• How can we have an effective pastorate? • How can our ministries, our preaching, support church health? • How can we be faithful in our ministries? There is a parable for young preachers in Walt Disney's Dumbo, the little circus elephant that Continue Reading
April 4, 2013
A Call To Repent And Believe In Jesus Christ
Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord (Acts 3.19) Not too long ago I saw a bumper sticker that announced, “Jesus is the Answer.” The driver (who was speeding in fact) was Continue Reading
March 22, 2013 2 Comments
Thoughts on Faith from a Garden in March and Pastoral Ministry
For a gardener, like myself, March is an in-between month. The dried, gray-brown stalks on the oak leaf hydrangea, left over from last autumn, stand at attention, like a proud, old war veteran in his outdated, ill-fitting military uniform. And like a Continue Reading
March 12, 2013
Difficult but Necessary: Relinquishing Leadership in Winter to Renew in Another Season of Ministry
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 2, 2013
Walking the Tight Rope Between Reserve Chaplaincy and the Pastorate
I trust the following question and answer about chaplain ministry and the local pastorate will provide some opportunity for prayerful reflection by those considering the call. Dear Dr. Milton: May I ask you a question about the chaplaincy? The biggest 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
July 3, 2012
Legionnaires and Jesus: Earliest Memories of the Fourth of July
My clearest memories of Independence Day are my earliest memories of Independence Day: of sitting next to my Aunt Eva, who adopted this orphan boy, in the third pew back to the preacher's right; in our small, little country church in Southeastern Continue Reading
June 25, 2012
Intuition Confirmed: A Report on Summer Orientation at Grove City College and Some Thoughts for Parents in the College Selection Mode
Grove City College Summer Orientation Tour for John Michael and Mom As I attended the 40th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in America[1] (where my friend and RTS alumnus, Dr. Michael Ross, was elected Moderator and did a tremendous job), my Continue Reading
