Blog
- November 29, 2013
SPIRITUAL HEALTH OF CLERGY There is an ancient tale about the cobbler’s children having no shoes while the cobbler helps…
, , - November 27, 2013
DISCUSSING FINANCES BEFORE A CLERGY IS CALLED The advantage of an interim having a frank and honest discussion with the…
, , - November 25, 2013
IMPORTANCE OF CLERGY FAMILY HEALTH We continue to comment on the unique role that an interim pastor has in…
, , - November 22, 2013
THE EMOTIONAL LIFE OF A PASTOR The very nature of ministry engages one in the emotional roller coaster of engaging…
, - November 20, 2013
TO BUSY TO BE HEALTHY It is not uncommon for busy people to neglect the very basic attention that one…
, - November 18, 2013
FILLING A VACUUM The interim has increasingly played a significant role in congregational life. While the session or governing board…
, - November 13, 2013
PRESBYTERY EXECUTIVES KNOW THE CHALLENGE All General Presbyters/Presbytery Executives know the challenge. First, we live in an age of institutional…
, - November 11, 2013
WHAT DOES JESUS EXPECT OF US? John 13:34: "I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just…
, - November 8, 2013
IS YOUR BOOK A GOOD READ FOR A GROUP? Consider the mutual value of having your book selected by a…
- November 6, 2013
Why Mystery Writing With a Spiritual Edge Addresses a Hunger in Society LIVE IN AN AGE OF ANXIETY…
, - November 4, 2013
book clubs feed our hunger for depth relationships
- November 1, 2013
Resources for Clergy Discussion Groups By Stephen McCutchan amzn.to/13VO446 A Star and a Tear is available in print at $12…
, - October 30, 2013
OVERCOMING MOMENTS OF LONELINESS Do you have brief moments of loneliness in the midst of your overcommitted, stressful life?…
, - October 28, 2013
QUALITY PASTORS GET LONELY A major challenge for quality pastors is how to handle the loneliness inherent in the pastorate.…
, - October 25, 2013
A TOOLBOX OF IDEAS In our previous blog, we identified how the interim pastor is in a unique position to…
, - October 23, 2013
UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY A major problem in raising a congregation's awareness concerning the health of clergy is "Who can raise the…
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The Unexpected Conversation
November 10, 2017
A LUNCHEON INVITATION If your bishop, presbyter, or judicatory staff person called you up and asked you to go to…
Acedia and Me
November 8, 2017
WHAT’S THE USE Kathleen Norris writes about Acedia and Me. Acedia feeds upon the thought that nothing is worthwhile.…
WHERE IS TRUTH?
November 3, 2017
God’s truth and Human Response Where would you place yourself between the assertion that there is no salvation outside…
Did God Make a Mistake?
November 1, 2017
NO SALVATION OUTSIDE THE CHURCH Beginning with Augustine but continuing with Luther, Calvin, The Scots Confession, and the Second Helvietic…
HONORING THE PAST COUNTERS ANXIETY
October 27, 2017
THE FIFTH COMMANDMENT EXPANDED We need to reinterpret the fifth commandment. “Honor your father and your mother, so that your…
ADDRESSING CONGREGATIONAL ANXIETY
October 25, 2017
WORDS CREATE WORLDS In Walter Brueggemann’s Israel’s Praise, he develops the idea that words create worlds. It is not the objective…
DON’T DISMISS A CHRISTIAN RESPONSE TO VIOLENCE
October 20, 2017
WHEN THINGS FALL APART One recent broadcast suggested there had been more than 250 cases of mass violence in 2017.…
3 KEY COMMANDMENTS FOR OUR PEOPLE
October 18, 2017
I want to emphasize 3 of the 10 commandments as an antitoxin to anxiety. NO OTHER GODS It is the…
YOU PASTOR AN ANXIOUS CONGREGATION
October 13, 2017
(CONTINUING TO LOOK AT VULNERABILITY AND ANXIETY FROM TED TALK BY BRENE’ BROWN as applied to the pastorate.) HIDING…
HOW TO PASTOR IN AN ANXIOUS CONGREGATION
October 11, 2017
DO YOU LIVE IN AN ANXIOUS SOCIETY? (I am continuing to draw upon Brene’ Brown’s work on vulnerability and…