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The Bridge is one of the most peaceful churches you will ever encounter. But being full of people and led by frail humans, we do face minor conflict from time to time. Probably the most common surrounds the purpose of our church and what kind of church we are supposed to be. When you think of it, once that is settled, most other decisions are simplified and we are able to see our way through the things we do and don’t do, and how we approach every ministry.And that is somethi

I read a blog post a couple of weeks ago titled,  Church Growth Strategy: Be Weird. The title did what it intended to do, it got my attention.Actually, it was a review of a book that I’ve since ordered, Destroyer of the gods: Early Christian Distinctiveness in the Roman World.  In it, Larry Hurtado, of the University of Edinburgh, contends that early Christianity grew dramatically because, while the Christian message was universal, its messengers were unique. There was no dri

I was in the thick of Chicago traffic. At one intersection, both an automobile and a bicycle attempted to sneak through a red light at the end of a yellow. The bike was going straight and the car was turning left, and they collided. The car was barely moving and fortunately, the woman on the bike was not hurt….but she was mad! She jumped up off the ground and picked her bike up, ripped her helmet off, and with bike in tow, ran after the car screaming at the driver. Junior was

“I’ve tried reading the Bible but I don’t understand it and my mind wanders." I’ve heard that many, many times. But I’ve also been able to help a lot of people learn to read the Bible to get a lot out of it. King David describes a person of success as one who reads and ponders daily on the Word of God. Most Christians know there is value in reading the Bible, yet few of us do it consistently. I think mainly because they’ve never learned how. This is the fourth in a series on

Jesus’ disciples had been amazed at a lot of things about Jesus. They were blown away by his miracles. But they never asked him to teach them how to do miracles. They were astonished by his teaching as he captivated crowds of thousands. Yet they never asked him to teach them how to preach.  But when they heard Jesus praying, they asked him to teach them how to pray (Luke 11:1-2). They heard Jesus really pray and they wanted to learn. That’s how we received the Lord’s Prayer.

Last week I wrote on having a plan for spiritual growth. A lot of you responded and committed to following through. But every plan begins with a time and place. If something is not scheduled, it’s not planned. Have you ever said to an acquaintance, “We should get together some time,” and it never happened? That’s because it wasn’t scheduled. Unless you specify the time and place to get together, all you have are good intentions that never come to fruition. Planning starts wit

Nothing ever get’s accomplished without a plan. That is no less true when it comes to spiritual growth. Millions of Christians have been believers for many years and have grown older without growing up. Just because you are aging does not mean you are maturing. I know a lot of very immature Christians who have professed to follow Jesus for decades. But without a plan, nothing of significance ever happens. They may have a plan to save for retirement. They may have a plan for s

My kids bought me a drone for Christmas a year and a half ago. It’s it’s one of the most enjoyable toys I’ve had as an adult. My granddaughters love being chased around the house by a flying object. My wife just smacks it out of her way.Now there is a new drone being marketed. It’s a “Selfie Drone,” designed entirely for taking selfies. Instead of holding up your smartphone at arms length or on a stick, you just let it go and it flies out and positions itself perfectly to tak

Another acquittal after an African-American was wrongfully shot and killed.  I know emotions run high and most people want to take sides with everything that is politically charged in recent years. But let’s just do an honest assessment. An innocent man was killed, right in front of his little girl, without accountability. It’s horrible. There is something in all of us that has to say, “This is wrong.” The fact that it further divides liberals and conservatives and whites and

We know it is often the little things that cause great damage. The minimum lethal dose of botulism bacillus is .00003 micrograms per kilogram of body weight. That's like a mosquito derailing a 100 mile freight train. Remember it was an inexpensive O ring that took down the Space Shuttle, Challenger . And you know how your whole body can be affected by a slight pain in a key area, such as a toe or heel.But the reverse is also true. It’s the little things that make life most en

In 1830, a man named George Wilson killed a government employee who caught him in the act of robbing the mail. He was tried and sentenced to be hanged. However, then President of the United States, Andrew Jackson, sent him a pardon. But Wilson did a strange thing. He refused to accept the pardon and no one seemed to know what to do. So the case was carried to the Supreme Court. The great Chief Justice John Marshall wrote the opinion. In it, he said, “A pardon is a slip of pap

It’s that time of year... for syrupy graduation speeches, often filled with advice that I truly hope graduates do NOT take. I’m talking about “chase your dreams” and “follow your passions” kind of advice, along with the reminders that, “You are amazing” and, “You can do anything."Sorry, but you really can’t do anything , and those who say you can are doing you a disservice. Had I believed that I could do anything when I graduated from high school, I would have pursued a caree