A lot of you know this already, but I'll repeat it again: I love the Steele Creek section of Charlotte. We've lived in the same house since our arrival at Good Shepherd in 1999, and I like almost everything about this unique corner of our region.Yet I have...
Sometimes, all you have to do is read the bible publicly and people will laugh.That's what happened yesterday.Most of the erotic imagery within The Song Of Songs is so alien to the landscape of our lives that it strikes our modern eyes and ears as a bit . . . ....
Here's the big question about this Sunday's second episode of Love Song, a worship gathering we are calling "Still The One":Are we talking about the Orleans version from the 70s? Or the more recent vintage by Shania Twain?There's only one way to find...
Without much fanfare, Good Shepherd opened a new campus this week.Only it's not at all what you think, all you multi-site church aficianados.It's a campus lodged in the middle of a mobile home community.See, we've wanted to take seriously our mandate to invite all...
The Gospels of Luke and John are both clear in declaring their purpose.Luke thesis statement comes at the very beginning:Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled[a] among us, 2 just as they were handed down to us by those...
We Methodists have an odd phase: "a heart strangely warmed."It comes from a seminal moment in John Wesley's personal journal when he recounts a spiritual experience on Aldersgate Street in London in May of 1738: About a quarter before nine, while [a teacher on the...
The Song Of Song is scandalous.Misunderstood.Avoided.Operatic.Shockingly egalitarian.All of that and more. And the book's own history of inclusion and interpretation is one of the interesting of all Scriptural texts. That's why the introductory sermon in...
Here goes.For the first time in 25 years of ministry, I'm trying this:Here's where the series is headed:September 7 "How Sweet It Is"September 14 "Still The One"September 21 "Higher...
September means that Good Shepherd's high-octane worship choir is back.Here's what they look like:For those of you who have been around awhile, you know that the third Sunday of every month is the most fun of them all. Why?That choir's leadership.It's rare that...
Last night, I attended the fall launch of CharlotteONE, a city-wide gathering of 20s and 30s who meet in historic First United Methodist Church. I serve on the Board of CharlotteONE, and so was eager to see how the 2014-15 year kicked off.On several occasions,...