Follow Jesus. Lead the church. Change the world.
I recently read a piece written by the President-elect of Asbury Theological Seminary in which Dr. Timothy C. Tennent reflected on the cultural changes that are impacting seminary education. Tennent writes (emphasis and paragraph breaks added for readability) … Jerusalem and Athens are symbolic of one of the key shifts in theological education today. Like … Read more
While efficiency is not as important as effectiveness, efficiency is still pretty important. And it’s something I’m always trying to improve on (I’ve written posts on task management and task management 2.0). At its heart, efficiency is a matter of finding a system that works for you. There are no perfect systems because we’re all … Read more
Every family has their own unique challenges. Recently, I described the challenge we face in our home with two extremely fluid schedules and the goal of being more intentional about scheduling family/couple time. In this post, I’ll mention one tool we’ve been using for almost a year to manage our fluid schedules: Google Calendar. With … Read more
You’ve probably heard people talk about mentally/emotionally gearing up for the return to work near the end of their vacation. Maybe you’ve experienced it. I can’t speak for other professions or other types of work, but in ministry leadership, we don’t exactly get to lay down our call to ministry when we go on vacation. … Read more
Vacation isn’t just an opportunity to catch our breath, it’s also an important opportunity to recalibrate! When I think of recalibration, I think of recalibrating a battery (e.g., a laptop or cell phone battery) — occasionally, you need to fully drain it and then recharge it (at least, that’s how I understand it). Colors on … Read more
Self-care is important for all of us. It’s certainly important for leaders — people who influence and model life for others! If we don’t care for ourselves — body, mind, and soul — we will have less to give to and for others. Businesses and organizations are discovering this reality, partly in response to the … Read more
As Pentecost Sunday comes to a close, I’ll share one more thought about life in the Spirit (I previously wrote about Dynamite and Immersion). I’ve always understood the role of the Holy Spirit to be largely about empowerment. Moments before Jesus ascended to heaven, he told his followers … … you will receive power when … Read more
Tomorrow is Pentecost Sunday. I recently reflected on the word Dynamite. I’m also thinking about the word immersion. Immersion is one of the forms or methods of water baptism (along with sprinkling or pouring). The United Methodist Church recognizes/practices all three forms. But when it comes to being baptized in the Holy Spirit, immersion is … Read more
This Sunday is Pentecost Sunday. It’s a particularly meaningful day because of the first Pentecost following the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Days earlier, Jesus informed his followers … … you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere … (Acts 1.8) I’ve … Read more
I remember hearing someone (Leonard Sweet?) once talk about Jesus’ primary tasks. And recently, while reviewing Missional Church (which I recently wrote about), I came across this quote: … three main tasks of Jesus before his crucifixion: preaching, teaching, and healing (133). Preaching. Teaching. And healing. I view preaching as proclaiming the good news of … Read more