Field notes on life and mission with God in post-Christendom
I have been leading worship for as long as I’ve been doing ministry. Initially “leading worship” meant leading a band that was leading a congregation in singing their praise and prayers to God.
Eventually, as I was drawn into the liturgical tradition, it expanded to leading worship in more ways than just in song. Being the celebrant at a service of Word and Sacrament is to be the “worship leader” for that service.
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I recently read an article by Richard Beck about how Jesus was a pirate. When I read it I remembered a bemusing spiritual experience I had many years ago at a charismatic church conference. I've always had a somewhat ambivalent relationship with … [Continue reading] about Getting Run Through By Jesus
When we are isolated from each other it's easy to forget that we belong to each other. Before I know it, I can find myself retreating into a self-protective stance toward others, walling off my heart for fear of getting hurt. Here's a collect I wrote … [Continue reading] about A Collect For Remembering We Belong To Each Other
In Matthew 21:33-46 Jesus tells the parable of the wicked tenants, where a landowner rents out his vineyard to some tenant farmers who refuse to to share the harvest with the landowner, beating his servants and killing his son. Jesus is telling … [Continue reading] about Repenting is Easy and Hard
"Many who are first will be last, and the last first" (Matt 19:30). Jesus speaks these words to his disciples after promising that the sacrifices they've made to follow him will indeed be worth it in the Age to come, which comes after shocking … [Continue reading] about The Gospel Disrupts Our Status Games