On the night our Savior was betrayed, he gathered with his disciples for his last Passover. This was certainly unlike any other they had experienced before. Loaves were broken and wine was poured, but they meant something quite different this time. The ominous spirit of Jesus’ words let them know they were on the precipice. They prepared to leave, keenly sensing the evil lurking in the deepening, darkening shadows. But first, they sang a hymn. On another night, in another... Read more
Today’s post was written by Miguel Ruiz, and is reposted with permission from Miguel and The Brothers of John the Steadfast. Nobody wants to be on the losing team. In an effort to attract a larger clientele, many businesses attempt to project that their services or products are a lot more popular than they necessarily are, in order to leverage peer pressure as a part of their marketing strategy. Shame on us; when that happens in the church. Following Jesus... Read more
Christian culture doesn’t get Proverbs 31 right, and the misunderstanding haunts women everywhere. We keep telling them that it describes the ideal woman, the measuring stick by which a woman’s worth is judged. But this is a proverb. A proverb! Proverbs are not historical accounts. They are not law. They are not commandments. The “Proverbs 31 woman” is not a real person, nor is she a blueprint for true femininity. She’s a composite, comprised of examples of someone who lives... Read more
How do we know worship when we see it? Is it in the song? Is it in the look on the faces? The closed eyes? The tears on the cheeks? Is it in the hands held high? Is it in the mighty mob in Times Square? This Church Leaders post says so. Remember what you learned long ago about faith. Remember the way your Sunday School teacher said it. “Faith is believing in what you can’t see.” Or what you... Read more
There are others, like South Main Pasadena’s Minister of Music, who had an uncanny ability to see the good in young people, even one as socially awkward as me, and help them find their voice. His impact on my life and ministry is immeasurable. A Truly Free Kind of Baptist Like I said before, I’m not going to be a Baptist again. But now, it’s simply an issue of sacramental theology, not because I fear guilt by association with the... Read more
I speak the language. I know your stories. I know you never sing the third stanza in a hymn. Even if it’s important plot material, you just pretend like it’s not there. I know you have to bring a covered dish to heaven with you. I know the significance of “Selected Individual” in your bulletin. I know what RAs, GAs, WMU, and BGCT all stand for. I still remember getting excited about singing hymn number 475, and shouting out “Oh... Read more
Kids don’t grow up singing hymns anymore. For those of us who are people of Christian faith, that simply can’t be okay. My experience is that when kids do learn hymns, they tend to be one or two of a small group of gospel hymns. That’s better than nothing, but gospel hymns tend to be heavier on our own personal stories than the truth of God’s story, and thus can be sentimental and theologically sparse. I’m grateful for those that... Read more
As my fellow Patheos blogger reported last week, Chris Tomlin’s recording of “Good, Good Father” has won the GMA Dove Song of the year award. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the Dove awards, it began decades ago as the annual awards show for the first kind of commercial Christian music… (Do yourself a favor and watch the video through to the end. You won’t be sorry.) Slowly, it has morphed into an unabashed celebration of the worship... Read more
Hey, everybody. How would you describe the worship service you attended yesterday? What adjectives come to mind? Looking around on social media, there is one adjective that people are using quite a bit. “Rocking.” Or sometimes “rockin.”Apparently, a lot of folks think their worship just rocked yesterday. Here are some of the goodies. St. Hillsong is certainly the patron saint of rocking worship… As is usually the case, worship ROCKED, but the sermon was merely “spot-on.” Still time to join... Read more
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen. Photos: Flickr, faungg’s photos, creative commons 2.0 Flickr, Guillaume Paumier,... Read more
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