From Essentialism, by Greg McKeown: The word priority came into the English language in the 1400s. It was singular. It meant the very first or prior thing. It stayed this way for the next 500 years. Only in the 1900s did we pluralize the term and start talking about priorities. Illogically, we reasoned that by…
Month: April 2021
What Churchgoers Miss About In-Person Worship
This data was compiled during the COVID-19 closures in 2020. However, it is interesting to see how generations differ in what they missed and what they value in the corporate worship experience. What did you (or do you) miss most by not gathering in person for worship?
NEXT: What Are You Concerned About?
Jesus’ third post resurrection statement was made during his interaction with two pilgrims on the road to Emmaus. You can find the story in Luke 24:13-35. The narrative describes two disciples who had observed all of the events in Jerusalem during the first passion week. While on the journey home, they were joined by a…
How Church Goers Feel After Worship
Barna Research released a study this week which assessed how church goers feel after attending worship. These emotions range from feeling encouraged, disappointed, connected and more. To read the research you can use the following link: https://www.barna.com/research/churchgoers-feel/. The surprising statistic from this research is the level of disappointment people feel following worship attendance. A full…
The Goal of Faith is Clarity
“The opposite of faith is not doubt. The opposite of faith is certainty.” — Paul Tillich For many years I equated faith with certainty, a kind of “know so” posture that could rest in having all the answers. I began with certainties about who God is and my eternal destination in heaven. From those two…
NEXT: Don’t Be Afraid
The second post resurrection saying of Jesus cuts straight to the heart of where many of us live regularly. Check this out: Early on Sunday morning, as the new day was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went out to visit the tomb. Suddenly there was a great earthquake! For an angel of the…
The Out of Ur Podcast
This week’s progress on the forthcoming Out of Ur Podcast included the completion of the artwork, thanks to the gifting and talent of my daughter Shannon. My original goal was to be ready to upload episodes by March, but I didn’t realize all of the work that was involved in setting up the infrastructure. So…
The 7 NEXT Sayings of Jesus
Last week we celebrated Easter, and I wanted to follow its observance with a series of posts titled, The 7 NEXT Sayings of Jesus. Many are familiar with the seven last sayings of Jesus uttered on the cross. But I wanted to focus on the first post resurrection comments from Christ because I felt they were…
I’m Spiritual, But Not Religious
Over the past several months I’ve enjoyed many conversations with irreligious people about faith. In my encounters I’ve heard one recurring theme over and over–“I’m spiritual, but not religious.” One person, when I pressed for further understanding, quipped, “Religion is sitting in church thinking about fishing. Spirituality is going fishing and thinking about God.” Without…
The New Gallup Poll on the Decline of U.S. Church Membership
In a recent poll released by Gallup, American church membership has declined to below 50% of the population. The study cites that in 2020, only 47% of U.S. adults belong to a church, synagogue, or mosque. That’s a 20 point reduction since the turn of the century (1999). The survey states the following reasons for…