The Crises We Must Solve The person who trusts me will not only do what I’m doing but even greater things John 14:12 The Message In the winter of 2021, when the shame of the January 6th attack on our capital hung heavy in the air, TIME magazine published a challenge for all of us. Their writers made it clear that the deterioration of our [Read More …]
Homeownership Has an Equity Issue: Lessons from MANNA Founder Rev. Jim Dickerson
For years, purchasing a house has been intertwined with the vision of the “American dream.” A home was originally a place for putting down roots and raising families, a symbol of a promised future. Later, homeownership became an encouraged financial investment in a burgeoning market. Yet many Americans today don’t own homes and even more worry they never will. While the homeownership rate has [Read More …]
Revising Our Language – A Spiritual Discipline
A person’s words can be life-giving water. . . Proverbs 18:4* It’s time. Time for us to become the kind and thoughtful people we are capable of being. Maybe even past time for us to watch our tongues lest someone wash our mouths out with soap. For many days I sit with my thoughts for potential columns before I write a word. I read, I pray, and I have silent arguments in [Read More …]
Banker-turned-pastor teaches churches how to raise money for ‘God-sized’ visions
When most people think of church and money, they often see offering plates and giving campaigns. But when Rev. Dr. Sidney Williams, Jr. talks about the church and money, he starts with a vision. “If God gives you a vision, it always exceeds your resources,” Williams said. “If it’s a vision that you came up with, you can probably fund it. But if it's a God-sized vision, there's no way you're [Read More …]
Seeking solidarity: How knowing a pastor from Myanmar changed how I read the news
It’s the type of headline I would normally skim over — “Myanmar’s Leader Is Detained Amid Coup” — because I don’t closely follow Asian politics. But this recent headline grabbed me, and I read the article twice, searching for how the military overthrow of a civilian government might affect religious practice in Myanmar. Why now? Because Peter Mang, a Christian pastor in Myanmar, was part of a [Read More …]
Does connectedness revise your perceptions?
“How much should I have? What is enough for me? What should you have? What is enough for you?” -- N. Gordon Cosby, from his sermon, "How Much Is Enough?"* Can you hear the echoes from that 1990 sermon (quoted above) bouncing off the walls of Congress, careening across the land, and whistling through every unemployment and food bank line? Much has changed for the worse since Cosby preached [Read More …]
The Importance of Shifting Our Focus
“Selfishness is the most destructive force in all the cosmos, and hate is only its symptom.” Bishop Michael Curry, Love Is The Way As I write this Congress is debating, or should I say arguing about President Biden’s incentive bill to offset some of the most [Read More …]
Desperately Needed: Your Prayers for our Nation
When I am afraid, I will pray. Who said that? It doesn’t matter because today our nation needs for every one of us to be praying like we’ve never prayed before: Pray for a safe inauguration for President-elect Biden and Vice President- elect Harris and the wisdom for them to lead us through these difficult times . . . Pray for safety for our Senators and Representatives and [Read More …]
Gemstones in the Sun: An interview with the founder
Rev. Diane Ford Dessables is the founder of Gemstones in the Sun (GITS), an online blog where people of color (POC i.e., the Indigenous, descendants of slaves and immigrants of color) share their experiences with beliefs, shifting values, and resources. Through Gemstones in the Sun, Dessables also convenes spiritual support groups called Gemstones in the Sun Freedom Circles for POC to work [Read More …]
Your instructions for 2021 are . . .
“Give them something to eat yourselves.” Mark 6:37, The Jerusalem Bible Across the U.S.A. the pandemic has robbed people of their jobs. Without an income it is hard to feed your family. Here’s a frightening statistic from Feeding America, the country’s largest food bank program: “In the United States currently, 1 in 9 people struggle with hunger.” Jesus [Read More …]
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