Blog
- May 22, 2012
The journey of faith is centered around relationships. To paraphrase Jesus' summary, we are to love God and love our…
, , - May 21, 2012
Given the anti-institutional bias of our society, it may be important to re-examine what we mean when we as Presbyterians,…
, - May 18, 2012
We all need affirmation and it feels good when other churches express an interest in us. The lived reality of…
- May 17, 2012
If Jesus embodies an anti-narcissistic approach to life, then it is clear that not being a narcissistic pastor doesn't suggest…
, - May 16, 2012
If "the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom…
, - May 15, 2012
Narcissism is a term that is increasingly used to describe one's excessive focus on one's self. We speak of a…
, , - May 14, 2012
We have been discussing the development of a greater awareness of the stress of ministry and the way in which…
, - May 11, 2012
At least once a year, the session should spend some time hearing the cumulative report of the elder/pastor meetings. In…
, - May 10, 2012
Again, I want to emphasize that the better and more sensitive a pastor is, the more taxing is his or…
, - May 9, 2012
Having filled out the estimation of time worked and discussed it, I want to now raise another factor that, in…
, - May 8, 2012
A first step is simply an honest recognition of the challenge inherent in ministry. Most good clergy accept that they…
, - May 7, 2012
Especially when we speak about congregations taking care of their pastors, both from the perspective of the pastor and that…
, - May 4, 2012
OK, so in the wisdom of the council, given financial realities, a member of the presbytery staff has to be…
, - May 3, 2012
We are increasingly hearing that a number of presbyteries, synods, and positions at the General Assembly level are laying off…
, - April 27, 2012
Ironically one of the major areas that is often neglected in the pursuit of our calling to ministry, whether that…
- April 26, 2012
Yesterday we considered the blocks of time available in your life each week and how many of them are available…
Christianity is More than an Idea
May 6, 2016
IDEAS VERSUS RELATIONSHIPS One of the hesitancies about speaking to people outside the church about faith is that we fear…
EVANGELISM BEYOND BEING SLICK & CLEVER
May 4, 2016
EVANGELISM IS NOT SALESMANSHIP Recently we have seen lots of articles about the fall in church membership and the rise…
ADMIT IT, WE ARE A MIXTURE OF STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES
April 29, 2016
WE KNOW IT’S TRUE We know that we are not perfect. We accept that we all have sinned and fallen…
Oh What Stories Clergy Could Tell
April 27, 2016
For the past few blogs, I’ve been talking about how you can explore various aspects of ministry and your spiritual…
SPIRITUAL GROWTH THROUGH YOUR FICTION
April 22, 2016
Parables and Your Spiritual Life Lots of people try to play God in this world, but what if you could…
BREAKING THROUGH IDEOLOGICAL FRACTURES
April 20, 2016
HOW TO LISTEN The problem with our ideological splits today is that we have lost the capacity to listen to…
THE TRUTH ABOUT CHURCH
April 15, 2016
LOSS OF TRUST THAT BINDS US Consider what is happening in our society. In recent years, almost every major institution…
EXPLORING GOD’S CALL THROUGH STORY TELLING
April 13, 2016
ENTER INTO A MYSTERY We often speak about God calling someone to ministry in an almost casual fashion. When you…
TRUTH AND FICTION ABOUT GOD’S CALL
April 8, 2016
A true/false test for those who are genuinely called by God to serve the church. Those called by God always…
LOOK AT YOURSELF THROUGH OTHER’S EYES
April 1, 2016
HOW YOU THINK OTHERS SEE YOU You can’t avoid having ideas about how others see you. Your assumptions about what…