March 11, 2013 Dearly Beloved in the Lord: I greet you in the name of our God and Savior Jesus Christ. I write you to also make an announcement that must come on the heels of a series of providences that both surprised me and have tried me—body and Continue Reading
March 12, 2013
Difficult but Necessary: Relinquishing Leadership in Winter to Renew in Another Season of Ministry
February 15, 2013
Growing in Joy all the Way Home
The introduction of Paul's letter to the Philippians begins not only with Thanksgiving but with a prayer for the believers in that beloved church. And within that prayer we are able to discern what St. Paul desired for the Philippians. He desired that Continue Reading
January 6, 2013
The Shadow of a Godly Pastor: Oh How We Need An Anointed Ministry Today!
Our people need to sit beneath the shadow of a godly pastor. "So that they even carried out the sick into the streets and laid them on cots and mats, that as Peter came by at least his shadow might fall on some of them" (Acts 5.15 ESV). I was preaching at Continue Reading
December 28, 2012
The Best: A Charge to our Married Men in Seminary and a Letter to All
My beloved students in Christ, I write to you, as this old year is winding down, and we count off the hours before a new one, to remind you of the best gift God has given you. It is not your gift to preach. It is not your gift to counsel. It is not your Continue Reading
December 16, 2012
Christmas in Connecticut: A Prayer on the Lord’s Day after the Tragedy
Oh Lord God, whose Spirit moved across the face of the deep, over the chaotic void of the preexistent earth that we see today; O Christ Jesus, whose Word of divine authority flung the stars into their place, sent the planets into their orbit, and made the Continue Reading
December 8, 2012
Advent Devotional 2: The wonder of Christmas is experienced through recognizing the nature of God.
The wonder of Christmas is experienced through recognizing the nature of God. The very word theology simply means the study of God. The apostle Paul in this passage shows us a theology of God — he shows us the nature of God. The nature of God according Continue Reading
November 27, 2012 7 Comments
Advent Readings and Lightings: Pastoral Preparations for the Coming Season
I wanted to give an aid for congregations and pastors, particularly those in free church backgrounds, who want to move away from the commercialization of the season to focus on the Incarnation. That is a hard sell to be sure. But the way to do it is Continue Reading
November 25, 2012
Christ the King Sunday: Not Waiting Long Enough for Advent to Begin
For those who observe the church seasons, and I must admit that the older I am more satisfied with the rhythms of the life of Jesus, and the traditions of the Church, than the calendars that commemorate this world. We almost missed Christ the King Continue Reading
Being a Pastor and Speaking Out in Today’s Culture
A pastor I know recently told me that he was criticized for being “too political.” He has heard such an indictment all his ministry, he said. Today he leads a major ministry in America and battles daily for the rights of pastors to speak so that Continue Reading