While I've written extensively about Mainline decline this is the first time I've considered what this decline looks like in my own geography. As someone who has lived all but about a decade of my life in the Dallas - Fort Worth area of Texas, I've long wondered what Mainline decline really looks like here in the area I call home. The exploration that follows offers a county by county look at the region's most populous counties before exploring Mainline decline for the area as a whole. Read More …
Dallas
Top 10 Plates (#2022)
This is the time of year when food is more central than usual. From Thanksgiving through Christmas there are many reasons family and friends gather at table to share food and life with one another. Given this emphasis, I've curated a top ten list related to food. Shown below are the top ten plates I've posted on Google, based on view count. For fairness to all restaurants, I've limited each establishment to a single picture (whichever plate had the highest view count). #10 - Calamari from Read More …
Pandemic Worship: 10 Sacred Spaces (#1955)
A year before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, I wrote "Visiting 50+ Churches in Dallas-Fort Worth," highlighting congregations I had worshipped with since relocating to Texas from Florida. When the pandemic started, I stopped attending worship in person. After experiencing a full year of life without attending corporate worship, I gradually reentered that world. March 7 - I attended my first outdoor worship serviceMarch 14 - I attended my first indoor worship service Now, seven Read More …
25 Years, 25 Positions – One Purpose (#1951)
Earlier this week I shared some Labor Day Reflections. In the days since writing that post, I've done some additional reflecting on my own experience of work with a focus on my work since 1996. Over the last 25 years, I've worked for 15 different employers in 25 different positions (excluding short-term work as coach or consultant,). I've often changed roles once joining an organization, achieving four titles once, three titles twice, and two titles twice. And, I've often worked for Read More …
My First Complete In Person Worship Experience (#1942)
Until March 2020, I took for granted that nearly every Christian congregation would offer a weekly in person worship experience that would include congregational singing and musical worship leadership by a choir, orchestra, and/or a praise band. Starting in March 2021, I began to learn experientially about the many ways congregations are moving toward a "new normal" or "next normal." During the first two months Mainline Protestant congregations in the Dallas - Fort Worth area were Read More …
Pandemic Regathering: 8 Experiences (#1929)
When I first learned about COVID-19, I had no idea what to expect. In March 2020 when in person gatherings of all kind were discontinued, I never imagined it would be more than a year before I would next set foot in a sanctuary to worship alongside other followers of the Way of Jesus (I even blogged about the extended wait in posts like 6 Months Without In Person Worship and 10 Months Without In Person Worship). The First 8 Weeks My journey back to indoor worship and to intentionally Read More …
Central Christian Church: Concluding 158 Years (#1927)
On Easter Sunday 2021, Central Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), the oldest continually meeting congregation in Dallas, Texas, (est. 1863) held its final service of worship. A week later, the congregation held its final public gathering: an outdoor legacy lunch - an opportunity for current and past members, community partners, ministers, and others to celebrate the ministry and mission of the congregation, and to bless it's transition into a new stage of life. Getting Started My Read More …
Looking Again (#1873)
I'm spending some time today reflecting on my experiences over the last year. As part of that exercise, I've selected ten photos to share. I took each of these photos in either Dallas or Fort Worth using my phone. I invite you to take a few minutes to really look at both groups of photos. The first group offers a mix of city views alongside natural and cultural images. The second group presents two photos from within the walls of local congregations followed by two taken Read More …
Two New UCC Worship Experiences (#1729)
I'm accustomed to visiting a lot of churches. In a 24 month period ending in November 2017, I was blessed to worship with more than 40 different communities of faith in the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area. Over the next four months, however, I only managed to worship in one while serving as that congregation's visiting minister. Choosing Where To Worship The last three congregations I served were all affiliated with the United Church of Christ. With these positive Read More …
Search for a Church – Taking Recommendations (#1616)
Almost every study I have ever read finds that at least 3 out of every 4 people find a new church because of a recommendation. More specifically, someone already involved in a community of faith invited them to visit. So What? Now that my search for a church is in its fifth month, I am taking recommendations. In other words, feel free to invite me to your church - especially if you really think I would be a good fit. (If you have no idea whether or not I would be a good fit simply share what Read More …