Last week, I shared a book that I recently read titled Five Challenges for the Once and Future Church. The book was a quick read and offered good insight into some of the challenges that many churches are facing. While the book itself isn’t a newly published work, it does offer insight that can prove to be helpful as we navigate this new landscape of church in the 21st Century. Continue reading
Category: Catalyst (Page 24 of 26)
A catalyst is one that sparks something. The catalyst speaks from experience and enables others to move forward more freely. These articles are written to act as a catalyst in your life.
In the last post I introduced the book Five Challenges of the Once and Future Church by Loren B. Mead. The first challenge we dealt with was the challenge of ownership of the ministry of the church. You can read more about that here.
The second challenge that Mead introduces is the challenge of structure. He spends much time talking about the denominational structures within which the church has operated for centuries. Continue reading
Several years ago I read a book that struck a nerve, but I did with it what I do all too often. After reading it, I just put it on the shelf and seemingly forgot about it. Well, I forgot until the other day when I was writing my article for the church newsletter. Then as I was writing, it hit me. I frantically started digging through my shelves for the book that had no name. Continue reading
It’s kind of amazing isn’t it? I mean go into a dark room, one with no lights or windows, then strike a match and see what happens. It doesn’t take much light to completely obliterate darkness. You don’t need a massive flashlight or a super bright lightbulb, just a small flame will work. Continue reading
There’s a lot of talk these days about safe places. These are places where people are free to be themselves. They are places that lack judgment and allow the freedom to be accepted no matter the person’s preferences, history, or genetic make-up. Continue reading
I’m not sure why but I’m intrigued by tattoos. I’ve even thought about getting one. I have a friend who has many tattoos and every time I see them, I think of the story that they tell. Like the dog-tags on his arm that tell the story of his love for his dad and brother who served in the Army and Air Force. Or the many tattoos of his favorite college sports teams. They each have a story associated with them. It’s like he has marked his story on his arms to let others see who he is and what’s important to him.
His tattoos remind me of a story about three boys. They were kidnapped by an evil man. They were forced to change their names to give them a new identity. They were then brought into a society that liked to brand or mark their captives with a special marking to show that they were no longer who they used to be. They were marked to give them a new identity. Continue reading
Several weeks ago a good friend of mine moved away. Not just around the corner or to a new church, but he move across the country. I have to be honest and tell you that I was not all that excited about this. But I knew that he was going where he needed to go. After making his decision to go, he packed up the family and the belongings and headed across the country for a new start. Continue reading
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t’s been nearly 12 years since my boys were born. I remember that day however like it was yesterday. I can remember when my wife told me, It’s time. I remember that it was nothing like the movies or television shows depict it. I didn’t almost forget her at home. I was just concerned, scared, and nervous. Continue reading
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f you’ve ever worked around food, even if it was for your own children, you’ve undoubtedly heard of the 5 second rule. The rule says if food hits the floor it’s still usable as long as it is picked up within 5 seconds. That idea is just disgusting! And having worked in multiple restaurant chains in my life, I would like to assure you that many restaurants (even though we joke about it) don’t actually practice the 5 second rule. If it hits the floor, it doesn’t go out the serving door! Continue reading
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t’s hard to believe that we’re nearing the end of the year, isn’t it? We’re already nearly midway through the last month of 2014. Before you know it, 2014 will be a thing of the past and we’ll be at the beginning of a new journey called 2015.