Some very big concepts can be summarized in some very small words. “Great is the mystery of faith: Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again.” After all, Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells…
Why I’m Giving Up My American Citizenship
Originally published July 2010. This might have been a better post for the Fourth of July, but most readers were probably out watching the fireworks and wouldn’t have seen it. So perhaps it is better to write it and post…
Reflections on 1 Corinthians 15
I love to preach at the local senior assisted living facility. Members of the local ministerial alliance sign up on a rota and I try to get my name down for about once a month. This year during the Easter…
Bad Scholarship, Bad Behaviour and the Call to Something Better
Originally published June 2010. Tonight I was looking for some books as presents. A couple of volumes that had been recently featured or recommended by Glenn Beck were suggested to me as appropriate for the intended recipient. I searched for…
Challenging Assumptions
Originally published April 2011. I was recently removed from a Facebook discussion after I challenged a cherished axiom of social/political/theological juncture. (And no, it wasn’t about immigration.) I have also noticed that when I blog about anything that hints at…
A Brief Reflection on Psalm 103
The morning Psalm yesterday was one of my favorites, if one should have favorites. Some months ago when Psalm 103 was my morning Psalm (and it has always been used as a morning Psalm in the Church) it inspired me…
Transforming Worship
When we stand in the presence of God we cannot help but be changed. This can be an emotional experience. Or not. As a worship leader, I often look into the congregation to see who is “really worshiping.” I am programmed…
I’m Not Religious – I Just Love the Soundbite Theology
If you say something long enough and often enough, people will believe you. If you juxtapose two things constantly, people will assume that those things are, in fact, in opposition to one another. Surely not, you say. Surely if you…
Getting Rid of Our Crackle and Buzz
I spent a long time today with a sound consultant. It was time and money well spent. I found out all the ways that our church sound system had been installed incorrectly. The people who installed the system seven years…
Two Steps Forward and One Step Back
There is nothing in the Bible about abortion. That may surprise some pro-lifers, but it is true. To be anti-abortion, you have to go through a two-step reasoning process. First, you have to look at what the Bible says about unborn…