Category: Church
On Taking Small Children to Church
Regular church attendance is probably not convenient for anyone. Consistent and whole-hearted participation in the divine liturgy, an active work of service and attentiveness to God and others, a demanding labor beyond passive observation as an audience, is not something...
Colonized by the City
We planted a church in Boulder under no illusions regarding its warranted reputation as one of the most left wing cities in our nation. It is no secret that Boulder is a bastion of progressivism and regularly listed as one...
Modern, Yet Faithful: Lessons from Herman Bavinck
Herman Bavinck was the son of a conservative Reformed preacher, born in 1854 in a relatively small town (Hoogeveen) in a small, low-lands country (the Netherlands).
Toward a Renewed Public Protestantism: The Beginnings of a Manifesto
In his book Bad Religion, Ross Douthat suggests that the 1950s were the high water mark for Christianity in America. Amongst other things, church attendance was at its peak and each of America’s four defining ecclesial traditions were relatively strong....
The Case for Pew Bibles
Do pew Bibles matter? Churches of all styles have had to ask this question in recent years. The increase of church plants using secular spaces for worship means that church planters must contemplate the extra weight, hassle, and expense of...
Epiphany: How an Enchanted World Drew Outsiders to God
A number of years ago, a wise parent shared with me an insight for which I have been repeatedly grateful: One reason God gives us children is so that we adults can [re]discover nature. This has proven true on numerous...
Stream Off
Let me tell you the story of a church. Not a megachurch, but not small either. Across two services on a given Sunday, 400-600 folks in the pews. Nothing fancy about the church. You’ve never heard of it. But a...
Vocational Singleness is a Gospel Cornerstone
Having begun the work of bringing his kingdom on earth, Christ promised to redeem all of creation. He promised fullness of life to those who would follow him and blessing to their neighbors. Yet many believers offer timid testimonies about...
My AI Spiritual Director
After years working as a doctor in a hospital, a friend shared the most frustrating part of her job: patients whose online, amateur medical research weighs more heavily in their decision making than her professional opinion. She ended with a...
The Hollowness of the Mainline, Now and Then
Douglas J. Brouwer Chasing After Wind: A Pastor’s Life. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2022. 238 pp. $22.00 It’s no secret that Western Christianity is in decline. And this is nowhere more evident than in the once venerable churches of the mainline....