Dietrich Bonhoeffer
If you board the wrong train it is no use running along the corridor in the opposite direction.
Controlling the Weather
Over the course of the last two weeks, our family has experienced a wedding, an earthquake, and a tropical storm. Involved with the wedding came countless visits to weather.com to see if the rain would hold off long enough for us to hold the ceremony outdoors. (It did!) The tropical storm (a hurricane a few miles away) brought an evacuation from our vacation and, again, more hits to weather.com than I care to count. I keep waiting to hear if a locust plague waits around the corner.
Reaching the “nones” around us
In my August 8th blog, I began to discuss Robert Putnam and David Campbell’s book American Grace, emphasizing their thesis that America is more pluralist and polarized than ever. The religious Americans are more religious than ever and the irreligious ones are more committed to their non-belief than ever.
Thoughts on Marriage from the Unique Vantage Point of the Father/Officiant
This past Saturday, August 13th, I had the joyous privilege of performing the wedding of our eldest son Dan and his bride Kelsey. The entire day flowed as a series of showers of grace. As the father, I wanted to soak in all the little moments that wove a tapestry of blessing. But as the officiant, I wanted to hold it together to say the things that needed to be said and to preach a message to exalt the wonders of marriage, the goodness of God, and the blessing of knowing this God as Savior and Lord.
Pluralist and Polarized
I’ve been reading Robert Putnam and David Campbell’s American Grace. Based on the most (or one of the most) extensive surveys about religion in American life, this study is worth careful consideration by those who want to understand and reach out to those around them.
Is evangelism passe?
Someone asked me my opinion about an article on CNN’s home page. You can read it all here: http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2011/07/24/my-take-why-evangelicals-should-stop-evangelizing-2/
It’s by Carl Medearis, who believes we can have better relationships with Muslims if we stop trying to convert them and simply invite them to be “apprentices of Jesus.”