Ministry

The United Methodist Reporter featured a blog post by Scott Fritzsche entitled "Breaking up is hard to do (Let's Admit it is time)."  The title aptly sums the essence of the post.  I would politely contend though that he is wrong.  Breaking up is obviously an option, but it is not the only option.  While it may be the most expedient possibility, there are other possibilities … [Read more...] about Messiness

Folks on Twitter today are disappointed that the bishops of the UMC did not come up with a plan to save the UMC.  For faithful people who care deeply about Jesus and the church, this seems a bit weird.  We have a savior and the bishops are not Jesus.  Why should the bishops be the ones to save the church? Salvation in the Bible takes time.  God did not immediately free the … [Read more...] about Living in Tension

In Andy Stanley's last leadership podcast, Andy raised the issue of conflicts vs tensions.  Conflicts and tensions are often conflated with each other.  Conflicts are situations that can and need to be resolved.  Tensions are situations that need to be lived with.  Stanley contends that tension can be healthy in the life of an organization.  He gives three questions to be used … [Read more...] about Tension

With a group of United Methodist pastors saying that differences in the church cannot be reconciled, I think it needs to be said that not all differences need to be reconciled.  Difference and dissension can be good things.  They can lead to truth. I have been reading David Halberstam's The Best and the Brightest.  As I read Halberstam's understanding of how the United … [Read more...] about The Need for Disagreement