Thoughtful Reflections on Faith and Life
One of the most common core values for many contemporary churches is that of excellence. That is not necessarily a bad thing. We should want to do the things we do for God to the best of our ability. But there are times that excellence can become and idol. I have heard too many stories … Read More “Disabilities, Church and the Idol of Excellence” »
One of the biggest challenges for pastors is preparing one sermon for a congregation that is extremely diverse in their knowledge and experience. It is impossible to design a message that will touch everyone where they are at. But it is important to have sense of where people are at, so that over the span … Read More “4 Things That Pastors Need to Remember About Their Congregation” »
The very first pastoral role that I had began twenty years ago in 1996. I began my studies at McMaster Divinity College and my field placement was as a youth pastor of a combined Pentecostal and Salvation Army youth group. Since then I have had many roles and continue to learn. Reflecting on my experiences, … Read More “20 Things I Have Learned in 20 Years of Ministry” »
Carey Nieuwhof has led more change in his church in the last 10 years than most pastors will lead in 10 lifetimes! Carey is a “must listen to” leader for church leaders wanting to understand how to lead your church through change. This episode is packed full of helpful insights and critical reflections for pastors … Read More “Leading Your Church Through Change” »
I had the opportunity to ask some people with autism about what they want the church to know. I’m thankful that a number of people responded. This is important because I can only speak for myself. I want people to hear other voices. I hope that you will hear these voices and have a greater … Read More “What People With Autism Want the Church to Know” »
I am a pastor and a father of two children with autism. My children live in a group home in another city and so have not yet been to the church where I have recently started pastoring. However, we do have a young man with autism at our church who is at a similar end … Read More “The Highlight of My Time at Church” »
I have been talking a lot about things that churches should do to become autism-friendly. I like the positive approach. At the same time, there are things that should be avoided as well. None of these are new, but they are worth reminding of. Never use the word “retarded,” even in what you consider an … Read More “5 Things Autism-Friendly Churches Should Avoid” »
I am encouraged by the number of pastors and churches that have talked to me about being autism-friendly. How can a church become more welcoming to families that have autism? Here are the ten commandments. Forgive the lack of King James language. 1. See people with autism not as a goal to be achieved or … Read More “10 Commandments for Being an Autism-Friendly Church” »
The “experts” would probably say that the worship wars are over or at least a non-issue. I would say that things have changed but feelings have not diminished. What I saw decades ago was the conflict was between hymns and choruses. What has changed is that many contemporary churches would never consider using the choruses … Read More “What I Look for in Worship Music” »
I have just completed my first three months as the pastor of Queen Street Baptist Church. As I have been reflecting on this experience, I have come to realize that my appreciation for this church is not based on my pastoral role. There are some things about this church that I would love, even if … Read More “5 Things I Love About Queen Street Baptist Church” »
As I write this post, it is World Autism Awareness Day (April 2). Today at a church retreat, I had a conversation with another autism parent. We were discussing about how things were going with autism awareness. It certainly is much better. More people are aware of autism than ever before. This makes sense when … Read More “How is the Church Doing With Autism Awareness?” »
All Christians should be interested in seeing the Church grow and people come to faith in Jesus. A helpful resource in this conversation is Growing God’s Church: How People Are Actually Coming to Faith Today by Gary L. McIntosh. The book is divided into three parts: Church Today, Faith Today and Evangelism Today. The first section … Read More “Growing God’s Church – Review” »
I recently came across a blog post called Does It Matter How the Preacher Dresses? written by Joe McKeever. It is an interesting article and is worth reading. For some traditions, this is not an issue. You wear your clerical collar and robes (I was raised Anglican). For others, there is more to talk about. … Read More “How Should a Pastor Dress?” »
I sometimes encounter resistance by pastors about the value of apologetics. I have also heard from laypeople who have had negative experiences talking to their pastors about apologetics. I would like to argue that not only is apologetics compatible with pastoral ministry, it is essential to pastoral ministry. That may sound like a bold statement … Read More “Why Apologetics is Essential to Being a Pastor” »
