I’m not the first to say it, but Jesus is an absolute genius. I remembered this yet again in a recent conversation with a Christian leader with whom I meet regularly. We were talking about how one of the challenges for Christian leaders is ending up with a utilitarian...
Most Christians have some idea of what a parable is. Ask an adult Sunday school class and you might hear: “It’s a story!” Another might chime in, “with a moral message!” But the truth is, parables are a very special kind of story with a few key features. And unless we...
About ten years ago, I was teaching a course on the psalms for my seminary students in the midst of a personal health crisis. It wasn’t in my notes, but I spontaneously ended up sharing with my students about my pain, my frustration, and my struggle to understand why...
The Master & His Workshop I remember first walking into my friend Andrew’s new workshop, housed in a colonial-style barn and situated on an expansive wooded acreage on the Eastern Seaboard. Think Bob Villa and “This Old House”! The barn had been refurbished to...
Have you ever whispered to yourself, “I didn’t sign up for this?” I confess those words have passed through my mind more than once over the years. When I started out in ministry, more than 30 years ago now, I didn’t anticipate how much energy would be spent...
