During nearly 50 years of ministry, I have been called to pastor churches that had experienced major conflict prior to my appointment as pastor. I was asked to lead these congregations through the process of healing. I’ve learned a lot. If you’ve been around church for a while, you’ve probably seen conflict emerge, often with… Continue reading RESOLVING CHURCH CONFLICT
Author: Cal
BUSYNESS
Many people end up living like Tattoo, the young basset hound in Tacoma, Washington. Newspaper reports indicate Tattoo didn’t intend to go for a run, but when his owner shut the leash in the car door and drove off with Tattoo still outside the vehicle, Tattoo had no choice. When an officer noticed the vehicle… Continue reading BUSYNESS
UNFAIRNESS
The story ran in the New York Daily News under the headline: “Think You Got it Bad? Meet Luckless Larry.” Larry is a man who has reason to think life is unfair. A news article said, “Jolted, jilted, hammered in a car crash and robbed, Lawrence Hanratty was named the unluckiest man in New York.… Continue reading UNFAIRNESS
THE SEARCH FOR FORGIVENESS
A woman sat in my office and told me her tragic story. She had had an abortion. Though it had happened years earlier, she was still plagued by feelings of regret and remorse. She lived with convicting guilt. She couldn’t get rid of the feeling that she had done something terribly wrong. Guilt dominated her… Continue reading THE SEARCH FOR FORGIVENESS
FACING THE UNKNOWN
Who knows what a day or a year will bring? Think back over the past 12 months. Many things happened that you had no idea would occur when the year began. Life happens. You never know what a day will bring. If we knew what would happen to the stock market during the next year,… Continue reading FACING THE UNKNOWN
HOW DO YOU SEE JESUS’ RESURRECTION?
There’s a big difference between Good Friday and Easter Sunday. On Friday, you see hatred, anger and belligerence; on Sunday, you see love, glory and victory. On Friday, you see what sinful men think of Jesus; on Sunday, you see what God thinks of Jesus. On Easter, we rejoice in the words of the angel:… Continue reading HOW DO YOU SEE JESUS’ RESURRECTION?
PREACHING TO BEAT BOREDOM
I once had to give a missionary presentation to a thousand youth on a Sunday afternoon in the heat and humidity of the summer. I knew I would have difficulty engaging the youth. When I stood up to speak, the crowd was already tired and restless. It was going to be next to impossible to… Continue reading PREACHING TO BEAT BOREDOM
GREED: America’s Subtle and Seductive Sin
America’s No. 1 growth industry is health care. This is not due to deadly epidemics, environmental meltdown or massive public disease. It’s due to greed. It has given birth to the saying, “When health and profit meet and clash, never bet against the cash.” Greed is universal. Unrestrained, excessive greed is the biggest spiritual issue… Continue reading GREED: America’s Subtle and Seductive Sin
CRITICAL QUESTIONS 4: Which Way To God?
This article concludes the series on four critical questions. i. ”What’s worthwhile?” is about values. ii. “What’s Right? What’s Wrong?” is about ethics. iii. “Who is calling the shots?” deals with authority. iv. “Which Way to God?” deals with pluralism. Recently, Fumiko, a young Japanese-American, walked along the California shoreline. She had just treated her… Continue reading CRITICAL QUESTIONS 4: Which Way To God?
CRITICAL QUESTIONS 3: Who’s Calling the Shots?
The other night I watched the Miami Heat basketball team. It was a close game and in the final minutes, the coach called a time-out to plan the strategy for the last few seconds of the game. As the players gathered around the coach, the players didn’t talk. No player said what he wanted to… Continue reading CRITICAL QUESTIONS 3: Who’s Calling the Shots?