Is your church ready to minister to families with disabilities? Perhaps you want to but have some fears about how that would look like. The following are some observations from someone who is both a pastor and a father of children with disabilities. 1. You do not have the resources for disability ministry You may … Read More “5 Reasons Churches Are Afraid of Disability Ministry” »
One of the questions that a new pastor has to wrestle with is the nature of relationships they will have within their congregation. Can you be friends with people in the congregation? With leaders/elders/deacons/board members? With other pastoral staff? During one ministry placement when I was in seminary, I had some friends come to the … Read More “Should Pastors Have Friends Within Their Church?” »
Pastors are just as human as everyone else. This means that mistakes are made. The first step is to just be aware of these temptations. Here are five of the most common mistakes that I have seen among pastors (including myself). Taking it personally when a person/family leaves the church. Sometimes people leave a church … Read More “5 Mistakes Pastors Make” »
Or how I felt it was time to return to pastoral ministry Friends of mine and long-time readers of this blog will be familiar with my transition three years ago from a pastor to an ex=pastor. Technically, I still considered myself a pastor, I just was not in a leadership position at a local congregation. On … Read More “How I Went From an Ex-Pastor to an Ex-Ex-Pastor” »
One of the frustrations that apologists often express is the difficulty of getting the church to buy into the importance of apologetics. Unfortunately, this sometimes is influenced by the pastor’s negative view of apologetics. As a pastor, I understand that pastors cannot drop all that they are doing and throw themselves into apologetics. Preaching, pastoral … Read More “5 Reasons Pastors Should Consider Apologetics” »
You show up for church and find that there is a guest preacher. Is that pastor on vacation again? I have heard such statements, about myself and about other pastors. People in the church seem surprised when the pastor is on vacation. Why are pastors away so much? Actually pastors are not taking more vacation … Read More “Is the Pastor on Vacation Again?” »
My home church is Queensway Baptist Church in Brantford, Ontario. However, I have not been there much over the last six months as I have been doing a lot of guest preaching (and most of next month will be the same). Today I was able to be there for worship. Not being able to be … Read More “Thankful for Queensway Baptist Church” »
I have heard from some people with autism that faith can be difficult. I have also heard from parents concerned about how to explain Christian faith to their child with autism. I have blogged previously about autism and faith. What I would like to do now is just talk about my own experience. How can … Read More “My Autism and My Faith” »
I am a firm believer that attending a worship service should not be a passive experience. We can do much more than just soak up whatever is offered to us. One of the ways that we can be active is to pray throughout the service. But what should we be praying about during the service? … Read More “7 Things For You to Pray About at Church” »
One of the reasons that some people are surprised by my autism diagnosis is my history of Christian ministry. I have worked as a pastor, chaplain and Bible teacher. All of those roles require social interaction. Since autism affects social interaction, I shouldn’t be able to do those things. Except I did and continue to … Read More “Can I Be a Pastor and Autistic?” »
Despite the way I have titled this post, I am not sure there is a pure should or shouldn’t that fits every case. But I am getting ahead of myself. Does your pastor display their degrees, ordination diploma and other achievements in their office? It may or not surprise you to know that pastors disagree … Read More “Should Pastors Display Their Degrees?” »
I want to tell you a secret. People eat year round, not just at Thanksgiving and Christmas. Of course that is obvious, but for some reason that is when churches like to donate to the food bank. “In the spring and summer someone else should support the food bank or the poor people should figure … Read More “Invest in Your Food Bank” »
Same-sex marriage is legal in the United States. Many people are happy. Many people are upset. Whatever the reaction, this is a major decision that will have a long lasting impact. I am not interested in discussing the pros or cons of same-sex marriages. I want to talk about things that the Church should consider … Read More “5 Things to Consider in Light of the SCOTUS Decision” »
I have known Derek Melanson since I was a pastor at Mount Hamilton Baptist Church, around the turn of the century (that is weird to say). I really appreciate Derek as he has the mind of a scholar and the heart of a pastor. Derek is pastoring at Temple United Baptist Church, serving where God … Read More “Christians Need to Get Better at Sex” »
