Occasionally, we see some not-so-common verses start to go viral based on current events. Recently, as debates about welfare and SNAP benefits cycle out of Washington and around social media, the verse that has resurfaced is II Thessalonians 3:10, and it is being weaponized by many to justify the starvation of the poor. Not only is Paul not justifying that anyone should starve, but the actual message Paul delivers is much more about the attitude of those against the poor than

I want to make it clear that I have no problem with traditional local churches. Even though my own spiritual journey seems to be moving away from them, it might have never began without them. If the least that can said is that I gained an awareness of Jesus from those places, then that is enough. There may be no better foothold than that. No matter where our paths have taken us since then, many of us who have emerged from such spaces cannot deny we owe the traditional local c

And here I am, watching the chaos I once warned about unfold, hearing the stories of oppression it’s causing, and struggling to find the words to describe what it all means and where we go from here. Then, a week ago, our pastor preached from Jeremiah 25, and that message helped bring clarity to my thoughts.

If I had to describe this experience, or even define it now, I would say that church is the awareness of all people as image bearers of God, manifested in the intentional practice of God’s economy among them. The currency of this divine economy is love-given freely, not as transaction but as transformation, so that in each person, a creative personhood might be built up. One that reflects Christ while remaining wholly itself.

Around this time every year, a debate resurfaces surrounding the circumstances of the death of Jesus. This debate has been going on for centuries and is even responsible for unspeakable hate and violence throughout history. Who killed Jesus? Who is responsible for the death of the Messiah? Is it Rome? Is it the Jews? Who is the villain of the story? 

This Lenton season, as we watch the powers of the earth swirl out of control, let us make the same declaration Dismus does in Luke 23!

Our relationship with God is designed to flow out into the world and community around you. However, it starts between YOU and GOD...

The story of Hezekiah, I have argued, may be the most important story of all the kings of Judah for us to learn from...