Happy Earth Day!

Today is Earth Day. It isn’t normally considered a Christian holiday.  But I think it should be. Unfortunately, I have some Christian friends who consider Earth Day as an anti-Christian holiday, because they lump anything from the environmental movement into the “anti-god and almost atheistic” category.  I have many Republican...

Continue reading

The Christian and Civil Disobedience

Twice in my recent sermon series (Basic Christian Growth, based on the Book of Acts) and once in my Christmas series (when we got to the Magi), I made a comment that raised some eyebrows.  I said, “If there is a conflict between the law of the land and the...

Continue reading

The Good News and Bad News About Abortion

The recent decision by the State of New York to pass an “abortion-until-birth” law has refueled our public abortion debate.  But rather than focus on the specifics of that abhorrent new law, perhaps this is a good time to back up and look at the bigger fight against abortion. There’s...

Continue reading

Public Respect

In a recent blog, I challenged President Trump to take the high road in his choice of language and to respect his opponents.  It’s only fair, especially in light of remarks of the last few days, that I call upon Democrats to do the same.  But as a pastor, my...

Continue reading

An Open Letter to President Trump

Dear Mr. President; One of the things I teach as a pastor, a father, a grandfather, and a volunteer basketball coach is that we need to respect our national leaders.  I believe that this is Biblical, moral, and a necessary ingredient of a healthy democracy.  As a result, I teach...

Continue reading

To Boycott. Or Not.

I have been besieged with requests to boycott the NFL.  And to buy burgers at In-N-Out.  (Except that other people have asked me to stop buying burgers there.)  I’ve been told that I need to support Chick-Fil-A, while others are offended if I do.  I’ve been told that I need...

Continue reading

Before I Vote for You . . .

Some find it easy to choose their candidate and make their vote.  I don’t. Maybe it’s because, as a Christian, I have unusually high expectations for leaders, and we aren’t always offered high quality candidates.  Maybe it’s because I’m disgusted with our two-party system, for I don’t identify completely with...

Continue reading

A Daughter’s Tribute

United States Senator John McCain passed away this weekend.  As a pastor who wants to focus on Jesus, I usually don’t say too much about politics and politicians.  Nevertheless, I was deeply moved when I heard the news.  I didn’t agree with him on all things, but I deeply respected...

Continue reading

Public Behavior

Many celebrities, politicians, athletes, and social media users seem to be having trouble determining what is right or wrong.  (Or they just don’t care.)  As a result, we are seeing an abundance of racist tweets, name-calling on Facebook, and putdowns in speeches and interviews.  These remarks are widely condemned and...

Continue reading