of the answer must be in the so what. If I hear what sounded like a great Read More …
Review of What Americans Really Believe (#0009)
Stark, Rodney. What Americans Really Believe. Baylor University Press, 2008. ISBN: 978-1-60258-178-4. Meet the Author Since 2004, Rodney Stark has been a University Professor in Social Sciences and the Co-Director of the Institute of Studies of Religion at Baylor University. Stark is an American sociologist of religion who previously taught for over thirty years at the University of Washington. To learn more visit his personal website or see his curriculum Read More …
To Twist or Not to Twist (#0008)
In the July/August edition of Youth Worker Journal, Patton Dodd wrote an article about twisting Scripture in Children's Ministry. He and his wife taught Sunday School for a four and five year old class and were surprised to learn that the lesson on John the Baptist instructed them to "teach the main point that John the Baptist told the crowds, 'Jesus is God's Son,' as John the Baptist did, and telling them that they, like John, are supposed to carry that message into the world." The Read More …
Obama’s New Church (#0007)
Have you ever wondered how a President selects which church to attend? Apparently many more people are concerned with what church Obama chooses than the selection or discernment process leading to that choice. Back in February, Andrew Santella wrote, "Since before Election Day, Washington pastors have been lining up to invite the first family into their flock, and outlets from PBS to the Wall Street Journal have taken their turn handicapping the many contending congregations. Read More …
Review of Quitting Church (#0006)
Duin, Julia. Quitting Church: Why the Faithful Are Fleeing and What to Do about it. Baker Books, 2008. ISBN: 978-0-8010-6823-2. Meet the Author Julia Duin is the religion editor for the Washington Times. She has a master's degree in religion from Trinity School for Ministry (an Episcopal seminary) and has covered the beat for three decades. Duin has won numerous awards and been nominated twice for a Pulitzer. Book Basics "It's no secret that the percentage Read More …
The End of the Bible? (#0005)
The Digital Possibility For many years churchgoers have carried a Bible to church, but with the increasing popularity of electronic options it is no longer necessary to carry an extra item to church in order to have access to Scripture. Tim Challies has written a number of recent posts on his blog in a series titled Don't Bring Your Ipod to Church. Of greatest interest to me is his June 12 entry in which he writes about the "disturbing trend—Christians coming to church Read More …
Review of Mutual Empowerment (#0004)
Breazeale, Kathlyn A. Mutual Empowerment: A Theology of Marriage, Intimacy, and Redemption. Fortress Press, 2008. ISBN: 978-0-8006-2039-4. Meet the Author Kathlyn A. Breazeale is Associate Professor of Religion at Pacific Lutheran University. Book Basics Some of the most influential ideas informing marriage are traditional Christian ones. Kathlyn Breazeale, reframes marriage in light of a generation of theological insights, from feminists and process theologians. She Read More …
The Church on Facebook (#0003)
Lenora Rand's article in the June 30, 2009 Christian Century is titled The Church on Facebook: Why we Need Virtual Community. This article helps one consider the role of the online world in creating Christian community. More specifically, what how can facebook be utilized as a resource toward that end. Facebook is a popular social networking site. According to statistics from the site's press room. facebook has: Over 200 million users Over 100 million users who log in at Read More …