Archives:

Burnout

A Broken Church Sign

I was driving to Albany to do a hospital visit when I saw this sign, which caused me to pause and think about the message:

It reads, “Sign Broken… We are not”

I started to think about how “cute” it was for a church to put that up instead of their broken sign, but then I thought about how the sign’s message may not be ccurate.  Henri Nouwen was know for consistently stating that we are “broken” people.

If this church in the picture wants to draw people in, is this the right message about our brokenness?  Does it give an air of perfectionism? Continue Reading…

Evangelism

Post Christian Europe: Not Dead

This past Sunday, we had the wonderful opportunity to have Pieter and Nora Kalkman visit us and share about their ministry in Europe. They spoke about their work in eastern Europe and their challenges in “post Christian” Europe.  Nora and Pieter are based in Prague, Czech Republic where they serve through International Ministries as liaison and volunteer coordinators with the European Baptist Federation (EBF). They match the skills and interests of short term mission volunteers from the United States and Puerto Rico with the needs of more than 50 Baptist unions that are part of the EBF.

Some interesting information they shared:

  • There are only 2.4% Bible believing Christians in Europe, making this is a priority mission field.
  • Georgian Baptist pastors wear similar liturgical vestments that Orthodox priests wear because of the historical Eastern Orthodox presence in that region.
  • In some countries, only 3% of the population go to any type of “church.”
  • There are a variety of needs to do mission work. Week trips, short term, and long term ministry opportunities can be found here.

So if there only 2.4% “Bible believing Christians” living in Europe, we have to ask the question: Is Christianity dead in Europe?

Continue Reading…

Churches

I'm Going to Mass

St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Church in Ballston Spa (across the street from my church, The First Baptist Church) is holding a very special mass and I’m going.  The Ballston Spa Life newspaper has the details about the mass:

St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Church will open its doors to the community on Tuesday, June 8, as part of a celebration of the lives of priests, deacons and others from the village whose legacies include being faithful to the vows of their vocations through what is being described by organizers as “tireless hidden service and universal charity.”

The event, which will include a procession in front of the historic Milton Avenue church, will mark the culmination of The Year for Priests.

The mass is an unique worship service for Catholics to celebrate “The Year for Priests.” This special mass celebrates the ministry of priests and, “to reflect with heartfelt gratitude on the immense gift which priests represent not only for the Church, but for humanity.” itself.”  This special occasion marks a 12-month period that Pope Benedict XVI declared.

So, why is a Baptist making plans to go to a Catholic Mass?  I’ll tell you why.

Continue Reading…

death

From Depression to Declaration

Have you ever been to a funeral in New Orleans? Or, at least seen one? It is a very different experience because of the cultural understanding of grief, death, and suffering. The experience is truly unique. Rev. Dr. Kimberleigh Buchanan on her blog has a good description:

The brass band begins its solemn procession at the church, playing hymns like “Free as a Bird” and “Just a Closer Walk with Thee”-no improvisation, no frills. Nothing but sadness blown low and blue to the beat of a muted snare drum.

Once the procession arrives at the cemetery, though, after the final words are spoken and the body is lowered into the ground, the mood shifts. Brightly festooned umbrellas burst open, the snare drummer removes his mute, and the funeral procession heads back into town to the raucous strains of “Didn’t He Ramble?” and “When the Saints Go Marching In.” Folks who heard the somber hymns earlier in the day wait for the procession’s return…because they know a celebration’s coming…and no one in New Orleans wants to miss the funeral celebration.

Why all the celebration for death?

Continue Reading…

blog, marriage

Al & Tipper Gore: An Inconvenient Marriage?

I’m sure by now every one has heard of Al & Tipper Gore’s separation.  The former vice president and his wife have publicly said,

“This is very much a mutual and mutually supportive decision that we have made together following a process of long and careful consideration,”

While divorce or separation of couples after 40 year of marriage is rare (in fact less than 1% of couples divorce after 40 years), it makes us wonder why such a couple would separate?  The typical responses come to mind: They are such a happy couple.  They have been together for so long.  They have been through so much!  Remember the “Convention Kiss of 2000?”

Writing about the Gores, Ellen McCarthy at the Washington Post said it well:

They’re like the couple down the block with the lush garden and the annual Labor Day cookout. The pair who are always power walking together and drinking wine on the front porch, who make you nudge your husband and say, “See? I want that.”

However, I was absolutely shocked at what I read next in McCarthy’s article:

Continue Reading…

trinity

Once Upon A Time…

…there was a woman who set out to discover the meaning of life. First, she read everything she could get her hands on–history, philosophy, psychology, religion. While she became a very smart person, nothing she read gave her the answer she was looking for.  She found other smart people and asked them about the meaning of life, but while their discussions were long and lively, no two of them agreed on the same thing and still she had no answer.

