For the unchurched, Westboro displays the worst in bigotry. And it’s assumed they represent Christianity at large. For Christians, Westboro presents a twisted gospel. They aren't driven to encourage repentance through any sort of a loving God, a Savior converting the hard heart. Instead, they preach the wrath of the Almighty, contorted to scare the masses. Is there hypocrisy in the church? You bet. But I'm not sure this is the right way to do it. Read more
These lone wolves, inspired by little else than movies, or news stories or video games, never tell a soul of their murderous intents. There is no one to confide in, no one to trust, no one who can separate out the crazy from the normal. Read more
It’s a tradition to have an invocation. But maybe it's a vain tradition. Maybe it’s the kind of empty religious ritual that Jesus condemned. The invocations these days are rarely heartfelt. They are often written out, scripted to appeal to everyone and impress no one. With great flourish, the invokers often sound like the Pharisee, calling attention to a god of love and hope and joy, but rarely the God of the Bible. They are supposed to cause us to think about Divinity, to order our human business around his will. But too often, they are showcases for mediocrity and in today’s culture, invitations for mockery of God. So maybe we shouldn’t be fighting for invocations so hard. Read more
Preaching the gospel, sharing the truth, and trying to tell my friends that Jesus is the answer is hard enough. Asking people to give up their burdens and their shackles is often stopped when simple hypocrisy from a prominent leader is dangled from the tree for easy pickings. Read more
Christian leaders have been accused of impropriety. I can't defend every failing, because I'm a failure. I don't live up to the billing and that's the point of Christianity. Jesus came for losers -- people who can't figure it out on their own. And I'm firmly in the at camp. So when a Christian figure falls, I scoot over on the bench and welcome that person to sit next to me. A few names do not indict the billions who believe and strive to stay true. I do not have to defend every person who hasn’t lived up to the standard. But who are we trying to fool? The failings of human beings who belong to a movement that fully acknowledges that human beings fall should not be shocking. Read more
The magazine says the Bible is overrated from a literary standpoint. Well, we can argue that. The authors also rightly claim it is "rated very highly by all the people who supposedly live by it but who in actuality have not read it." Here's how I see the issue... Read more
Hard to believe, but Facebook is only a dozen years or so old. With more than 1 billion users, it's everywhere. But is it causing us to set our minds on whatever is "true, noble, right, pure, lovely and admirable?" I'm starting to think through it and hope you are too. Read more
It seems we Christians are holding dear to the Constitution, believing it will protect us. But I think we should hold even closer to the Bible and its promise of persecution. Opposition to our way of life, to our faith, is a certainty, a little-quoted promise of Jesus. He said we would be brought up on charges, that our very way of life would be called into question. So, make your choice right now. Read more
Have you ever been hit by a storm, or something that came your way so quickly you couldn't duck? Like a prognosis, or a love that walked out, or an accident that swung your way. We sing the lamentations like old spirituals, the dark clouds hanging with no clear way out. Read more
"How’d we get so far down and how is it going to turn around?” Have you ever demanded that God just "do something!" I have. With all the pain and suffering and struggle around us, it seems like God gets an equal amount of blame for causing these troubles and for not fixing them. But God did do something. He created you. Read more
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