Phil Steiger
If you are not looking for it, you will miss the news that one of the West’s oldest Protestant denominations is on the verge of a schism. A council of Bishops in the United Methodist Church proposed a resolution that will be voted on later in 2020 aimed at separation. If the vote passes, which... Continue Reading →
The pulpit is a clarifying moment for me. The week is full of schedules, conflicts, personalities, requests, expectations, successes, failures, budgets, attendance records, politics…you get the idea. Preparing for standing behind the pulpit is a regular exercise of focusing everything through the lens of God’s Word and truth. But don’t get me wrong – I... Continue Reading →
I worry sometimes about the lack of intellectual and moral leadership from behind the pulpit. I’m not necessarily pining for days of former glory when sermons were published in the local newspaper; I worry for the present and our near future. The people in our pews live in a high-speed hyper-information age where ideas come... Continue Reading →
If you spend a fair amount of time reading books and articles on the state of the local, evangelical church, you might come away with some pretty negative perceptions. Pastors who read a lot of this kind of stuff can also come away with the sense that if they are not trying to accomplish a... Continue Reading →
Karl Vaters has written a wonderful, almost poetic, reflection on the resilient power of small churches. I have spent a lot of time recently thinking about the importance of what are called “mediating institutions” in our culture, and what he says rings true. A mediating institution is a social organization that stands between... Continue Reading →
It was a roller-coaster week. Early in the week I received a letter from a former member of the church who left under difficult circumstances. The letter could have been anything. It happened to be a magnificent example of an honest and reconciling heart and it is precious to me. The next day our church... Continue Reading →
Recently we learned about a crackdown in China in which more than 100 members and leaders of a church in Chengdu were detained. The pastor, Wang Yi, and his wife were charged with incitement to subvert the state and face real prison time. As it happens, Pastor Wang Yi prepared for this, and he... Continue Reading →
With the news that Eugene Peterson has entered hospice, I wanted to take some time to reflect on what his writing has meant to me and see if you have any thoughts yourself. I only heard him speak once in person. Heather and I were at a conference on spiritual formation and will always... Continue Reading →
A long-term member of our church approached me just before service this week with a serious look on his face. Every pastor has had that moment. Service is about to begin, what is this about? He has never done this before, so I honestly didn’t have a sense of what was on his mind. ... Continue Reading →
Just a few days ago I had a fascinating day demographically. That’s an awkward sentence, so here is what happened. I had the privilege of doing the early morning devotional for a men’s residential rehab program. It is a ministry attached to a local organization that works with the homeless community, but this group of... Continue Reading →
Every Thought Captive 