Leadership in the Roaring 2020’s

Leadership in the Roaring 2020’s will continue to be an ongoing process of navigating a jagged series of unpredictable no-win scenarios. This is not an anomaly; it is the new normal. We are going to have to get used to it. Effective leaders will have to be: 1. laser focused on their mission 2. empathetic

“We Want Out!” (the loudest voice the #UMC isn’t hearing)

  There is an increasingly resonant voice in the United Methodist conflict emerging from both congregations and pastors.   It is a voice not being heard.   It does not receive invitations to the negotiating table.   It is a voice becoming too loud to ignore.   “We want out!”   As the United Methodist

Shaking Hands (While We Still Can) #UMC

Sometimes you just need to shake hands and go your separate ways while you can still shake hands…

A Pastoral Statement

Pastoral Statement: I have been loving God, loving people and watching God work mightily at Christ Church for twenty-two years. That some may want those years of work suddenly defined by a “tweet” on the recent St. Louis General Conference is absurd. If you would like to know where I stand, I invite you to

UMC Christmas Truce

I would like to make a motion that the United Methodist denomination cease all internal hostilities until after Christmas for the purpose of focusing on Jesus. Can I get a second? We will call it the UMC Christmas Truce of 2018.

Musings on the UMC and the Wesleyan Covenant Association

For years, I stood in the middle ground of the United Methodist Church.  Right-middle to be sure but middle none-the-less.  My plan was to batten down the proverbial hatches, keep Christ Church growing (we have grown for twenty-one consecutive years) and hope the denominational storm would pass.  When asked about my lack of denominational positioning,

United Methodists Still Have Time (but the clock is ticking)

I am a United Methodist and proud of it!  This church has given me a context in which to live out my calling as an Ordained Elder and I am most grateful.  Our historical roots are excellent.  Our General Rules are golden.  I have been graced to stay in one place and see my local

Why Unity Won’t be Reached Through Compromise

Why Unity Won’t be Reached Through Compromise Let’s begin our journey with a theological term: Christology.  Christology is what we believe to be true about Jesus’ nature and purpose and where we believe reliable testimony to that purpose and nature resides.  I must confess that I don’t have all the answers but I do know

Musings on the United Methodist Church (anyone else hearing the hiss?)

Musings on the United Methodist Church  The United Methodist Church in USAmerica is in precipitous decline. And on top of that, it costs us more and more to accomplish less and less each year if things like attendance, professions of faith and baptisms are important. The metrics are unsustainable.  Our decline is admittedly more like a

Christ Church, MLK Day and Me

Christ Church, MLK Day and Me Christ Church has been holding special services around the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday since the late 90’s. In the early years we participated with our friend Rev. Sylvester Weatherall and the good people of the Washington Park UMC. When Sylvester moved to Springfield in the early 2000’s, the