Since 2003, I have been involved in training people for ministry. I taught Bible and ministry classes, and for several years have been the dean or director of schools whose primary foci were preparing people for lay and vocational ministry. Throughout my career, one of my great worries has been how poorly most pastors handle … Continue reading Pastoring the Pastors
Ministry & Missions
Godin: “Management Can Change the World”
This is from Seth Godin's Akimbo podcast, "Aravind". His summary of the episode is a single sentence, our title: "Management can change the world." Aravind is a chain of eye hospitals in India that has saved the sight of millions of people by treating curable, treatable eye problems. They are also a great picture of … Continue reading Godin: “Management Can Change the World”
The Holy Spirit pt 3; Daniel’s Observations
There was some discussion on Facebook regarding the original post in this series. Daniel Bartholomew offered several perceptive comments about how the Spirit acts. Biblically speaking, God's power is often manifested in deeply, deeply flawed individuals. Think David. Lot, called "righteous". Noah. Even Saul displayed the work of the Spirit. There does seem, Biblically speaking, … Continue reading The Holy Spirit pt 3; Daniel’s Observations
Imagine
I tweeted earlier this week: What is the evangelical landscape in Croatia sometimes like? "In those days, Israel had her own king. Everyone did what was right in their own eyes." What did I mean? Let me unpack that tweet. Imagine a giant football ("soccer") stadium. Tens of thousands of seats. A beautiful grass pitch … Continue reading Imagine
Stillness & Being
The picture is an iPhone pano of the scene I've been staring at for the past hour; the Adriatic Sea off Rovinj, Croatia. The picture doesn't do justice to Rovinj, one of my favorite places on earth, and a truly beautiful city. But I think it captures something of the immenseness & the always-changing yet … Continue reading Stillness & Being
Godin on Organizational Resilience
If you're not listening to Seth Godin's Akimbo, you're missing some of the best material available on leadership, marketing, creativity, etc. Every week, this is the most brilliant stuff on the internet. Godin recently dropped an episode on organizational resilience, "Supple." Church leaders and ministry leaders can learn a great deal from this episode. My … Continue reading Godin on Organizational Resilience
Beth’s Testimony
Last night, my wife gave the following testimony at Crikvenica. (Posted with her permission.) This morning, the most awful thing happened to me. Oh, I smiled pleasantly, and acquiesced, but in my soul, I wanted to crawl under a rock and hide. What was this awful thing? Mladin asked me to share my testimony with … Continue reading Beth’s Testimony
Evangelical Engagement 8: Christendom vs. Christianity
My thinking re. the problems faced by evangelicals in Europe is shaped by the conflict I see between Christianity and Christendom. My thinking on this conflict is itself shaped by Soren Kierkegaard (hereafter SK) (Attack on Christendom) and Malcolm Muggeridge (The End of Christendom). In this post I will summarize SK's contribution. SK was a … Continue reading Evangelical Engagement 8: Christendom vs. Christianity
Evangelical Engagement pt 7: If I Planted a Church in Zagreb …
In what I say below, I am NOT saying that house churches are superior to other approaches. I AM saying that I think house churches fit some contexts--including Zagreb, and the parts of Europe that I am familiar with--better than traditional approaches to making new churches. I also am NOT criticizing existing churches. The evangelical … Continue reading Evangelical Engagement pt 7: If I Planted a Church in Zagreb …
Circleslide 