Ten Experiences Children Need in Church

At our junior camp this year, we had a boy who liked to ask a lot of questions—questions in the middle of our lessons, questions about completely different subjects, questions that evolved into stories, etc. I gently responded each time, “that would be an excellent conversation to have after our lesson.” Finally, when I […]

10-minute Theology – Church Buildings

For the last several months, a church I work with has been considering the sale of their building and the possibility of renting another church or alternative space for their community. All practical challenges of the church are also theological in nature. How should we understand the spiritual or sacred dimension of our church’s building?

Wise men, and wise women?

The Christian holiday of Epiphany was this Friday. If you’d like to read a good devotional on Ephiphany, check out Seven Lessons from the Magi (unless you are in my small group, in which case, wait until tomorrow night:). Wise Women Many ministers have prepared a sermon for tomorrow on the Visit of the Magi. I […]

You’re Stuck in the Great Gatsby, Old Sport

I’ve been trying to figure it out for months… how to make sense of this election year. And then finally, I did. We’re all stuck in a real-life version of the Great Gatsby. I discovered the Great Gatsby in high school. I loved the intrigue of Gatsby, mysteriously wealthy, wildly popular, secretly heart-broken… and a […]

Behavioural Guide for Small Teams

About three or four times a month I find myself in a living room or a restaurant with a small team of about 10 other adults. We are planning to plant (start) a church in my borough. Teams like this are unique because they are still in formation. Their core identity, values, and mission are […]

Responding to Lust, Confronting Shame: A Better Narrative for How The Church Talks About Sex

Sadly, Christian leaders are still falling prey to lust and the Church is drawn into their anguish. Some, like Tullian Tchividjian—grandson of famed Billy Graham, and pastor at former D. James Kennedy’s Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church—are like rising stars that seem to fall abruptly out of the sky. Others might be featured less prominently in […]

Seven Lessons from the Magi

Today marks the end of Christmas and we celebrate Epiphany. Epiphaneia (greek) literally means manifestation. In today’s language, “epiphany” is used to express a sudden realization or breakthrough in thinking. Epiphany also commemorates the visit of the magi (plural form of magus or magician), or commonly called “three kings,” who visited Jesus after his birth. […]

Merry Messy Christmas

Merry Messy Christmas! For the last four weeks our family coached a small group through Advent. We read Scripture and prayed regularly. We also ate a common meal each Sunday night. What have we learned now that it is Christmas? Christmas is for the messy. Living closer to one another, we observed… tired moms and […]

Advent For Advent (the weeks leading up to Christmas), our family always reads a selection of Bible stories from the beginning of the Old Testament up to the birth of Jesus. One passage is always difficult—The near child sacrifice of Abraham and Sarah’s son Isaac. I mean… what a terrible story. How are you supposed […]

Happy Hopeful Halloween

Beyond the silly costumes, haunted houses and trick-or-treating… Halloween is mysteriously about hope. I have a curious relationship with Halloween. Trick-or-treating was a part of my childhood, but not my children’s because it was not really celebrated in France (where 3 or 4 of our children were born and spent their early years). When we […]