Long Illusions God’s miracles are all around us By Sarah Robbins Sometimes it takes too long to be able to see what’s going on. I am an impatient person. Having something block my vision or distort what is really going on always feels like a big waste of time to me. I get annoyed…. Read more »
March 22, 2017
Unglued Church
Long Illusions God’s miracles are all around us By Sarah Robbins Sometimes it takes too long to be able to see what’s going on. I am an impatient person. Having something block my vision or distort what is really going on always feels like a big waste of time to me. I get annoyed…. Read more »
Learning to let go Embracing what we cannot see By Sarah Robbins “You really should just go ahead and embrace it.” When something new is happening in our life, like a change in job or relationship, people will often offer this perspective. When we are in pain or in grief or a little of… 
Mind the Gap Closing the space between our values and actions By Susan Rothenberg When my son and I visited London for the first time a few years ago, he was completely fascinated by the London Underground. For weeks prior to our trip, he researched stations, lines, and pretty much had the whole system… 
Lectionary passages and local politics Writing with a not-so-colonized mind By Antonio “Tony” Aja Theologian Karl Barth is quoted as saying that preachers need to have the Bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other. Of course, the reason is that we need to be attentive to what is happening in our communities and… 
When saying what’s true isn’t enough Faithfully moving forward By Sarah Robbins It’s not enough to say what’s true. Every night before our 11 month old goes to bed, my husband and I tell him what’s true. We list like a litany all the people and categories of folks who love him and pray… 
Help! Our pastor is leaving! Effective transitional (interim) ministry By James E. Roghair “We can’t waste any time! Everything will fall apart.” When a pastor leaves a church, the inclination of the congregation is to take off on a mad dash down one of two paths. It might rush to replace the pastor with… 
Let’s begin, again Rituals encourage us to dig deep By Rev. Sarah Robbins I am a creature of habit. I love ritual and routine and the opportunity to experience something again and again. I feel like it helps me to dig deep and truly envelop myself in what someone has written, or created or… 
Indulgent practices Have we inadvertently resurrected an old tradition? By Mark Roth As I began to write this entry, we had just celebrated Reformation Sunday, which commemorates Martin Luther’s posting of his 95 theses in Wittenberg, Germany, in October 1517. So, confession time. I grew up Lutheran, but had never read through the theses, despite all… 
What should we do with critics? Lead them! David R. Collins There’s been a great deal of ink spilled on how leaders should handle critics. Depending on the book or blog that you read, you can find advice that ranges from loving them into friends, to freezing them out, to burying them. I hear this… 
Barriers Things that stand in the way of change By Sarah Robbins We are our own worst enemy. When it comes to creating and maintaining change in the church we work against ourselves time and time again. We pile up all the reasons that our hands feel tied: it’s not the right time, we don’t…