Reading Posts

Christian Nationalism

One of the biggest frustrations I hear from people about the institutional church is its embrace of Christian nationalism. This can play out in a variety of ways: the overwhelming endorsement of Trump, the need to fight culture wars, the emphasis on abortion laws, the celebration of America’s military, the willingness to justify almost any means for the sake of the end goal, etc.

Some pastors have found ways to grow their church using this idealogy, some pastors try to quietly distance themselves from it, and some pastors are trying to speak against it.

This week my dad shared with me a document he wrote for a pastor’s gathering he was recently a part of. He picked the topic of Christian Nationalism to address. I was incredibly encouraged that he was willing to even dive into this topic and acknowledge the concern over it. In hopes that it might also offer you a note of encouragement, I asked him if I could share what he wrote.

He began by asking them to consider their answers to the following questions.

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Opportunities to Grow

I volunteered to coach one of my son’s baseball teams this season. This was after they had extra kids show up for tryouts and realized they needed more coaches and more teams. That meant I came late to the party and drafted kids I hadn’t even seen try out. Most of our kids didn’t know each other before joining the team and I’ve had to learn their personalities as well as what they are good at when it comes to baseball.

In addition, we play most of our games against club teams who have been together previously and usually have lots of resources committed to their team and their players. When we’re practicing on the weekends they are often playing in tournaments. And this has meant that in most of our games—despite how admirably our kids show up—we get pounded on.

This has surprisingly been one of the best things for my personal growth.

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2022 Reading List – 3/4

2022 Reading List – 3/4

The weather is finally cooling down! Fall is in the air!

Sorry, but I really like this time of year. The holidays are upon us and those of us who live in Arizona can go back outside. Here’s a check-in on my reading list so far this year. My goal is one hundred books and I’m currently not on pace to hit that so we’ll see how the next few months go.

Here are the books I’ve read since January of 2022 with my rating for them (5 being the best) along with a brief review. Any book without a number rating has been given to me by the author or publisher.

Click on any of the titles below to get a link to buy it.

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Celebrities for Jesus

Celebrities for Jesus

I heard much fanfare about Katelyn Beaty’s recent book—Celebrities for Jesus—and was excited to dive in for myself. It is even better than I anticipated.

Beaty has worked as a journalist for Christianity Today as well as in the Christian publishing world and has a unique vantage point on how Christian celebrities operate. In many ways, this book would be great as a “deconstruction” resource. She observes (as do many Christians in the deconstructing community), that “Institutions are too often platforms for self-expression rather than arenas of deep moral formation.” This is why a book like this is timely and practically helpful. She strikes a fair balance of criticism of modern Christianity and its leaders coupled with hope for how things can be better.

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What Does the Future of the Church Look Like?

I had the opportunity to do some consulting work with a church recently. I spent a day with some of their team and much of the conversation was about how they can be more intentional in reaching people who do not already consider themselves a Christian or have a connection with Jesus. I shared some of the things I’ve been learning through my experiences with Communion Wine Co and The Forest and the Trees podcast.

One of the worship leaders asked me an interesting question. Do we ever have worship at our Communion events? I said we hadn’t, but it was something we’d considered. Since then, I’ve found myself thinking about that question and wondering about the essential elements of church or christian community.

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I (Finally!) Started a Podcast

I (Finally!) Started a Podcast

I’ve considered doing a podcast for years but none of the ideas I entertained ever caused me to pull the trigger. That is until my friend Jef recently pitched me an idea. He grew up in the church and has since decided he no longer believes it anymore and no longer considers himself a Christian. But he’s still intrigued by the faith he grew up with.

His premise was for us to start a podcast together to… wait for it… read the Bible. What would the conversation look like if a skeptic and a pastor read the Bible together? The answer is our new podcast: The Forest and the Trees.

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