Books written for those in the first half of life are frequently framed in the imperative. Do this to find love of your life! Try these ten ways to divorce-proof your marriage! Here’s what you must do to be a successful parent! Do these six things to get the job of your dreams! Those imperatives feed our first-half dreams for our lives. They nourish our ambitions. They are tools in a builder’s hands – and while we’re building our lives,... Read more
Just in time for this winter’s epic Polar Vortex to swoop into town this winter with its alternating gifts of snow and subzero weather, my husband and I decided it was time to figure out if it still made sense to make the hour and twenty minute round trip drive to attend our church on Sunday mornings. Rush hour traffic threw additional travel time into the mix on weeknights, which prohibited our attendance at other church events. No one else... Read more
Last summer, I launched an informal survey in this space asking readers over age 40 to describe their relationship with their local church. Pollster George Barna’s 2011 State Of The Church survey reported that church attendance is on the decline among mature adults. One of the most significant drops in regular attendance came among Baby Boomers, those born between 1946-1964. There was an uptick in the number of Baby Busters (those born between 1965-1983) who do not claim any church... Read more
Evidence of a series of storms, in the form of layered grit, can’t quite mute the expression of gratitude on this license plate. If the plate was clean and shiny, it wouldn’t preached the message it did to me this morning in the Kohl’s parking lot. When things aren’t all so shiny-lovely in my life – as now, when some of those I love most in all the world are struggling and suffering – fear, pain and anxiety form the... Read more
I grabbed a paper cup and pumped hot coffee into it just as I did each week before the Sunday morning worship service began. The coffee table in the lobby of the church was a hive of pre-service Sunday morning activity. As I reached for a lid to cover my cup of brew, I noticed a small, gift-wrapped box tucked just behind the trio of sugar containers. I picked it up and noticed my name penned neatly on a tiny... Read more
Why should the devil have all the good music? If those words immediately trigger a memory for you of a live performance of Larry Norman pounding on a piano a la Jerry Lee Lewis, you might be an aging Jesus Freak. While religious and social historians who study such things are divided on whether the Jesus Movement of the late 1960’s–early `70’s was indeed American’s fourth great awakening, those of us who came to faith during this hurricane of the... Read more
know people who pepper their spiritual talk by quoting Beth Moore’s pithy observations, Joyce Meyer’s motivational aphorisms or Mark Driscoll’s take-no-prisoners bluntspeak. I’ve known others who take their Christian life cues from radio personality Nancy Leigh DeMoss, social activist Shane Claiborne, Charismatic teachers Heidi and Roland Baker, or simply borrow the convictions of their favorite pastor. While these “Christian famous” speakers may be seated at the same banquet table at the marriage supper of the Lamb someday, a fair number of... Read more
Earlier this week, 78 year-old Dr. Tony Campolo announced he would be closing the doors of the ministry he launched three decades ago. I appreciate his faithfulness and consistent voice on behalf of the marginalized, and applaud his wise words in the RNS piece about his retirement from the organizational part of his speaking and writing ministry: “Too often, we old guys hang on too long and steal the spotlight from the new, bright, shining stars emerging as speakers and leaders,”... Read more
They leave the security of family and community to travel to the ends of the earth in the name of God. Destinations for these emissaries have included Bangkok, Salt Lake City, Alaska, Russia…just about anywhere there is a possibility they can be used to reconnect someone with God. They maintain their own unique lifestyle based in religious observance though this means they almost always stand out, peculiar people, in their adopted hometowns. They know they may never return to the... Read more
Every time I walk past an American Legion building in a nearby town, there are always a couple of grizzled dudes hanging around outside. Sometimes they’re smoking. Other times, they’re tinkering under the hood of a 10-year old Buick or polishing a spit-shiny Goldwing. When I peer through the darkened windows of the place, I can see a handful of guys watching a game. Snatches of conversation punctuated by the occasional shouted instructions of the coaches hugging the barstools floats... Read more
Pilgrim's Road Trip
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In