Prior to becoming an ordained minister, I worked as a parish nurse, counselor, and volunteer in churches developing faith and health ministries. For 32 years before and after seminary I worked as a psychiatric nurse therapist and a forensic nurse specializing in helping trauma victims. Now as a science and theology doctoral-prepared minister, my ability…
Category: Ministry
When Faith Gets Political
Years ago, I was serving as a short-term supply pastor for a very small congregation in rural Virginia. My third Sunday there fell on the Martin Luther King Jr. weekend, so I decided to weave a couple of sentences from Dr. King’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech into my sermon. It seemed appropriate, especially…
What a Church Planter Needs
This morning I had breakfast with a church-planter. Starting a new worshiping community is a different beast from pastoring an established congregation. To quote The Wizard of Oz, “Now that’s a horse of a different color.” “There has been vocational confusion, dark times,” my church-planting friend told me, now four years into this endeavor….