I remember distinctly the day I fell out of love with contemporary worship music. It was during my first year of university. While always a Christian, my faith grew in passion and energy through the Vineyard explosion of the 90’s. This deepening of my faith coupled with my learning to play the guitar. Almost instantaneously … More The day I fell out of love with contemporary praise music (again)
When one loves to read, write, or ponder, the nature of the church, it can be tempting to remain rooted in one’s own cultural or denominational context. This would be a mistake. The church is not simply the church as it exists in Canada. Thus, ever since I found my affinity ecclesiological works, I have … More A prophetic push: A review of Conrad Mbewe’s book “God’s design for the Church.”
I never believed I would be someone who would enjoy reading books on ecclesiology. Reading about the nature of the church never once appealed to me as a viable good time option. Yet here I am, reading books on the nature of the church, and loving it! The latest addition to my reading was Megan … More Beloved but Messy: A Review of Megan Hill’s “A Place to Belong.”
This post first appeared in “Ministry Matters” under the title: “Discernment: it’s not just pointing at random verses” on Medium.com Whenever we aspire to live the Christian life with any intentionality, an inevitable question arises. How do I know what God wants me to do? How do I know I am making the right decisions? … More The Way of Discernment
A few months ago, I wrote a blog entitled “When Words Speak”, which detailed five books that helped inform my faith. It was a pleasure to go through my library and note the books to which I continually return. The spiritual lessons I gleaned from their pages have largely shaped the outward expression of my … More Take up and Read: Exploring Spiritual Reading
The Desert Fathers and Mothers have been a continuous wealth of spiritual knowledge and insight, their teachings passed down in various volumes and compendiums. One lesson has been particularly popularized. As the story goes; a monastic brother went to Abba Moses and asked for a word of advice regarding the cultivation of a robust spiritual … More Away and Towards: Cultivating Solitude in a time of Isolation
This article first appeared as an article for The Anglican Church of Canada at https://medium.com/ministrymatters/discovering-lament-why-crying-out-to-god-may-be-good-for-our-souls-23cf60ccfe3a. While out for a walk with my family the other day, we came across another family, also out for a stroll. Mom and Dad were following their two small daughters, each on bright pink bikes with streamers. As we approached … More Lamentations: Recovering a forgotten discipline.
We know David to be hero of the Old Testament. He is the man noted to be “after God’s own heart” (1st Samuel 13:14); he slew Goliath when everyone else was too scared to enter the battle field (1st Samuel 17); he grew to be a mighty warrior, a successful king, a consummate leader. To … More Hubris and Humility, When I get too big for my britches.
Do you think Jesus feels invisible in today’s churches, like a guest at a party with whom no one chooses to converse? I mean, sure he was invited. We acknowledge his presence as a point of doctrine. We may even state that the gathering is held in his honor. However, is that where it ends? … More Bonhoeffer, Statistics, and the True Focus of the Church.
Last week was the General Synod of the Anglican Church of Canada. It is the church that I have belonged to since as long as I can remember. It is the church that I was ordained in 16 years ago, and it is the church that I love. For a good several months, however, I … More An appeal for Church unity with reflections from the Parable of the Good Samaritan: My response to General Synod.
