A couple of years ago, I became aware of an “alternative” youth worker’s gathering focused on ministry in urban areas. I had been familiar with Youth Specialties and the National Youth Worker’s Convention (attending several times) but the Urban Youth Workers Institute (UYWI) was new to me, and I’ve tried to figure out a […]
We were in a Children’s Ministries meeting when the idea first arose. “Did you hear about Loren’s birthday party,” one mom told another. “They had a food fight as part of the party!” Loren’s mom, sitting quietly across the table, piped in. “You know it’s really easy to do and it’s a bunch of fun. […]
Each week, at the end of “This Week with George Stephanapolis,” there is a recognition of the U.S. soliders who have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan during the previous week. However, they aren’t the only victims of these wars: The Army has recorded 62 confirmed suicides this year, and half as many more deaths may be […]
Back in 2002, it was time to get a new car. The Honda Civic with 280,000 miles had served me well for 10 years, but it was getting on its last legs and needed to be replaced. So after watching the listings on the Internet for a while, I ran over to the local Carmax […]
Late Update: I’m surprised this hadn’t occurred to me. But several readers have suggested that perhaps one of the tech geeks charged with setting up the audio/visual bells and whistles for the evening was tasked with getting pictures of Walter Reed Army Medical Center but goofed and got this instead. At first I thought, No, […]
Watching the GOP in the storm they’ve created, I’ve come to a sad conclusion – the culture war is back, even angrier and more brutal than ever. Listening to Rudy spew sarcasm and disdain last night, talking about cosmopolitan values about a man raised by a single mom in Kansas, following the air war & […]
Thanks to all who responded to my question asking for help with my October sermon series. As the comments have rolled in, it’s become clear that my specificity in what I was looking for was lacking. So here are a few thoughts on the sermon series development process. When I talk about a “hook,” I […]
If you haven’t heard by now, Google has come out with their own web browser named Chrome. It launched today in beta and I have been using it through the afternoon, with good results. Here are a few random thoughts on the product: One of the great tests of any new browser is whether it […]
Students brought into the new Metro Attendance Center have a choice — take a citation, head to court and risk paying more than $100 in fines and fees or accept social services offered by the center and don’t miss school for six straight weeks. Most choose the latter. Metro tackles truancy with help center | […]
I am leaning toward preaching a series during October on the relationship between faith and politics, leading up to the election on November 4. I’ve been wrestling with a “hook” for the series and nothing is coming to mind. Any thoughts?
I think I have written in the past about the group of pastors I meet with every Thursday to pray for the community of Antioch. This group recognizes that we have differences in theology and practice, but we lays those aside in the knowledge that we all are trying to walk in the way of […]
At the same time, Antioch is one of the places in Metro where truly affordable housing for young, working families exists, and one of the few places left with ready interstate access and wide open green spaces for economic development. There is also a truly diverse, multi-racial and ethnic community in the area that brings […]
I have seen a couple of comments on my last post on the changes at Jott suggesting that folks are pretty unhappy with Jott for moving to a pay service. Certainly I have loved the free service they have offered to date. Jott has been a great productivity tool, and the fact that it was […]
I have talked about Jott in the past and have shared how I use it in my ministry. This morning I received an e-mail informing me that they are out of Beta, which means that they are transitioning from a free service to an advertiser/subscription service. It was bound to happen, and given the usefulness […]
I live in a community paralyzed with fear. Well that’s not completely true, but the fact is that our community, this place called Antioch, a suburb of Nashville, finds itself at a crossroads driven primarily by fear. The fears are many: the fear of crime, the fear of others who aren’t like us, the fear […]
WKRP In Cincinnatti was one of the great shows of my youth, and this particular episode is one that I always remember. Enjoy. more about “A Blast from the Past“, posted with vodpod
Some parts of starting a church are hard and other parts are easy. Trying to make it work on a limited budget or with a commitment to be a good steward is not easy. Along the way we’ve found some things helpful that I will try to share. One of those is Church Radius. Jedi […]
I live in a community with a bad reputation. We are considered by the rest of Nashville to be a community with a “gang problem,” a community with high crime rates, a community which is in great decline. The problem is that this reputation is not deserved. In fact, the overall crime rate in our […]
We are doing some revamping of our care ministries in the church for folks who are no longer able to attend worship or participate in church activities due to physical and emotional limitations. We generally have called these persons “homebound” or “shut-ins,” however these terms don’t fully reflect the diversity of situations that we are […]
only wonder understands