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Christmas is a celebration of nostalgia . . . and I’m tired of it. I’m tired of “White Christmas” or “The Most Wonderful Time of the Year” bouncing inside my head.  I don’t want to long for the “better” time of the past — a time more imagined than real. Down with nostalgia but up with memories. I’m not the only one with a dose of nostalgia. When troubles hit the Israelites on the route to the promised land they fell back to nostalgia: “And…

Our values are revealed by the words we do not use. I’ve seldom heard a message or participated in a discussion featuring these three words. These three words describe life in God’s Kingdom; they are words and ways that should mark the life of every disciple. These three words are peripheral to our culture’s picture of success. These three words are rooted in the church’s heritage but absent in today’s practice. The words are secret, silence, and small. Beware of practicing your righteousness before other…

Forty years is a big gap to bridge. I met Jim when he was nineteen years old and a freshman in college. Jim is now sitting across from me in restaurant as a late middle-aged man with children in college. What a difference forty years make! When I meet alumni from our former collegiate ministries, I tend to apologize for some of my disciplemaking approaches back then. I’ve learned so much from those early years and I wish I could repeat some of the relationships…

Eternity’s population will look very different from my hometown. My farming community in northern Ohio did not attract African Americans or other people of color. I grew up in a culture where everyone looked like me. College was no better in the late 1960s. There were few African American students on campus and no black students lived in my dorm. My primary exposure to African American culture occurred through music and the media – not always positive portrayals of black people. My first meaningful interaction…

Want to ignite a discussion in a church gathering? Show up with a MAGA hat or a Vote for Harris button and watch people take sides! We live in polarizing times and the up-coming election reflects the divisions in our society and in our churches. While the New Testament is largely silent on politics as we practice it, there’s one passage that steers an alternative strategy to our current debates. It’s a passage that all of us are called to obey regardless of our political…

It was “deja vu all over again.” I had the same conversation on two successive days with two different pastors on two different continents! Both pastors were making the same assumption and I could predict the outcome of their actions. What was the assumption? They assumed that if you provided the right instruction (on disciplemaking) you would get the appropriate action (people making disciples). Seldom does telling change lives. Transferring information is not a trusty change agent. The reaction from the pastors’ audiences confirmed this. People listened, nodded their heads, and…

Covid changed Peggys and my television viewing habits. I’m not sure why or how it happened but we’re now fans of HGTV, the Food Channel, and almost anything British on the Acorn channel. We’re drawn to the British detective shows. One show was a favorite until they featured a murder in an elderly residence home. As the detectives investigated the murder, they encountered all kinds of seniors — the ditzy elderly lady, the know-it-all obnoxious male, and the curious and dazed bystanders grouped in the…

Television runs on the tracks of trends. One current trend is a variation of the ballroom dance. We love to watch minor celebrities, athletes, or politicians learn the intricacies of ballroom dancing. A fundamental rule of ballroom dancing is that someone must lead. Teaching is like ballroom dancing where the teacher leads, and the learner follows along. This works great until we teach adults. Adult learning demands a reversal of these roles. What does this look like? We switch roles when we consider teaching through…

I slid into the seat opposite my friend Chris. Chris is one of the most provocative friends I have. We’ve known each other for over twenty years. Some years we rarely see each other but when we do, we quickly go to the heart of our lives. We typically end up preaching to one another. Our restaurant booth conversation this morning was about aging. “I’m entering my third half,” he said. Chris was twisting the title of the popular book Half Time by Bob Buford….

Patrick of Ireland is one of my faith heroes. It’s unfortunate that the Roman Catholic church claims him as one of their own. Patrick belongs to the ages. His ministry to Ireland took place before there was an Eastern Orthodox Church or a Roman Catholic church. Protestants can claim him as one of their own. Patrick’s story began with a kidnapping. His teen years were spent as a slave to an Irish master. During his servitude he came to faith. Patrick’s time in Ireland allowed…