I have encountered a growing tendency toward antisemitism among evangelical Christians, based in part on acceptance of long-debunked conspiracy theories and in part on a distorted understanding of biblical theology.  Over the next few blogs I’d like to address the theological issues involved.Interpreting the Bible (especially on this issue) is a bit complicated because first we must work forward f...  Read More

I want to write one more blog about the changes we have made in the music that we use in our worship service.When we moved into our spacious new auditorium in June 2003, young people began to come forward wanting to do contemporary music.  No one, not even the young people, wanted to eliminate hymns; they simply wanted to add contemporary music to the blend.  We did what many churches do – had ble...  Read More

Back in the 60’s and 70’s, Tareyton cigarette ads featured a person with a black eye, holding a Tareyton cigarette, saying “I’d rather fight than switch [brands].”  That’s how I felt when some younger men proposed that we try instituting online giving at our church.I don’t remember when, but younger men brought to the board’s attention that fewer people were using cash to do business.  More people...  Read More

A few have raised questions about my decision to dispense with the pulpit.  I’d like to explain why I made that change.Pulpits have a long evolution.  The most ancient churches met in homes and services were informal.  The teacher stood among the people, or in those churches that followed synagogue traditions, sat, to teach.When Christianity became legal, congregations were larger and cathedrals a...  Read More

A few years ago, I asked the elders if we could change our communion schedule from monthly to quarterly.  In this blog I’d like to explain why.I grew up in the Catholic tradition where communion was a weekly (and unexplained) ritual.  I went through the motions and did what the Church told me to.  But such regular observance without any explanation of its meaning robbed communion of its significan...  Read More

When I became the pastor, Mountain View Chapel was a tiny church, and I was without pastoral experience.  My training was on-the-job, and I led based on theories I had taken from the Bible.  One of my guiding principles was that you build ministry by managing the giftedness of the people entrusted to you.  What gifts do your people have?  Turn them loose!Initially I naively expected all gifts to g...  Read More

Our church grew to the point of needing two services around 1996.  The church had been saving money to buy land since I came in 1982, and by 1998 we were able to pay cash ($100,000) for the field and woods behind the church (where our present building stands).  It exhausted our savings, but we had room to grow!One of our leaders said, “Now we can start saving for another ten years to get a down pa...  Read More

I once knew a man who pastored a medium-sized traditional church but decided to chart a course toward becoming a megachurch.  Just over half of his people supported the change.  When I asked what he was going to do with the large minority that opposed him, he said, “I will leave them behind.”His response shocked me.  I was sure he would fail.  But he didn’t.  He succeeded – wildly!  Initially he d...  Read More

I have found that some things that used to work in a church can stop working, and when that happens, it’s time to change something.During the first years I was at Mountain View, while the elders handed out the communion elements I would ask for prayer requests and praises, and people freely shared things – even very personal concerns – with the group.  Then I would lead in prayer for the requests,...  Read More

In the late 1980’s a young man offered to lead Maranatha Praise choruses with a guitar, adding them to the hymns in our service.  Thinking it was no big deal, I said yes – and then got serious blowback from people who felt the syncopated music was demonic and dangerous, even if the lyrics were from the Bible.  Ironically, nearly all who complained owned the albums and listened to the praise chorus...  Read More

The most challenging change through which I’ve had to shepherd our church has been in the use of church music.  When I joined evangelicalism in the mid-70’s no one had heard of “worship music”.  We used the hymnal accompanied by piano and/or organ.  Our youth group used more lively choruses with hand motions, but those were strictly used for youth events, not church services.“Christian rock” had o...  Read More

When I first came to Mountain View in 1982, we met in what we now call “the classic building” – built in 1955.  The concrete block walls were two different shades of drab green and the carpet was orange and tearing loose from its backing at several places, bunching up and creating tripping hazards.  Each of the eighty chairs had a removable white seat cushion decorated with American eagles.  Old c...  Read More