The World's Okayest Pastor

With the election of 45 as the leader of the free world, there has been a resurgence of pro-life. With plans to reform the Affordable Care Act (ACA or more properly known as Obamacare) and the state of Iowa attempting to reform Medicaid, folks have been rallying to cut funding from healthcare providers that offer full women's health services, including abortions. Planned Parenthood has been the main target of these rallies, despite the fact that no federal or state funds can be used to pay for abortion services. But I digress from the point of this blog. There has been a call for folks to rally around being Pro-Life in the political sphere. What I find interesting and puzzling at the same time, is that the same people who insist that life starts at the moment of conception and all babies must be born, despite who they were created or if they're wanted also argue that we need to cut funding for social programs that include but are not limited too: Head Start, senior meal progr...

Scripture readings are Acts 4:32-35 and  1 John 1: 1-2:2           So what do you hear or think about when we look at these scripture readings? Usually with the Acts reading, people think of Communism, not the China/North Korea version of it. But true, real communism, where everyone is taken care of and has what they need. Most folks don’t react very well with this concept today, especially in Western society because we've all earned what we have and if you don’t have what you need then you’re not trying hard enough. Let’s face it we've all had those thoughts running through our heads when we see someone asking for change or when you get in a line behind someone who’s using WIC to buy milk, juice, formula and other basic items and the cashier has no idea how to ring it up in the computer system so you have to wait a few minutes longer. Isn't it interesting how fast we jump to assume that these people have...

Every week, I join pastors around the world, in thinking about the words that will come out of my mouth Sunday morning from the pulpit. I take preaching seriously because, in theory, I stand in a position of authority as pastor. I'm suppose to have learned about this stuff and have spent the week studying, praying and reflecting on scripture and the events of the world. I'm called to challenge, to teach, to encourage, to even scold at times. Here's the thing; when I get up to preach in most of the settings I've been in, I can see what people are doing in the pews. Generally I'm higher up then the people in the pews. I can see the kids who are being kids and drawing pictures on the bulletins or taking a nap because let's face it being 3 is hard work. I can see who has their phone out and is not reading an e-bible because I can see (and occasionally you forget to turn your sound off and/or you forget where you are and you get excited) that you're either usin...

Below is a link to a Buzzfeed article written by one of my classmates from my undergrad school. Here's my take on what I remember during my 4 years there (2000-2004): - Confederate flags hung from dorm room windows. People had it as bumper stickers, wore it on shirts, etc. - Jefferson Davis and Henry Clay have several connections to the school, both have male dorms named after them. - Old South Week (part of the KA - Kappa Alpha - fraternity traditions) happened every year I was there. - I saw men wearing Confederate solider uniforms and women wearing their finest hoop skirts walk across the campus to attend a ball. - Every year on at the beginning of Old South Week, around midnight, the KA's lined up across from the women's main dorm, Forrer Hall, and sang their songs, one of which was "Dixie" at the top of their lungs. Every year, I watched the stupidity of the drunken brothers (not all were drunk but a good portion were) sing and chant until campus securit...

As a pastor, I get asked a lot of questions about a lot of things. Often times, folks ask me questions that I can't answer. It's not that I don't want to or that I don't have my personal opinions. It's that there are just some things that I can't give an answer too. It's those universal questions - why me, why did this happen, why now, why? I wish I could provide answers for folks because usually by the time someone comes to me asking these questions they're in a place of deep searching - a yearning for answers. Often times these questions are triggered by a major life event: divorce or break up of a significant relationship, death, major illness, violence, just to name a few. Please know that I ask these questions right along with you too. While I believe that God is in these situations, that doesn't mean I'm not hurt, upset, bothered, angered by these things. The latest funeral I performed was for a sweet member of my church. While they had hea...