The Kingdom of God is inherently political

What is our primary role as Christians? “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you.” (Matt 28:19-20, NRSV) The Great Commission implies our job is to mold […]

Staring back at the abyss: The need for depressed leaders

So much of America’s culture, bathed in capitalism as it is, is about selling ideas. Corporate advertisements depict smiling, laughing, jubilant people enjoying the newest product on sale, enticing us to spend our money so that, we, too, might be smiling, laughing, and jubilant. We are so oversaturated with this kind of messaging – be […]

The crisis of American Christianity: Christian Idolatry, Part III

This is the third post in a series on the connected crises of American society, culture, and Christianity – please read the first post here and second here if you haven’t already. The American Christian crisis is connected with both culture and politics, and what I mean when using the word “politics” is: the way […]

The three American crises of Christianity, culture, and government: Christian Idolatry, Part I

I have been struggling to write anything for the last several months. The thoughts in my head I’ve wanted to share have been noisily rattling around, but I’ve been wrestling with despair and concern that whatever I write is going to be misunderstood. We are living in a wild and dangerous time in America for […]

Seeking authentic church

I’ve mentioned several times over the years how I’ve struggled with (and have now reached a point where I’m pretty tired of) “doing” church like most Americans do. What I mean by that is I have a hard time with how most American worship services are structured and how the different aspects function. As I […]

I’m Sorry: My mistakes as a church planter

If your experience as a Christian isn’t a humbling one, you might be doing it wrong. Over the many years now I’ve been journeying with Christ and the Church, the most consistent single theme that seems to resurface for me are the varieties of ways I’ve been wrong: I’ve been wrong about how spiritually and […]

When friends abandon you

“My heart is in anguish within me; the terrors of death have fallen on me. Fear and trembling beset me; horror has overwhelmed me. I said, ‘Oh, that I had the wings of a dove! I would fly away and be at rest. I would flee far away and stay in the desert; I would […]