Reflecting the Father
As a longtime ink-stained wretch (print journalist), I’ve seen my share of gimmicks to get people to buy newspapers — especially in this information age when publishers are desperate to provide reasons...
View ArticleSeeing the Image of God in Others
It’s a Wednesday morning in November 2018, and I’m standing in the front row of chapel at Greenville University. The worship team begins to sing, “Open the eyes of my heart, Lord. Open the eyes of my...
View ArticleDisabilities and the Imago Dei
I will never forget Bill’s response to a sermon I preached on the topic of heaven. Bill was well into his 80s and had contracted polio as a child. Because of this disease, he had used a walker most of...
View ArticleMy Neck Is Short But That’s Not “Me”
The older I get the more people say I look like my father. They’re right — my magnificent balding round head, large nose and squat neck! But people, who knew him well and know me, make a more...
View ArticleIf a Christian Isn’t Going to Stand Up and Lead, Then Who Will?
Some years ago, after I made the rather unlikely decision at age 30 to run for the City Council in my hometown, my mother asked me the inevitable question: “Why would you want to be a politician?...
View ArticleThe Farmer Kings
What is it that sets human beings apart from all other creatures on earth? What exactly—aside from opposable thumbs, brilliantly contoured for texting—constitutes the centerpiece of human...
View ArticleLeadership Development: the Work of a Lifetime
The Oxford English Dictionary defines “leader” this way: “the person who leads or commands a group, organization, or country.” Sounds impressive! Yet Jesus only left behind 120 upon His death,...
View ArticleDon’t Quit
In the summer of 2014, I was ready to quit. I was depleted and exhausted. I had been pastoring my church for seven years, and I was stuck. I had tried everything I knew to lead my church to grow and...
View ArticleHealthy Churches Require Teamwork
Every pastor I know, including me, wants a healthy church, but we sometimes unknowingly take actions that cause our churches to be unhealthy. This is exactly what we’ll be discussing in our Healthy...
View ArticleSpiritual Development Emphasizes Prayer
Too often prayer is identified as just one of several spiritual disciplines. But that is not quite accurate. While prayer involves discipline, it is in a category by itself. Prayer as intimate...
View ArticleDynamic Duos
Cookies and milk, peanut butter and jelly, ketchup and mustard, bread and butter, salt and pepper, peaches and cream, fish and chips, hide and seek, jeans and T-shirts, cat and mouse, Batman and Robin,...
View ArticleThe Greatest Divorce Recovery Ever
In the beginning when God created the world, God and human beings enjoyed direct and unhindered fellowship. In the beginning God’s place was shared with the world and the humans God had created. When...
View ArticleHeavenly/Earthly Eating
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” While it is true that Genesis 1:1 is a record of God’s activity in the past, it also points to His agenda for the future. The explosive wonder...
View ArticleThe Final Sacrifice
Activists recently unveiled a new altar they intend to place on Jerusalem’s Temple Mount and use to offer animal sacrifices. Thus far the Jerusalem municipality has not let them slaughter an animal in...
View ArticleWhen Heaven Met Earth:
There was a naked, homeless man in our garden. What seemed really wrong that day also somehow felt right. I definitely did not anticipate this scenario for my garden workday. When we went on mission to...
View ArticleBringing Heaven to Earth
A couple of missionary friends and I were on a hike in rural Mexico, talking about life and relishing our day off from the school where we taught children with differing abilities. As inquisitive...
View ArticleEngaging the Culture
As followers of Christ, we won’t always fit into the world in which we live. In fact, we’ll often find ourselves going against the flow of popular culture in certain areas of life. It’s necessary for...
View ArticleDoing the Work of Christ
The Justice and Social Witness group will focus on exactly what the name says. During General Conference 2019, we will discuss ways that we witness in the world about our new life in Christ — a new...
View ArticleGlobal (and Local) Transformation
Jesus told the 11 to make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:16–20). The instruction is to make disciples. The direct target, according to Jesus, is “all nations.” Imagine the overwhelming feeling...
View ArticleA Biblical Perspective on Race and Ethnicity
At General Conference 2019, I will lead a focus group exploring biblical and cultural implications of race and ethnicity. We will have honest and open dialogue and will hear from the majority as well...
View Article