I’ve got a new book sitting here that will be a dynamic book to read and blog about. It’s by one of my favorite bloggers who has written what I think is one of the most encouraging and myth-busting books of the last two decades. The book is by Bradley R.E. Wright, he’s a professor at the University of Connecticut where he teaches sociology.  Wright’s book is called: Christians Are Hate-Filled Hypocrites…and Other Lies You’ve Been Told: A Sociologist Shatters... Read more

A new study from the Barna Group explores the profile of Americans who actively participate in faith. The study examined various expressions of “group” faith, such as: church attendance, small groups, adult Sunday school programs, church volunteering, and house churches. (Definitions of each type of activity, including how the researchers distinguished between small groups and home / house churches, can be found below in the research notes.)  The Barna study uncovered nine insights: 1.      Women drive most faith participation, with the exception of... Read more

“T,” one of our most faithful readers of this blog, has a set of questions about the value of “tradition” in the Christian church… and his appeal to the Wesleyan Quadrilateral is an excellent example of doing just what he is advocating. I’m thinking of how we evaluate such things as the style of music we sing, the kinds of instruments that are used, the architecture of a church, the kind of lighting we use, the kind of Sunday school... Read more

Mike Cope, one of the many fine preachers I’ve heard in my life, agreed to write a post about Lynn Anderson’s new, excellent book on prayer and the Psalms: Talking Back to God: Speaking Your Heart to God Through the Psalms . This book on the Psalms is a beautiful examination of an honest heart probing into the heart of God through prayer.  What have the Psalms taught you about prayer? Here is Mike Cope’s brief review: I once attended... Read more

There is a widespread nervousness about evangelism: What is your church doing? Is your church broadening its sense of evangelism? Are all called to be evangelists? What book or resource is most helpful to you and in your setting? There is some good stuff going on about this new book by John Dickson, so I want to repost… Whether we like it or not, words like “evangelism” and even “proclaiming” the gospel are falling out of favor in the current... Read more

Almighty God, you have built your Church upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone: Grant us so to be joined together in unity of spirit by their teaching, that we may be made a holy temple acceptable to you; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. Read more

Stanley Hauerwas, Hannah’s Child: A Theologian’s Memoir Reviewed by Wesley Vander Lugt wsvanderlugt.wordpress.com It was hard to know what to expect from Stanley Hauerwas’s memoir, but I think I received more than I expected. If you are expecting Hauerwas’s own take on his work, you will not be disappointed. He identifies Naming the Silences as his best work (114), The Peaceable Kingdom as his core work (136), and Christian Existence Today as the book he wonders why more people don’t... Read more

Here’s the deal: You predict the Final Four and the Final Two by the end of Saturday, June 26, and I will send you a copy of any book I have written.  You get one prediction … this ain’t like Chicago voting. So, let’s hear your predictions:   Read more