Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Church Renewal Conference, Day 2

We had another great day yesterday. It was good to get insights from Leonard Sweet about what he called our "TGIF" world: Twitter, Google, iPhone, and Facebook. These were some very thought-provoking lectures.

Next year the conference will be on new monasticism, and the speakers will be Jonathan Wilson Hartgrove and Elaine Heath. Should be another good one.

Now to get reader for Walter Brueggemann, who will be here on May 11....

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Church Renewal Conference, Day 1

We had opening worship tonight at the Fort McKinley campus of Ginghamsburg Church, and it was awesome. The music was very fine, and Bishop Violet Fisher preached a great message on the work of the Holy Spirit for the renewal of the church.

The folks at Fort McKinley have done some amazing work in turning the church around. They have really invested themselves in the neighborhood around the church, and part of their doing so has been to convince people to eat at locally owned establishments. That was part of the program tonight, and two students, our admissions officer, and I ate at Maryann's Southern Kitchen on Salem Ave. It was like being transported to food heaven.

Looking forward to tomorrow....

Monday, March 21, 2011

World Down Syndrome Day


Today is World Down Syndrome Day. The date of 3/21 refers to the third copy of the twenty-first chromosome that causes Down Syndrome. People with Down Syndrome are often stereotyped in ways that devalue them as human beings. This is not a properly Christian approach, since from a Christian perspective a disability does not devalue or dehumanize any person. With today's early intervention techniques, moreover, there is no telling what people with Down Syndrome can accomplish. You can learn more about World Down Syndrome Day and how to support people with Down Syndrome by clicking here.

Sunday, March 13, 2011

Conference on Church Renewal: Light the Fire!

I don't believe that the decline of the church is God's will. I'm glad to say that I work for an institution that is taking seriously the need for church renewal in the U.S., Western Europe, and other places. This year on March 27th and 28th we're launching the first in what we plan to be an annual conference on renewal, the Light the Fire conference. Our keynote speaker will be Leonard Sweet. Bishop Violet Fisher will preach during our opening worship, which will be held at the Fort McKinley campus of Ginghamsburg Church. I hope you can join us for what I anticipate will be an outstanding event.

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

New Bible study for people with intellectual disabilities

Friendship Ministries is dedicated to ministry with people with intellectual disabilities. I recently reviewed a curriculum on the Psalms that they developed, and I think it is an excellent resource. It is very thorough and employs a variety of teaching methods to reach people across a spectrum of intellectual abilities and learning styles. To learn more about Friendship Ministries, visit http://www.friendship.org/.