Part I of the series “I Am a Follower: The Way, Truth, and Life of Following Jesus.” John 14:1-7 One of the great laments of living in the 21st century is that it’s increasingly difficult to find a good bookstore. When I was in Nashville a couple of weeks ago I happened upon a lovely …
When visioning the way forward for the church, sometimes it’s helpful to first go “back to the future…” We have just finished a process to discern God’s unique vision for Tri-Lakes United Methodist Church, and we’ll be revealing the full scope of that vision in a few weeks. A team of ten laity and I …
Conflict and Crisis Mark 12:28-34 Sermon from the series The Last Week. On Tuesday, Jesus is in the Temple and is questioned about his authority and what is really important. It’s a question that is often used hypothetically: if a fire was coming to consume your house and you had ten minutes to get out, …
From the current issue of Homiletics, my Senior Writer’s Block column on being a follower before being a leader: When I came to my current church in 2010, I remember that we had a long discussion about what my official title should be. Since “your eminence” was clearly a bit pretentious and requires a large …
Ephesians 4:25-5:2 I remember the day in fifth grade when we got to choose what band instrument we wanted to play. To this day I’m not sure why I did it, but I passed up all the shiny brass instruments, the woodwinds with their many keys, and gravitated instead toward the drums. Well, not exactly …
John 15:1-17 When you think of fine wine (that is, if you think of wine at all, which you may or may not depending on your tradition – I am a Welch’s man, myself) your mind and palate might wander to a particular region of France. The French have a long history of vintage winemaking …
The Fruitful Way (A Process for Making Disciples) Continue Reading »