Imposing Order Into Chaos Things aren’t good. Well, if you’ve turned on the TV recently (does anyone watch TV anymore?), you’ve probably seen one thing after another being set on fire (figuratively, mostly). Houston. Puerto Rico. Las Vegas. Bigotry. Trump’s Twitter feed. In a world filled with tragedy, one has to proactively impose order into all of this chaos. What you’re looking for, you’ll inevitably find. One of the best things I’ve done as of recently has been controlling the... Read more
It’s too easy to get sucked into the negativity that is so prevalent in this world. Read more
I’ve been calling myself a “progressive” but lately I’ve come to dislike being referred to as a progressive just as much as I dislike being referred to as an evangelical [1]. It’s weird to think that there was a point in time that being an evangelical was once the “progressive” thing to do. They, for their time, revolutionized how we did Church. The evangelical questioned biblical inerrancy, they preached an ecumenical means of salvation, they essentially re-contextualized the gospel in order that... Read more
“This is what it’s like to be in a minority attending a school built by a moral majority.” [Guest post from and by Nathanial Totten] For many of you, Liberty University is something you love and value immensely; perhaps it’s where you work, where you met your spouse, or where you found the passion out of which you would begin a career. Maybe it even saved your life and gave you a future you never thought you’d have. For many... Read more
Christianity isn’t dying, the color of it is just changing. Is This The End of White Christianity in America? A few weeks ago I went to a church service for the third time in a long time. It was comfortably small (50 people, maybe less?). But what made it uncomfortable was the remaining undertones of a euro- and an androcentric type of gospel (i.e. serves the white males experience). From the moment I walked into the Church – the style,... Read more
The Progressive Evangelical Pastor: What I Mean When I Say I’m a Pastor of Sorts… So, I’m not, not a pastor… There’s no “official” institution I’m with; there’s no institution that I’m pastoring for or at; and, there’s no regular service I attend to, organize or facilitate. What exactly defines or makes a person “pastoral,” officially? I’ve gone through the hoops, done the seminary thing; I’ve been “officially” licensed/given the go to marry, bury, and whatever else goes with these... Read more
What Happens When You Lose Your Religion? Here’s the thing, when “Worship services begin to appear hedonistic; prayer requests turn into gossip; prophecies are no longer encouraging and your pastor’s words become empty…” we begin searching for more; similar to Pandora’s box, this action seems innocent but, it usually leads to altering the course of one’s life. As previously mentioned in my last post, Psychologist Jeffrey Anderson suggests that “Religion works exactly like a drug–like cocaine, or methamphetamine–or like music,... Read more
Dealing with an anger towards the “church”… Joy is not something handed to you; joy is something you have to fight for on a daily basis. It’s waking up every single day with a purpose, a vision, and a mission to defeat and fight against the forces of nature that want to come and take away our joy. And, to be fair, food for deeper thought, I don’t believe the universe has a consciousness; so, it’s not intentional destruction so... Read more
Returning To Sunday (Part 1 of 100)… I’ve been church shopping. There’s so much in just this one statement… Like… Am I selling out? Is this not going against everything I stand for? Will I even be accepted back? What type of church am I shopping for? Does this type of church even exist? How will I be doing this (i.e. church) differently this time around? Is this me just returning to the same toxic vicious cycle secluded in this... Read more
It’s said that 45 million US citizens suffer from abject poverty; ”13.1 million children in the US are food insecure.” This is not even including the estimated 11.3 million undocumented individuals currently residing in the U.S. “We spend so much time making our living that we never have time to live our lives.” Anyone who has ever struggled simply to meet their basic needs knows how crushing the anxiety caused by this type of poverty can be; it’s misery; soul-crushing,... Read more
Andy Gill
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