Text
Apr, 22, 2016 0
What will you do when you discover that your new neighbor speaks a language unlike yours, dresses “strangely,” has a different skin color, cooks odd food, goes to another kind of prayer center, and is just not what you are accustomed to? Such a scenario is likely to occur these days, and we must…
Apr, 22, 2016 0
“Worship: Why bother? My relationship with God is private—it’s between me and God.”
“My best times of worship are in my car or on the hiking trail.”
“Oh, we stopped going to that church; we weren’t getting anything out of the worship.”
“When they sing those kinds of songs, I just can’t worship…
Apr, 22, 2016 0
Extreme sports are very popular these days. We seek to escape routine by experiencing something challenging such as swimming with sharks or co-piloting a jet fighter. People hate to feel bored. While the church isn’t called to stage Bungie jumps or survival challenges in the jungle, being part of a…
Apr, 22, 2016 0
Q: What are the sacraments and what does it mean to be “sacramental?”
A: To be “sacramental” is to embrace a theology that views creation as filled with God’s presence and is therefore sacred and holy. It is to affirm the words of Genesis 1:31, “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good…
Apr, 22, 2016 0
Q. Why do Nazarenes use liturgy during the celebration of baptism and the Lord’s Supper?
A. The first of the three core values of the Church of the Nazarene is “We are Christian.” It shows up clearly in how we celebrate the sacraments of baptism and the Lord’s Supper (also known as Holy Communion…
Apr, 22, 2016 0
Recently someone asked me an intriguing question: What statement should the Church of the Nazarene make about human suffering such as the hardships caused by immigrant displacement and environmental crises? My mind froze as I tried hurriedly to devise an appropriate response to these global issues…
Apr, 22, 2016 0
One of the principal rules of religion is to lose no occasion of serving God. And, since he is invisible to our eyes, we are to serve him in our neighbor; which he receives as if done to himself in person, standing visibly before us (John Wesley). For even the Son of Man did not come to be served,…
Apr, 22, 2016 0
I cannot imagine a long-haired Jesus strumming a guitar and belting out a ballad. I can’t visualize Him clapping and toe-tapping to praise choruses. Can you see Him singing at a Bill Gaither “Homecoming” event?
Images of Jesus Christ singing may seem strange since the Bible never pictures Jesus…
Apr, 22, 2016 0
HT: Does this new generation still believe in marriage?
Les: Here’s what we know for sure: 87 percent of young adults plan on being married eventually and 82 percent expect to be married for life.
Did you catch that? Almost all young adults between the ages of 18 and 30 not only aspire to…
Apr, 08, 2016 0
Don’t you hate it when someone who knows little about a sport tries to engage in conversation about it and then uses terms from another sport? Like this: “The football game is in the third inning.” Of course, baseball uses innings, not football.
That is exactly how I feel as a minister in the…