This episode explores how “the universal gospel becomes universal in application.” The rich story of Philip and the Ethiopian reveals how God is breaking open a new reality of grace and love. Can the love of God reach to the…
This episode explores what it means to be a witness for Jesus Christ in the world. Both our words and our actions express an abiding faith in Jesus with a deep sense of integrity. If we are to represent Christ…
This episode explores the reading for Sunday, April 4 Easter Sunday. John 20:1-18 offers a glimpse into the transition we all have to make from death to life. Do we want to live in the Garden of Eden or the…
Today is Holy Saturday. It is the quiet solemn day between Good Friday, when we commemorate the death of Jesus through crucifixion, and Easter Sunday. Around the world, this day has varied titles for Christians. The Orthodox, who will not…
I read with interest an article highlighted this week in the Harvard Business Review’s “Today’s Tip” on How to Succeed When Your Predecessor Was a Star. The author, Rebecca Zucker, states that new leaders should, “[not] try to take on…
I have been employed by a local church as a lay person or as a clergy person for thirty-one years. (I started at age 19.) Over those years I have served under the leadership of 9 district superintendents (Lloyd, Marilyn,…
What would happen if…we appoint pastors to circuit-based ministries to develop new faith communities, language ministries, innovations, and shared ministry/staffing under the supervision and leadership of a circuit leader? The first church I attended after my conversion at age 13…
This blog entry is part of a larger series about a shared aspiration for the future of the United Methodist Church. These aspirations are framed by three things: 1) making the local church the center of our life together, 2)…
Since the disastrous Special Called Session of the General Conference in 2019, a new longing for a different way of being the United Methodist Church has emerged. In the months since the conference has adjourned, a bevy of new proposals…
(This post is again another school-based project for my class at BU.) My “go to” religious app is linked to a piece of software that I have used for thirty years. The Logos bible software app has been a constant…