Saturday afternoon, Aaron took me for a walk around the block and we ended up at our good friends’ house around the corner for a few times down the slide and some fun playing catch with their big pink ball. As we were leaving their house to come back home, a piece of furniture that… Continue reading Out on the curb
Category: Church
Jingle Bells
Mercy’s favorite song right now is Jingle Bells. The other day I was walking the kids over to my sister’s house to play (they are our surrogate back-yard) when Mercy asked me to sing Jingle Bells for her. “Sure!” I said, as I started to sing. As I walked down Kenwood in the afternoon heat,… Continue reading Jingle Bells
A compliment
Last night a young woman from our church came over to talk and hang out a bit. There were some things in my sermon on Sunday that had connected with her and her experience as a single woman, and it was great to hear her share her perspective on being single in our church. I… Continue reading A compliment
The gospel: “Follow me…”
By late afternoon yesterday, I had heard more police helicopters in one day than I had ever imagined possible. Along with sirens and cruisers racing down our streets, it was enough to unsettle. We spent the early evening over at my sister’s house in her backyard, enjoying dinner (and lots of space for the kids… Continue reading The gospel: “Follow me…”
Quotation of the Week
Many often say the reason for this issue [Women in Ministry] today is because some are trying to be “biblicalâ€. But that raises this question: Why pick this biblical issue and not some other? Like the poor (more are awaking on this one I’m happy to say) or the reality of miracles or tongue-speaking (clearly… Continue reading Quotation of the Week
Good enough
A few weeks ago, Doug and I had the privilege of attending an event hosted by Northwest Neighbors that celebrated ten years of their ministry in Northwest Pasadena. As an organization, they do significant work in the lives of youth in their community, ranging from tutoring and mentoring to leadership development and discipleship. They are… Continue reading Good enough
Ghetto no more
A few things have struck me recently about the changing identity of “urban” as it is used to describe America’s inner cities. As an “urban” minister, this word holds great weight and is filled with meaning for me in terms of the kinds of communities I feel called to: things like under-resourced, underprivileged, multi-ethnic, immigrant,… Continue reading Ghetto no more
Celebration
Last night our church, Church of the Redeemer, was officially welcomed into the Evangelical Covenant Church at the conference annual meeting in Simi Valley. Doug stayed home with the kids so that I could go out and be a part of this, saying: “you worked really hard and gave a lot to see this day… Continue reading Celebration
Does Sunday morning really matter?
There are many today who feel like the Sunday morning service has been overemphasized to the degree that the “show” each week has become what “church” means, as opposed to an actual vision of a transformed life of worship, fellowship and service together. There are many in my generation who have given up the whole… Continue reading Does Sunday morning really matter?
Women, pizza delivery and the church
The Don Imus controversy has again brought issues of race and gender to the forefront of public discussion, and it is interesting to me how quickly we forget that we still live in the midst of deep prejudice and stereotype. Where I live, people wear their disdain pretty openly: gang killings along racial lines; a… Continue reading Women, pizza delivery and the church