There are so many annoying ads on television it’s hard to nominate the most annoying one, but I think the ads for ChristianMingle.com have the inside track on such an award. It’s not that I object to online dating services as such, though I have numerous reservations. (Fortunately I’m married and my children are married….
Well, sort of … If you talk like this, consider a change! HT: The Internet Monk
There are two things I’ve noticed in my own life and in the lives of people I know that tend to lead toward less divisiveness and greater Christian unity. These are: 1) A focus on doing mission 2) A focus on the study of scripture What’s interesting is that people can differ on how to…
Scot McKnight has a post titled Greg Boyd and Hostile Forces, referencing Boyd’s contribution to the book Understanding Spiritual Warfare: Four Views. This is a book I’m adding to my reading list. The thing that interests me most about this is the idea that scripture doesn’t (broadly) support the idea that everything that happens is…
Or you might say, denominations (or even just “organizations”) and innovation. We don’t have to work within the system if we don’t want to. We can work without it. We can go outside of it. We can leave it if it continues to stifle us. I might have preferred “if God calls us to,” but…
I’m struck by the fear with which churches greet new ideas. No, I think I should make it more direct than that. I’m struck by the fear with which churches greet ideas. Any type of ideas. The type of people who manifest this sort of fear are generally those who are either unable to support…
J. Lee Grady steps on some toes again. In general, these apply to any leader, especially the point about accountability. A lack of accountability undermines any other efforts.
Dave Black responded to my previous post on the United Methodist Church by referring to some thoughts he has had on his own denomination. I want to quote them here, since Dave’s blog doesn’t make linking to a particular entry possible. 7:55 AM Noted Methodist blogger Henry Neufeld ponders the question, How to cure the…
No, not that type of curing. Fixing it. Making it healthy and productive. Practically every day I find in my inbox, or on one of the various feeds I follow, an article on how to fix the dying United Methodist Church. While there are many disagreements on details, generally everyone agrees that the church is,…
A great quote: We Americans aren’t very good at absolute authority, but we presently have the opposite of it in the UMC – we have an episcopacy shackled to lead, but convenient to blame. It’s a great system to play armchair quarterback in, but it doesn’t make disciples. Go read the rest. It’s thought provoking.