I’m sure you’ve heard of the fog of war, but have you ever experienced the fog of obedience? For twenty years Jacob worked for his conniving uncle, Laban. As the relationship deteriorated, God spoke: “Go back to the land of your fathers and to your relatives, and I will be with you.” (Gen 31:3). Read more…
This evening I had the joy of watching a seventh grade basketball game. Most of you know that “people watching” is a mild form of amusement for me. So I make it my regular practice to watch the teams play when I drive their bus to sporting events. This particular game was both comedic and instructive.
To begin, these guys played their hearts out. They were diving after loose balls, sprinting down the court, jumping after rebounds, setting picks, and batting down passes.
(Summary: In these series of posts, I’ve attempted to raise an important issue facing Christian leaders today, specifically how we go about fulfilling our cultural mandate in a fallen world. Then I offered a critique of the common assumptions and solutions for how the Church has historically sought to bring about lasting change. Seeing that the Church has embraced a definition of culture that is woefully inadequate, James Davison Hunter suggests culture is so complex that no one person or group can possibly hope to transform the culture. This brings us to this post where we will finally discover the best solution for world change.)
That’s right. I said it. We can’t change the world. (more…)
In the fourth chapter of Ruth, we are introduced to an interesting character. He is a character that in many respects looks a lot like me — and maybe even you.
It’s not Boaz.
Nor Ruth.
Nor Naomi.
No, this character doesn’t even have a name. (more…)
You can learn a lot about a guy by the way he defines success. It
telegraphs his values, priorities, and entire approach to his work. Consequently, it is important that ministry leaders clearly define what they mean by “success.”
I have long reflected on precisely how to define this elusive concept. I’ll spare you the journey and cut to the end of the matter: I believe success in ministry is…faithfulness. (more…)