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May 16, 2013

Nine (or 10) Keys for Transitioning from Traditional to Missional

Bob Robinson

Many church leaders are seeking to understand how to move existing churches toward a missional direction.  Brad Brisco of the Missional Church Network offers nine elements that he believes need to be considered when making a missional shift. Here they are (with excerpts from each). After this list, I have a suggestion for an additional major...

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May 9, 2013

Six Ideas on How to Lead Congregations to Integrate Work and Discipleship

Michael Kruse

“How can we create a congregation where work and discipleship are truly integrated?” This is a question I am hearing more often, even though much has been written about a theology of work in recent years. Pastors and church leaders are looking for a programmatic strategy. I don’t think there is one. Programs can be an effective response to...

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May 9, 2013

Scars and Roses

by Sharifa Stevens
The High Calling

This Mother’s Day, I long for my grandmother’s Ponds-scented soft skin, Jamaican-lilting voice, and treasured hands clasped in prayer morning, noon, and night. She’s gone—died almost 16 years ago, taken in a whirlwind of unconsciousness and impotent medical interventions. Grandma lived with my parents and me for many years. I observed her daily, on...

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May 7, 2013

Community Post: Chronic Pain and the Weak Optimist

Anne Lang Bundy

This optimist occupies a human body that just three years ago felt like 25, which has since then taken a…(ahem) "buffeting" [trying not to roll my eyes here]. The optimist makes jokes and laughs about the warranty running out when you turn 50.  Then I stop laughing and look for something deeper. I look for the strength found not in a 25-year old body,...

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May 5, 2013

Community Post: The One Thing that Silences Heaven

Diana Trautwein

There are dangerous things going on when we pray, my friends.
Dangerous, wondrous, life-changing things.
The ways of the world are upset, the dynamic, ever-fluid partnership that God Almighty has established with the people of God is alive and well and making a difference.

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May 2, 2013

Letting Gravity Do Its Work: Shalom and Ought-Is-Can-Will

by Michael Metzger
The High Calling

“Houston, we’ve had a problem.” Over 200,000 miles from Earth, one of Odyssey’s oxygen tanks had exploded, making Apollo 13’s lunar landing impossible. Returning home required nudging Odyssey into the gravitational pull of the Moon—to slingshot the craft around the Moon and back home. A similar maneuver might help faith communities in one of the biggest...

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May 1, 2013

The North Wind and the Sun

The High Calling

An ancient storyteller named Aesop told a fable about the north wind and the sun. It opens with a challenge about a traveler's cloak. The north wind bets the sun that he can get that cloak off the traveler.

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Apr 25, 2013

Calling vs. Occupation: Six Helpful Ideas to Help You in a Difficult Job

Bob Robinson

So, it’s another Monday, and as you hit the snooze button for the second time, you find it hard to get out of bed again to go to an occupation that you find mundane and a waste of your gifts and talents. In this economy, it’s all you could get, and you need to put food on the table (let alone pay for health insurance and pay off the school loan!). You...

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Apr 24, 2013

Vocation as Parish: The Missional Possibilities of Inhabiting Your Workplace

Andy Campbell

When I hear someone talk about being more “missional” or “incarnational” in my faith, I wonder where I’m supposed get all that time to hang out with people and build relationships with my neighbors. I don’t have a job that is ministry related, affording me the flexibility to hang out in coffee shops or on my neighbor’s porch. I spend nearly half my...

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Apr 18, 2013

The Work of an Illness

Dena Dyer

“Of course, you’ll want to ask me about complications,” Dr. Ellis said. “We have almost none from the procedures done by our doctors—and we have a 99 percent success rate with this type of surgery.” I nodded, my mouth dry. Neck surgery? I wasn’t sure I was on board. Still, this surgeon was one of the best in the country, and God had gotten me in to...

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Daily Reflection From Laity Lodge

A Psalm for Leaders

The prologue to Psalm 45 identifies it as "A love song to be sung to the tune 'Lilies.' " The text of the psalm lavishly praises the human king of Israel and his royal bride on the occasion of their... Read More +