Why We Need to Seriously Reconsider the Whole Idea Behind the Altar Call:...
Inviting people to embrace the kingdom of God where Christ is worshiped as King is a community event. The Church, as the primary expression of Jesus’ kingdom on earth, is called to live out the...
View ArticleConnecting the Dots: The Cross, the Sermon and Discipleship
What does it mean to follow Jesus? What does following Jesus look like? Following Jesus, regardless of when and where you live, will always look the same because it is based in God’s demonstration of...
View ArticleIf God is Always With Us – Why Do We Ask Him to “Visit Us”?
Our experience of God should always have a role to play in our attempts to better understand God and God’s activity in the world. Experience can help us determine the validity of a certain theological...
View ArticleRedefining Holiness Jesus-Style: Transforming the World from the Inside-Out
When many of us first embraced Christianity, we almost immediately began to define our journey by the things we could no longer do. The words ‘not’, ‘do not’ and ‘cannot’ came to characterize not only...
View ArticleInspired – But NOT Equal: The Bible is the Witness – NOT the Word
I love to read scripture, but I don’t worship the Bible. To worship the Bible is to make the Bible into something it was never meant to be – an idol. The Bible is not THE Word of God, but the inspired...
View ArticleWorship is Like Monday Morning
From a Christian perspective, when I say the word ‘worship’ what immediately comes to mind? Music? Singing? Songs? Sunday? Worship teams? Lights? Dark auditoriums? Professional musicians? Set list?...
View ArticleWhen Christians Engage in a Battle Over Words: Letting Go of the Defend and...
The problem is simple – the church has developed a defend and conquer mentality, rather than a dialogue and conversation mentality. How do I know this? After years of working within the Church and...
View ArticleThe Church of Me, Myself and I
We know that contemporary Christian faith is being largely defined as a private and personal affair when, in the name of setting a mood and atmosphere for worship, we make our gathering places so dark...
View ArticleBlinded by Expectations: When Our Picture of Jesus Meets the Real Thing
Throughout the Gospel accounts to the first chapter of Acts, we are confronted with story after story that highlights the dilemma that erupted when cultural expectations surrounding the Messianic...
View ArticleLearning to Walk in the Darkness with Jesus
The idea of removing oneself from the darkness and pain of the world was never a life Jesus entertained. Instead, over and over again in the Gospel accounts we see a Jesus who intentionally immersed...
View ArticleThe Missing Piece in the Discipleship Puzzle
I just finished reading Matthew’s account of the Jesus-story, specifically the last three chapters. I’ve read this section many times before and have been moved in a slightly different way each time....
View Article2 Reasons NOT to Keep Christ in Christmas
Keep Christ in Christmas is the slogan of choice for many Christians during this time of year. We see the phrase used all over the place – from Facebook posts, Twitter feeds and Instagram pictures, to...
View ArticleGrace and Forgiveness: Cardinal Virtues in a Hostile World
To err is human; to forgive is divine. Our society is bent on retribution and revenge. I don’t get mad, I get even seems to illustrate the prevailing consensus in the world, while the qualities of...
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