How NOT to Read the News
We live in a time where we are exposed to more news headlines than at any time in human history. In the ancient days of news, anchors checked the AP newswire for stories and reported on them and people in their homes watched or people in their cars listened to radio. Today, everyone, is essentially checking the wire, all day, through social media. We also live in a time when it’s has never been easier to publicly express an opinion. Before the Internet, if something happened, you might have picked up the phone to call someone or perhaps you might discuss it at work, around the water cooler. But today we are all pundits, all with commentary on what is happening right now.
They hear you when you’re speaking
Right before I got married, a wise man, married for many years, gave me a piece of advice. He said, “Dan, always talk favorably about your wife when she is not around. She can hear what you say about her even when she is not around.” This is a maxim I have tried to follow […]
On Halloween, Don’t Be That Parent
So it’s Halloween and parents everywhere are finalizing their plans for next week. Candy is purchased and placed in the requisite pumpkin bucket near the front door. Costumes are selected and purchased. And evangelical car trunks stand ready to be decorated for the church parking lot. It’s go time. But before you venture out at the […]
Multigenerational churches and offering plates
I’ve been writing recently about the shape of worship in our churches. First, a piece for Christianity.com about the importance of multi-generational churches: I recently said goodbye to one of my dearest friends, who taught me more about ministry than anyone else I knew. He recently succumbed to cancer in his early eighties. Until this […]
Why I’m Thankful for Christian Music
This headline seems a bit redundant. After all, I’m a Christian and, of course, I’d love Christian music. But this is not always the case. In fact if you listen to a lot of the conversations young Christians are having today, you’d find that Christian music is a kind of punching bag. It’s fashionable for […]
Why Leaders Fail
Recently I had a discussion with some friends about some public leadership fails in the news. I could name them, but you likely already know who they are. Our conversation turned to a general topic of leadership and things we’ve observed. What struck us was how these things evolve from little, seemingly insignificant decisions that […]
Victoria Osteen and Our Conservative Prosperity Gospel
Last night, Christian Twitter was alive with the ridiculous and sad clip of Victoria Osteen’s blatant prosperity gospel declaration. “We go to church, not for God, but for us.” I especially liked the enterprising blogger who affixed Bill Cosby’s “That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard” to the end of the clip. Well done. But […]
Two Things We Need: Comedy and Rest
I want to highlight two recent articles that are related to each other, I think. First, I wrote a column for Christianity.com about the need for comedy. I thought of this in light of the death of Robin Williams. Here’s an excerpt: The Scriptures tell us that laughter is a kind of medicine for the […]
On Losing a Close Friend
I just found out that my close friend and mentor, Bill Swanger, went to be with the Lord this morning at around 6:00 am. It’s really hard to put into words how much I loved Bill and how much he helped me in my ministry and in growing as a husband and father. I met […]
What We Can Learn from the #icebucketchallenge
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you have undoubtedly had your Facebook timeline inundated with friends, family, and celebrities doing the #icebucketchallenge. Everyone from people you don’t know to Mitt Romney (in a suit!), former President George W. Bush, and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell have dumped large buckets of water on their head to raise awareness […]
Why Pastors Should Pause
Pausing is one of the hardest things for me to do and it seemed even harder when I was a pastor. I think this was for two reasons: a) I loved the work of pastoring: studying, writing, counseling, leading, visioneering, etc b) I have a hard time pausing and reflecting. But I was always convicted […]
Should Christian Writers Try to Be Popular?
Recent controversies in the evangelical world have caused many people to rethink the idea of “platform-building” and “celebrity”, two buzzwords that are often misunderstood. I had the chance to discuss this with two friends of mine, Justin Taylor, popular blogger at Between Two Worlds, vice-president of book publishing at Crossway and Collin Hansen, editorial director […]