Dreams Unlocked

I've read 50 books in 2018 (so far). Here they are: 1.     Gray Mountain - John Grisham 2.     Joy Unspeakable - Martyn Lloyd Jones 3.     The Kingdom and the Cross - James Bryant Smith 4.     How to be Pentecostal without Speaking in Tongues - Tony Campolo 5.     The Great Giveaway - David Fitch 6.     Answering Jihad - Nabeel Qureshi 7.     Complete Book of Discipleship - Bill Hull 8.     A small Cup of Light - Ben Palpant 9.     Selection Day - Aravind Adiga 10.  The Great Evangelical Recession - John Dickerson 11.  The Following Plough - J. Neville Ward 12.  Between the World and Me - Ta-Nehisi Coates 13.  A Mind Awake - CS Lewis 14.  Gift From the Sea - Anne Morrow Lindbergh 15.  Experiencing the Trinity - Darrell w. Johnson 16.  Make Your Bed - Admiral William H. McRaven 17.  When Breath Becomes Air - Paul Kalanith 18.  How Should Christians Vote - Tony Evans 19.  Bible and New York Times - Fleming Rutledge 20.  Tech-wise Family - An

I  met with someone from my church this week for lunch. Nothing new there. I do that 2-3 times a week on average. What was different this time is I had no agenda for the meeting. Halfway through our meal - I thought - this is a "lunch without an agenda". And I thought I need to do this more often. Usually, when I meet with someone we are trying to meet a need - I might need them for something in the church or they might need my counsel, support or friendship. I am trying to talk them into something. They are needing something from me. This is rather utilitarian, isn't it? But this meal was different - we just met .... because. And it was very liberating to simply spend non busy and non programmed time with another human being. our conversation wandered from family to church to history. It followed its own path and we walked along beside it. I recommend pastors take up this practice - meet with your parishoners without an agenda or a plan for their life. Simply, si

"Let's go." Eugene Peterson's final words. I'm listening to the Livestream of the funeral of Eugene Peterson on a rainy day in Ithaca NY. I should be working on my doctoral dissertation but I'm tuning in to this service instead. I first encountered Eugene Peterson through the book "A Long Obedience in the Same Direction" - a reflection on the Psalms of Ascent. It was an assigned book when I was at Canadian Bible College in Regina Saskatchewan. To be honest, it didn't have much impact on me at the time. Probably just got diluted along with all the other work I did as a theological undergraduate student. Fast forward to the early 90's and a pastor who was (and still is) a mentor to me: Brian Buhler. I was just starting out in ministry. Brian was a well-known pastor in my denomination. He was kind enough to meet with me periodically for lunch. Over one of these meals, Brian recommended the book "Under the Unpredictable Plant&qu

2 Eugene Peterson fans hanging out. I started theological studies at Regent College in the fall of 2001. In December of that year, Rolling Stone magazine published an interview with Bono. In the interview Bono said this: there's a translation of Scriptures -- the New Testament and the Books of Wisdom -- that this guy Eugene Peterson has undertaken. It has been a great strength to me. He's a poet and a scholar, and he's brought the text back to the tone in which the books were written. I seized on this quote and wrote a brief article for the Regent student newspaper at the time. After awhile NavPress got permission to quote Bono and it started showing up on the back of later editions of The Message translation. Bono had mentioned Eugene and his writings in the past - but this was the most explicit and straightforward comment that he had made. He had also mentioned that the band would read the Psalms from the Message backstage before a concert and then go out

This Sunday I will preach for the fifth Sunday in a row - something I have never done since arriving in Ithaca 5 years ago. My max was 2 Sundays in a row. I preached Easter Sunday and then I started a 4 week series on evangelism called "Going Public". This is part of my ministry project for my DMIN program. My lead pastor Eric was kind enough to share the pulpit for these 4 weeks so I could do this project. But, this much consistent preaching along with the normal parts of my job has been quite a test! I was hoping things would slow down but instead I have even more things cooking in May. The first week of May I head down for an elective class on preaching. This class requires quite a bit of work both pre and post class. And then the final week of May I am heading to Egypt, Palestine and Israel! Also for a class with my seminary. I can't really believe I have this opportunity! This class takes place in both Palestine and Israel. Prior to my class I will be in Cairo

This morning I preaching on Proverbs 7 which is basically a diatribe against adultery. It describes a simple young man in the bad part of town who gets seduced by a promiscuous woman. He ends up dead or as Proverbs graphically puts it "slaughtered like an ox". The sermon  was actually about life and death. At the beginning of Proverbs 7 the writer boldly proclaims "keep my commands and you will live". Completely audacious claim. I preached about adherence to the Word of God is an entry into life and will keep us from spiritual death. But, then I went on to discuss how the gospel has been weakened and cheapened in America. The gospel as preached in pulpits across America is basically a variation of this: Got a bad life? Accept Jesus. Have a better life. Got a troubled marriage? Accept Jesus. Get a better marriage. Job problems? Accept Jesus. He'll help you out. This is not the gospel. This is a crime. This is taking the greatest news in the world

I don't think I can recall when I first heard of Billy Graham or heard him speak. He was always in the background of my life growing up in a Christian home in Canada. Maybe it was watching a crusade on television. Here are some reflections on the man and his impact on my life.... When I was in high school, my church hosted a crusade by one of his associates, John Wesley White. I volunteered to be a counselor at the youth night of the event. I can't remember much except that the guy I prayed with to receive Christ called me the following week to tell me he got a new job and he felt his life was finally back on track. The next brush with the Billy Graham organization was when Franklin Graham held a crusade in my hometown of Saskatoon Saskatchewan. My mom was the prayer coordinator at that event and got to know many of the leaders with the Billy Graham association along with other pastors in the area. I was living in Vancouver Canada at the time so was not involved. This par

2017 will likely go down as one of the most “News filled” years in modern history. From the election of Trump to the exposure of systematic sexual harassment, the hits just kept coming. I am not a prophet or a fortune teller but I am guessing the following trends will continue to shape America: Continued exclusion of white high school educated men from economic advancement which will lead to more unfocused anger and frustration Rural to urban exodus will continue on pace Increased immigration, despite bans and walls - America actually does welcome a large number of immigrants and refugees every year and their influx will transform what it means to be an American As the social makeup continues to diversify this will lead to continued anger and fear about a future we can no longer predict Added to this, the church in America will continue its internal dialogue about what it means to be an evangelical. 2017 was the year where we realized that the Christianity practiced in many