Theologian N.T. Wright has reminded us that the gospel “is news, not advice.” That news, coming in the days of celebration of the incarnation is straight-forward: God has come to us in Jesus Christ. Grace abounds. Love wins. And everything the church is called to...
I know a family who got hockey sticks and pucks for their two older sons and an electric guitar for their younger son for Christmas. By noon, the boys had broken all of the garage windows and shorted out the electrical system! That family did...
James Baldwin once wrote, “It has always been much easier (because it has always seemed much safer) to give a name to the evil without than to locate the terror within. And yet, the terror within is far truer and far more powerful than any of...
Have you ever made a decision because you wanted to please someone? If the person we want to please is a significant donor in our church, a leader in our ministry, or an important person in our life…we may find it difficult to disappoint that...
“This saber-rattling with North Korea really has me scared.” “I’m worried that with this new tax plan, I will have to quit graduate school.” “I live in fear every day that my son will be deported.” “Of course, I carry a gun. I ‘m afraid...
From Guest Writer — Reverend Neely Towe, Pastor Emerita of Stanwich Congregational Church How humbling it is to be asked to write “a few words” on prayer – when prayer, though often involving words, is so far beyond words!! Prayer - that holy mystery that we people...
We were at a staff meeting recently, praying (one associate of ours calls our staff the, “prayin’est bunch of people I’ve ever seen”) when someone asked, “What does it really mean to tell someone you will pray for them?” It’s a fair question. It can...
Every night, either my wife Jessica or I take my three-year-old daughter through the infinitely long and sometimes excruciating process of picking out pajamas, putting on pajamas (yes, these are two separate processes), brushing teeth, saying prayers, reading a few books, and going to sleep. While...
Have you ever promised someone, “I’ll pray for you” …and then forgotten to do it? I have! Sometimes, I say that I’m going to pray for someone…but amid the busyness of life and ministry…I forget! Then a day later…I think of that person for whom...