This post is not likely to make me many friends in United Methodism. But here goes:  the current mantra in UMC circles of “clergy self-care” has moved from concern to caricature to idol. Over the last couple of years in my Annual Conference, we have heard lectures, been given books, received mailings, and taken part Read the full article…

What other kind of list could I possibly compile for Valentine’s Day? And no, “Feel Like Makin’ Love” didn’t make the cut.  Nor did “Whole Lotta Love.”  Or even “Love Gun.”  To make the list, a song has to have at least a little subtlety as well as the recognition that love itself involves a Read the full article…

Oh, what fun it was to deliver this message. I had the multi-faceted privileged of . . . Digging deep into Romans 5:1-5; Showing a clip from a pro tennis match I won in 1984 (yes!); Letting people know that “Jaws” is not a good date movie; Leading a demonstration with a batter, waffle iron, Read the full article…

The Path Of Most Resistance  The heaviest weight. The hardest class. The highest mountain. Those difficult challenges are the ones that make us and mature us.  The greater the resistance, the stronger the result. And it’s the same with what we call a living relationship with Jesus Christ.  Even though most of us would like Read the full article…

A lot of you know that I spent they years 1990-1999 pastoring in Monroe, North Carolina, a medium-sized town about 30 miles south and east of Charlotte.  As is typical of United Methodist pastors, I served two churches at the same time (called a two-point charge):  Mt. Carmel was the larger church, where I preached Read the full article…