As someone who has spent about half of my life as a Presbyterian, I'm thankful for new opportunities within this tradition. Today, I served as the guest preacher at Nor'kirk Presbyterian Church (PCUSA) in Carrollton, Texas, on the occasion of their Round Up Sunday (elsewhere commonly referred to as Rally Day or Kick Off Sunday). Notably, this congregation is preparing to celebrate their 50th anniversary next month. My message, Love Wastefully, is based on Luke 15:1-32. You can view it Read More …
PCUSA
Southern Baptist Membership Drops Every Year Since 2006 (#2245)
I am not a Southern Baptist and have never been part of that Protestant denomination. I am, however, someone who has lived most of my life in Texas and who has followed the macro changes within American Protestantism. Since the Southern Baptist Convention's Annual Meeting was held in Dallas this summer, I've been drawn into more conversations than usual about what is happening in this denomination. Finally, as the largest Protestant denomination in America, long-term changes in membership in Read More …
You Belong: Inhabiting a More Spacious Christianity (#2170)
Today I wrapped up a six week sermon series inspired by Debie Thomas’ new book A Faith of Many Rooms: Inhabiting a More Spacious Christianity (Broadleaf, 2024). Today, we focused on belonging. Sermon My message, “Inhabiting a More Spacious Christianity” was based on John 14:1-14. Belonging You can watch the sermon below or read the manuscript. Excerpt In fact, this morning’s modern reading was an excerpt from the book’s introduction. A Faith of Many Rooms begins with Read More …
Doing Life Together (#2158)
This morning I preached the fifth and final message in a series based on Robert Schnase’s book Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations (revised). Today, we focused on the practice of intentional faith development. Sermon My message, “Doing Life Together” was based on Acts 2:42. Intentional Faith Development I preached from this manuscript. You can watch a recording of the livestream here (the Scripture lesson begins at 16:22 and the sermon begins at 17:30). Excerpt Maybe Read More …
My Religion is Dying: A Deep Dive into Mainline Decline (#2128)
Confession: I am a lifelong Mainline Protestant. While I've switched denominations many times - from Presbyterian (PCUSA) to Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) to Lutheran (ELCA) to Presbyterian (PCUSA) to United Church of Christ to Presbyterian (PCUSA) to United Church of Christ - I've never left this religious tradition. Stating the Obvious For my entire lifetime, Mainline Protestant denominations have all been experiencing a numeric decline in membership. The narrative of decline Read More …
My Visit to Trinity Presbyterian Church (#2123)
This morning, I was a first time guest at Trinity Presbyterian Church in Oklahoma City. My wife and I attended the 10:55 a.m. service of worship. While we have no real links to the congregation, I have considerable ties to the congregation’s denomination – Presbyterian Church (USA) – and, some time ago I connected with the congregation's pastor, Rev. Richard Mize. Mize, like myself, is an ordained United Church of Christ minister. (For those not familiar with Mainline Read More …
Preaching Love (#2120)
This morning I completed my month of preaching every Sunday morning at a Presbyterian (PCUSA) congregation by preaching at St. Mark Presbyterian Church at 9:45 a.m. followed by Eastminster Presbyterian Church at 11:30 a.m. This was my first visit to St. Mark and my second to Eastminster (see Preaching Difficult Discipleship for more on my visit last summer). Both congregations have supported the ministry of White Rock Center of Hope, the organization I serve as CEO, for many Read More …
Aging Presbyterians: 3 in 5 PCUSA Members Now Over Age 55 (#2118)
Nearly 3 in 5 members of the Presbyterian Church (USA) are now over age 55 (58.2%). By comparison, only 3 out of every 10 people living in the United States were 55 years of age or older in 2022 (30.3%). Put differently, the percentage of persons in this age cohort in the Presbyterian Church is nearly double (+92%) what is found in the American population. Growing Older According to data provided by the Presbyterian Church (USA) Office of the General Assembly, the percent of the Read More …
Back-To-Back-To-Back (#2116)
Yesterday I preached for the third time this year. It was also the first of three consecutive Sundays that I'll preach at West Fork Presbyterian Church (PCUSA) in Grand Prairie, Texas. And, this string of back-to-back-to-back Sundays in the pulpit will mark the first time I've preached three or more weeks in a row since 2018. (For more on how I've shifted from preaching on a weekly basis to sporadically, check out Preaching in the 2000s.) So What? While I've preached three (or more - Read More …
My Visit to Westminster Presbyterian Church (#2113)
This morning, I was a first time guest at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Oklahoma City. My wife and I attended the 10:30 a.m. service of worship in the sanctuary. While we have no real links to the congregation, I have considerable ties to the congregation's denomination - Presbyterian Church (USA) - and, I have mentioned Westminster's senior pastor here on So What Faith well before he started in this role. I was raised, confirmed, and preached my first sermon in a Presbyterian Read More …