Through some helpful commentary from my sisters in gospel ministry, I have been made more aware of how male-dominated and chauvinistic our society is. Whether a suggestive ad or a completely distorted picture of femininity, I am becoming more sensitive as to how difficult it is to be a secure, God-fearing woman in our society. …
…Hill, that is. During my recent vacation to Seattle, my wife and I worshiped at Mars Hill Church in Bellevue. Being a satellite campus (preaching is “beamed” in), we expected to watch Pastor Mark Driscoll via video feed. We were surprised when he sat down two rows in front of us. I didn’t know what …
Well, today is the last day of tenure as a pastor at Community Fellowship Church in West Chicago. It’s been a full eight years filled with lots of laughs, tears, sweat, frustrations, and joy. I am grateful to God for the sanctifying influence that my church has had on me as a pastor, disciple, father, …
I know that I’ve been silent lately on my blog (and that you have so missed hearing these echoes, right?). I promise to start writing some more thoughts about the recent transition that I’ve been experiencing in life and ministry. It’s been an emotional time, a time filled with much grace, gratitude, and reflection. I …
A CNN belief blog post today got me thinking, “why am I committed to the church?” I’m playing Mr. Mom this morning, and I’m reminded of the amount of work and emotonal duress my dear wife has to endure every Sunday morning to get our three warrior sons ready for civilized church. Why do so …
There are eight foundational principles to Christian Community Development: Relocation Redistribution Reconciliation Listening to the community Church-based Leadership Development Empowerment Wholistic Approach An explanation of each of these could fill an entire website, so I’ll leave you to study them on your own. Instead, I want to state that underlying all of these principles lies the …
I attended my second ever Ash Wednesday service last night. A local Anglican Church held a service at another Evangelical Free church. It was cool to be with another congregation in the building of yet another congregation. I couldn’t help but remark how beautifully big the Church is, and how powerful the Church becomes when …
I’ve always been a fan of the Passion movement started by Louie Giglio. The movement started about 15 years ago, and its hallmark has always been the cool conferences gathering thousands of college-aged students from around the country along with the fantastic music they’ve produced. Their worship leaders are recording artists and songwriters who have written …
Whatever you think of Rob Bell, he is a gifted communicator, visionary leader, and pastor to his people. I hope to love my church one day like he does his. Rob Bell’s Parting Epistle to Mars Hill: “Grace + Peace”
How good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity! – Ps 133:1 This month I’ve been thinking about what makes community authentic. I’m sure we can trade stories over well-meaning groups that never quite satisfied. We don’t want to just occupy the same space at the same time. We want to be involved …
