• Nurturing the Souls of Royalty

    This past Sunday my friend and ministry coach, Troy Cady, visited our missional community to observe the work we do with friends without homes and to encourage our fledgling community in our work.  As part of the evening he shared one of his Playfull Faith stories about creation (learn more here) and the special place…

  • Finding the Right Fit

    “Then Saul gave David his own armor—a bronze helmet and a coat of mail. David put it on, strapped the sword over it, and took a step or two to see what it was like, for he had never worn such things before.‘I can’t go in these,’ he protested to Saul. ‘I’m not used to…

  • The Consistent Nature Of A Missional Vision

    I was recently sitting down with a friend discussing different aspects of the ministries we lead.  As we neared the end of the conversation he mentioned that Village Soul (the ministry I officially launched just over four years ago) had changed.  This struck me as a little odd because, from my perspective, my vision and…

  • Trusting The Only One Who Can Help In Times Like These

    Winter has arrived in central Indiana on a level people here haven’t experienced in twenty years.  The family and I enjoyed playing in the snow that kept falling through the day yesterday (nearly 12″ total).  Today we will hunker down in the house while the temperatures plummet to levels we haven’t seen since we left…

  • "What If"s" for 2014

    As I look ahead to what God has in store for 2014, I’m asking myself a lot of “What if?” questions about the future of our Diakonos Community (the missional community we are leading).  The answers give me a glimpse of what God can do through through our little, but growing community. What if we…

  • Why Last Night’s Heisman Trophy Award Bothers Me

    Last night the Downtown Athletic Club in New York City awarded it’s annual Heisman Trophy  for the most outstanding player in college football to Jameis Winston.  In this decision the Heisman Trophy reached a new low in selecting honorees. Up until a month ago, Mr Winston was facing the possibility of rape charges for an…

  • Every Time The Doors Are Open

    Growing up in and around traditional church in the 1980’s and 90’s I remember people talking about those who were at church every time the doors were open.  Our family probably fit that category at that time.  It was like a badge of honor we wore.  If there was something going on at the church…

  • Jesus and Bad Religion

    Last week, one of the students I work with at our local high school wore a t-shirt for the punk band Bad Religion to school.  I didn’t think much of it until one of the other staff members brought it to my attention.  The logo on this shirt featured a skeleton dressed in a nun’s…

  • Bi-Vocational or Co-Vocational?

    This past week, the Leadership Journal e-newsletter included an article with a new take on bi-vocational ministry or missions.  The majority of the article was about a friend of mine who planted a church in Minneapolis.  A key component of his strategy was to buy a coffee shop in the community he planned to plant the…

  • What Kind Of Friend?

    Lately I’ve been a short book titled The Cure by John Lynch, Bruce McNicol, and Bill Thrall.  Using a combination of story and prose, they build an interesting picture of how to live in grace versus a life of religious self-effort.  The authors use the image of two rooms to describe the choice we have in…

  • Out of the Mouth of a Child

    At our Diakonos Community Gathering last night, we were discussing the stories of Jesus’ encounters with Nicodemus (John 3) and the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4).  All of us grown-ups were trying to sound so sophisticated with our comments as we delved into the “mysteries of God.”  Elaina, our second child, sat quietly next to…

  • Two Sides of the Tracks

    In our Diakonos Community Gathering this Thursday night we’ll be continuing the first segment of the Journey to Jesus process developed by Robert E Webber.  This week we’ll be looking at Jesus’ encounter with two different people in John chapters 3 and 4. As I prepare for this discussion, I can’t help but notice how…