Finally, she put all her belongings in storage and set off in search of the meaning of life. She went to South America.  She went to India.  Everywhere she went, people told her they did not know the meaning of life, but they had heard of a man who did, only they were not sure where he lived.  She asked about him in every country on earth until finally, deep in the Himalayas, someone told her how to reach his house–a tiny little hut perched on the side of a mountain just below the tree line.

She climbed and climbed to reach his front door. When she finally got there, with knuckles so cold they hardly worked, she knocked.

Continue Reading…

Churches

Small Churches Are The Next Big Thing

small church

Brandon J. O’Brien at Christianity Today’s Out of Ur blog, has a really interesting thought about the future of small churches.  The perception is that small churches are dying and are even the reason why Christianity is waning. However, O’Brien pulls from a number of sources to explain why the small church might be the next big movement:

In a conversation last week about the virtues of small churches, a pastor friend of mine, Chuck Warnock, quoted a passage from John Zogby’s 2008 book The Way We’ll Be: The Zogby Report on the Transformation of the American Dream (Random House). Zogby prophesies that “The church of the future will be a bungalow on Main Street, not a megastructure in a sea of parking spaces. It’s intimacy of experience that people long for, not production values.”

On the face of it, I couldn’t be more pleased with that prediction. I’ve pastored two small congregations and am now a member and deacon in another, where my wife serves on staff. My experience with these churches has led me to believe that small congregations are uniquely positioned to carry the gospel into the world in the 21st century. Few things would make me happier than if the “next big thing” in Christian ministry conversations was the small church.

Interesting take.  Certainly, the Emergent Movement has taught us that small churches can do big things and reach people previously thought to be “unreachable.”  Also, “house churches” have been known to start mega churches because of their simplicity and small community.

O’Brien also says there is a danger involved with small churches:

Continue Reading…

Pentecost

Pentecost? Whatcha talkin’ bout?

The 1980’s a sitcom, “Diff’rent Strokes” chronicled a family life of a wealthy white industrialist who adopts two African American children. This show gave us  one of the classic lines of that decade.  One of the show’s main character, Arnold, played by Gary Coleman would often say, in a deep voice, “Whatcha you talkn’ about Willis?” to his television brother with a confused look on his face.  Check out the video clip here:

As we celebrate Pentecost this Sunday, we often want to run past the details because they are so crazy!  Fire, wind, xenoglossia, prophesy, dreams, and tongues!  Whatcha talkin’ bout?!?  This is crazy!  What the heck is going on?

Most Christians take the “Whatcha talkn’ bout” approach to this whole business of Pentecost, speaking in tongues, and the out pouring of the Holy Spirit.  Do we need to speak in tongues in order to be filled with the Holy Spirit?  What can we make of this event in scripture?

Here is what you need to know about Pentecost:

Continue Reading…

blog

One Year of Blogging

Well, it has been exactly one year of blogging today!  I have come a long way since my first post on “escapism”.  After 23, 107 hits on this blog, I want to thank everyone for reading and coming back. This blog created many wonderful opportunities for me, which included a platform to write a manuscript for a book, blogging for the Times Union, and connecting with other bloggers.

Look for a post on Pentecost tomorrow.  Check out my post from  last year’s Pentecost in which I wrote about being on fire… literally.

Here’s to another year of being “On the Bema.”

Culture

3 Reasons Why the Nashville Flood Went Unnoticed

Nashville: Known for country music and… flooding?  It seems like few people are talking about it and few news organizations are covering it. Even though over 20 inches of rain flooded this growing city, 30 people died, the clean up will cost billions, and the city will take years to recover. Normally, that is cause for major media coverage (remember the floods in Iowa a few years back?)  Certainly, the flooding of Nashville and surrounding areas are not on par with the devastation of hurricanes Katrina and Rita, but does that matter?  Yes and no. No matter the disaster, people need help. No matter how great or small the loss of life, supplies and funds are needed.

It’s clear that this story has not been in the news that much.  Did you know celebrities like Miley Cyrus and Nicole Kidman held a Nashville Flood Relief Telethon? Most did not see it or even hear about it. Did you know it could be one of the most expensive disasters in US history?   With such a need for help in Nashville it is clear the message needs to get out.  So, why haven’t we heard about the Nashville flood?

Here are three reasons why the Nashville flood went largely unnoticed by Americans and the media:

Continue Reading…

On Facebook