Is repetitive prayer a sin? Many people believe that meditation and mantras violate Jesus’ teaching about repetitive prayer. We’ll see about that… Repetitive Prayer and Sin Jesus said in Matthew 6:7 NKJV, “And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.” Many think that Jesus meant that repetitive prayer is a sin. That we should never repeat the same phrases when we pray. Is... Read more
How can you preach a more memorable message and have people get your point? Try preaching the one-point sermon. In my last article, “Goldilocks Zone for Sermons: Too Long, Too Short, or Just Right?” I discussed denominational and cultural factors that lead to a variety of sermon lengths in different types of churches. In light of people’s shrinking attention spans, I suggested several ways to break up a sermon into different parts and keep them interesting. Here, I’ll discuss the... Read more
What’s the Goldilocks zone for sermons? Is there a sermon length that is not too long, not too short, but just right? Your sermons might be too long, if… Your congregants start nodding off while you’re preaching. People leave as soon as you give the invitation when everyone else is standing to sing. The guy in the back waves his arm and taps repeatedly on his watch. You enter the sanctuary to find that someone has taken it upon... Read more
You can make the world a better place by the way you treat the two-legged and four-legged “strays” of the world. Haircuts for Our Neighbors on the Street I’m writing this while waiting to get trimmed at Sunny’s Barbershop in Bellingham, Washington, getting my hair cut by Sunny herself for the first time. Why am I here, when I normally go somewhere else? Two days ago, I brought in a client who is currently experiencing homelessness. The client got a... Read more
In church, you can either serve or deserve. You can’t do both. Leaders who put themselves forward are generally troublemakers. The best church leaders are the ones who initially say “no,” when you ask them to serve. I always preferred those who felt that they didn’t deserve it and had to be convinced to say yes. This is far better than those who put themselves forward as leaders. I’ve met both kinds and probably so have you. Two Types... Read more
What if Church membership were based on loving and trying to act like Jesus, instead of agreeing with a statement of faith? What If the Church Preferred the Path of Jesus to Theology? Do You Believe in Jesus? The church has led us to understand that beliefs about Jesus are what faith is all about. When somebody says, “Do you believe in Jesus?” what they’re really asking is something like, “Do you believe in the Trinity? Do you believe that... Read more
The social media meme says: “A rock in bad hands killed Abel. A rock in good hands killed Goliath. It’s not about the rock.” FALSE! Social media flame wars are no fun—but sometimes you have to say something. Sometimes you just can’t let a bad post go without comment. I hate it when people argue with me on my own page—I have a right to my opinion. I also believe in letting others be wrong on their own page. So,... Read more
If the Church embraced paradox with humility, it could have its cake and eat it too. I learned that in forty-odd years of potluck suppers. When bringing food to a church dinner, I’ve found it’s best not to eat what I brought. It’s better to eat what others share and let others enjoy what I contribute. When I want to have some of my own cooking, I can always have the leftovers. And if you’re in ministry, you’re probably... Read more
“Don’t question God,” my Sunday school teacher told me. What they meant was, “You’d be a better robot if you stopped thinking so much.” But what if the Church valued doubt as much as faith? Questioning God Maybe you had the same Sunday school teacher. Perhaps they told you the same thing. Free thought challenges the status quo. My Sunday school teacher felt threatened when I asked questions she couldn’t answer from her Bible or her teacher’s manual. She mistranslated my... Read more
When my parishioner threatened to bring a gun to church and start shooting, we wished we had some best practices for church security. Are you concerned about safety during worship services and other events? Here’s how your church can begin taking church security seriously and add a measure of safety to your proceedings. The Threat It was playtime at Vacation Bible School, with a hundred children running around our church’s playground. Bill (not his real name) had come to church,... Read more
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