August 28, 2023

A lot of my early ministry was filled with either/or thinking. The extent of me contemplating any idea was either it is true or false, right or wrong, and either it works or it does not. A body continues in motion unless acted upon by an outside force. It took many outside forces for me to break that mode of thinking. One of those was the first time I saw a Great Blue Heron in the “wild.” I use quotes... Read more

August 24, 2023

Is a seminary education worth getting? It is a major commitment to earn the Master of Divinity degree required for ordination. The three or four years of schooling at the graduate level appears daunting. In my own case, I had been out of college ten years, had a young family, and a student appointment of three churches. I attended a school in another state from where my family and churches were. I made it through in three years. Other students... Read more

August 21, 2023

The Bible has religious propaganda within its pages. Some friends of mine will say it is nothing but religious propaganda. But that stretches the meaning of the words too far. The best example of what I am talking about is found in Acts 19:21-41. Before getting to this text let me clear up a common misconception. Propaganda is not about big lies. Few people are persuaded by total fabrications. However, a majority of people may be persuaded by half-truths and... Read more

August 17, 2023

I saw a license plate that read, “Jesus The Ultimate Volunteer.” It was orange lettered. Where I live, the word volunteer and the color orange are as common together as peanut butter and jelly.  Someone thought this was a good evangelistic tool to link Jesus to University of Tennessee sports. Jesus is one of our team, so to speak. Does Jesus exhibit the volunteer spirit? Volunteer History The Tennessee Volunteers is a militaristic name. It began with Andrew Jackson leading... Read more

August 14, 2023

Humility is overcoming hubris. This time of year spiders remind me of it. In the film Amazing Grace, the story of William Wilberforce begins with him trying to hold onto a mystical experience. He calls it “getting a wet ass and wanting nothing but spider webs.” I am sure his experience inspires these thoughts to some degree. Outdoor Humility The storm of the previous day led to the fog last Sunday morning. This time of year, when Summer has only a... Read more

August 10, 2023

Bill Bryson tells of a neighbor who drove to a nearby gym which would be a 20 minute walk to use a treadmill. “I have a program.” She explained. The irony is she could walk twenty minutes to get exercise. But she like many Americans believes she must have some sort of program or method or the exercise does not matter. Hot yoga plays on the idea that a person is not exercising unless they are sweating. In the same... Read more

August 7, 2023

Westerns are often revenge stories. We could name any number of them. Last night, I watched one called, The Ballad of Lefty Brown, which is a revenge story with a mixed ending. Vengeance is gained but everything worthwhile is lost. Life is forfeit. Is that a good story? I cannot answer that. The characters confuse revenge with justice. And the main character is the only one who seems to understand that truth. But, in the end, even he is not redeemed.... Read more

August 3, 2023

Do we picture Jesus as a person on the margins? Progressive Christians do see him that way. Some evangelicals and fundamentalists do. Prosperity gospel advocates tend to place Jesus in the middle of everything promising great rewards for those who follow him. Many conservative evangelicals have adopted this stance too. Progressives typically see Jesus on the margins of society. I also see Jesus on the margins of the church. Margins of The Church Where is the focus of the leadership... Read more

July 31, 2023

Telling a lie for a good cause presents an ethical quandary. Rahab’s lie is upheld as a good example in most Sunday school literature. “But the woman took the two men and hid them. Then she said, ‘True, the men came to me, but I did not know where they came from. And when it was time to close the gate at dark, the men went out. Where the men went, I do not know. Pursue them quickly, for you... Read more

July 24, 2023

An issue for many addicts choosing recovery is the obvious connection between evangelical ideas of conversion and becoming sober. The first 3 steps of the twelve in most programs are about being powerless to save ourselves, admitting the Higher Power is only capable of saving us, and surrendering to the Higher Power. For an addict who is also eXvangelical, it sounds all-too-familiar. It should. The Oxford Movement, from which the 12 step program Alcoholics Anonymous separated, was both fundamentalist and... Read more


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