Category Archives: Ministry Musings

Having just completed a three-part series on evangelism, Ministry Musings is on a temporary hold.  In the meantime, I’ll return to the “Gleanings” category and post quotations I believe you’ll find helpful.

Before we leave our brief consideration of conversational evangelism, I want to be sure to emphasize that sometimes our “conversation” is an action—an act of compassion and/or service.  An act of love. A lot of people think that religion in … Continue reading →

Today, I want to tell you about Denny.  He picked me up at the airport, with the assignment to take me to a meeting his parents were in charge of.  He was a student at The University of Michigan, and … Continue reading →

Most people hear the word “evangelism,” and their blood runs cold.  We associate witnessing with speaking in public for the first time before a crowd of thousands. “No thank you.” But….it doesn’t have to be that way.  There is a … Continue reading →

We conclude our brief look at what most consider to be the earliest creed in Christianity: “Jesus is Lord.”  We’ve acknowledged that it contains personal transformation, religious scandal, and cultural subversion. Today, we add the element of ecclesial creation. In … Continue reading →

We’re continuing our exploration of the phrase “Jesus is Lord.”  We have previously looked at it as personal transformation and religious scandal. Today, we view it in relation to cultural subversion. The only charge that the Jews could bring against … Continue reading →

We’re continuing our exploration of the phrase, “Jesus is Lord.”  Last week, we viewed it as a personal transformation. This week, we see it as a religious scandal. It was an immediate scandal to the Jews who would have heard … Continue reading →

I preached recently in our seminary chapel, and I want to spend a few weeks sharing some of what I said on that occasion.  We are using The Apostles’ Creed as a basis for our worship this Spring, and my … Continue reading →

The church in Antioch was deep and wide, exhibiting a communal identity, a laity foundation, and a social unity. It also (fourthly) had a worshipful center. The late Archbishop of Canterbury, William Temple, wrote that worship is the central act … Continue reading →

In addition to a communal identity, the church at Antioch had (secondly) a laity foundation.  I’m not speaking of the spiritual foundation, but rather of the institutional one.  We read in Acts 8:1 that when the persecution of believers broke … Continue reading →

A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of co-preaching a revival at the First United Methodist Church in Lakeland, Florida.  Dr. Robert Tuttle was my partner in this venture.  The senior pastor is a long-time friend and his executive … Continue reading →

We come to the final dimension of clear vision: things that are not known to us or to others.  We might refer to them as things which happen “unexpectedly”—-”out of the blue,” etc.  They may be censures or leadings.  They … Continue reading →

In this final installment of material which I recently delivered on campus, I turn to what I have come to call “locational discipleship.” It simply means that we exercise our mission in a consciously identified territory—what used to be referred … Continue reading →

Last week, we saw the transformation when we put our names on the list of those who have given themselves to Christ in the same way that the original apostles did. We enter into the world of vocational discipleship. About … Continue reading →

One evening in my first pastorate I asked a small group to name the apostles.  In short order we had done so.  Then I said, “Okay, that’s good.  Now, name the apostles.” There were a few odd stares, but they … Continue reading →

For the next few weeks, I want to invite you to join me in reflecting on a recent ministry event that I conducted at our 2012 Kingdom Encounter at the seminary.  It was a seminar entitled, “Jesus on Mainstreet: Moving … Continue reading →

There’s much more to be said about meditative rayer.  But I’ll bring our reflections to a close with this, so that I can move  on to tell you about other ministry engagements I’ve been having recently.  I’d encourage you to … Continue reading →

We do not incline our hearts to God without having an intention in mind.  So, our working definition of meditative prayer at the Canterbury retreat said, “Meditative prayer is inclining our hearts to the Lord, with the intention of enacting … Continue reading →

At the Canterbury retreat on Meditative Prayer, we established our working definition of it, based upon Richard Foster’s book, Sanctuary of the Soul—”meditative prayer is inclining our heart unto the Lord, with the intention of enacting what we hear, so … Continue reading →

I had the privilege of joining with 27 others this past Monday at Canterbury Retreat Center in Oviedo to explore meditative prayer, using Richard Foster’s latest book, Sanctuary of the Soul, as our focal text for conversation and reflection. In … Continue reading →

Each Thursday I will post reflections on actual ministries I have recently been involved in.  The post is for those who I have met at these ministry engagements, so that we can continue our reflection about experiences we have shared … Continue reading →