Locked In A Cage
A friend of mine wrote a story that is a helpful discussion starter and I asked him to guest blog today. The story is a metaphor of life and the followers of Jesus. I share it with you here. Let me know how this story affects you. Picture us as a group of people locked…
Continue readingReckless Forgiver
The band Jars of Clay sings about a “Reckless Forgiver” (listen to the song here) on their album Inland. I leave it to your imagination as to who it is that truly forgives recklessly. I may not be fully capable of reckless forgiveness but I certainly could be more generous with my forgiveness. Reckless Forgiver(Composed…
Continue readingLeadership Prayer Breakfast
Today, Calgary Mayor, Naheed Nenshi, spoke briefly at the 45th Annual Calgary Leadership Prayer Breakfast. This breakfast started as an opportunity for Christian leaders to come together to pray for the city and our country. Since those early years, Calgary’s cultural and religious diversity has increased. Today there were references to Christians, Muslims, and Jews…
Continue readingFollow-Up to Passing Judgement
The love of those things that are outside Christianity keeps me outside the church. – Simone Weil as quoted in Duncan, David James. The Brothers K. New York: Random House, Inc., 2005.
Continue readingPassing Judgement
I often cringe when people suggest that we should all stop “judging.” Sometimes my cringe is because I feel bad for the person who feels that others are passing judgement on their actions. Sometimes I cringe because I feel that the person is seeking to justify actions that are certainly not worthy of praise. Sometimes…
Continue readingNo Man is an Island
“No man is an island,” wrote John Donne in 1624. His poem by the same name suggests that the things that each of us do affect others around us. We are all part of the community of humankind and what I do has an effect on the whole. I thought of this the other day…
Continue readingMillennials
A recent conference in Calgary has me dreaming of the kind of church that will thrive in the next generation. James Penner was the guest speaker at the Western Canada Leadership Summit and he challenged us to think about the characteristics of the Millennial Generation (variously defined, but for the purposes of these talks, defined…
Continue readingNouwen on Forgiving the Church
In a time when many would say they are Christians without attending any expression of the Body of Christ, these words of Henri Nouwen are very appropriate. When we have been wounded by the Church, our temptation is to reject it. But when we reject the Church it becomes very hard for us to keep…
Continue readingA Daughter in the Church
One of my daughters called me the other day. She asked me some questions about why we read words like, “I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man; she must be quiet.” (1 Timothy 2:12) and apply them in our present context but read words like “I also…
Continue readingFruit and the Community of God
Last Sunday, I preached a sermon that presented my current understanding of John 15:18 through 16:4. This passage follows closely on Jesus’ words that he is the vine and we are the branches. The last part of John 15 points out that the vine does not exist to make a wonderful life for the branches.…
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