It is all about discipleship. It really is. I firmly believe that the Church needs to focus on discipleship more than anything else, including evangelism. Of course evangelism is important, but if the people in our churches were strong disciples, there would be more people to do evangelism and we would be prepared to disciple the … Read More “3 Ways Pastors Can Promote Discipleship” »
I am not currently pastoring a church but I did pastor for fourteen years, nine in the same two-point charge. I really enjoyed pastoring and I left because of some life circumstances more than any disgruntlement about pastoral ministry. But there is something that I found very hard and it continues to affect me. When … Read More “What I Find Hardest About Pastoring” »
Pastors have it easy, they only work one day a week. Except the reality is that many pastors work seven days a week, even if they are not in the office. In this episode, I share some of what the average week of a pastor may look like. I understand that every pastoral role is … Read More “What Does a Pastor Actually Do?” »
What if you want your church to be autism-friendly but you don’t have any families with autism in your church? I’m glad you asked! This is exactly the time to be thinking of these things. It is so much harder to start the process after you have had people with autism for years. The best … Read More “Becoming Pre-Autism Friendly” »
It is good for people who care about autism families to know about the autism-vaccine controversy. For those who do not know, some people believe that certain vaccines either cause autism or have some other strong connection. Image by pixaby This is what you need to know. Parents who believe in the autism-vaccine connection are … Read More “Churches, Parents and the Vaccine Controversy” »
What if you are a church that is aware of the needs in the autism community but do not have anyone with autism in your church? What if you want to make a difference but do not have the resources to start a disability ministry? I say, let church go to the dogs. I mean … Read More “Let Church Go to the Dogs” »
It is not easy for parents of children with autism to start attending church. It is not as simple as just packing the kids in the car and heading out. There is a huge psychological barrier before they even leave their house. Churches should be aware of the fear that parents experience. Here are five … Read More “5 Things Autism Parents Fear About Church” »
What is disability ministry? For some churches, that may be a formal ministry with their own budget, volunteers and pastor. For smaller churches that may look much different. I recently wrote a post for the Disability and Faith Forum (which is a resource you really need to check out) on this very subject. Here is … Read More “What is Disability Ministry?” »
I have good news and bad news. However, I am only going to share the good news. I will say that sometimes good news comes just when you need it most. That is one of the reasons why I do these good news blog posts. This morning at our church, Queensway Baptist Church, we had a … Read More “Thus Saith My Daughters” »
If you read this blog, I assume that you have some interest in making your church autism-friendly. There are all sorts of steps that should be taken, but if you had to do only one thing, what should it be? Ban “stink-eye” therapy. You know what I mean. A person with a disability, adult or … Read More “The One Thing” »
This is a difficult time in our world with terrorist attacks taking place in many countries. These terrorist attacks are being undertaken by those who identify as Muslims. This is fuelling a very strong anti-Muslim sentiment, something that I think is unfortunate. Let me make a few things clear. I do not take terrorism lightly. … Read More “Terrorism, Muslims and Christians” »
One of the greatest frustrations of people involved in apologetics is the lack of interest in their congregations. “Apologetics is so great! Why can’t everyone else see that?” To be honest, there probably was a time when you weren’t interested in apologetics. It does no good to get frustrated. As someone said, “Instead of cursing … Read More “3 Things You Can Do to Encourage Apologetics in Your Church” »
A guest post by Ron Sandison. As the body of Christ, we should care for the physical and spiritual needs of each other and help those with autism to experience the love of Christ. The love of Christ can be expressed tangibly by the inclusion of those with autism in our services and our sensitivity … Read More “Inclusion In Your Church” »
Being in pastoral ministry is one of the most rewarding careers available. At the same time it is stressful and there are all too many cases of burnout. Pastoral ministry does not have to lead to burnout. There are some steps that you can take that will help to keep you healthy. 1. Focus on your … Read More “5 Tips to Prevent Pastor Burnout” »
1. Thou shalt focus on Jesus and not on yourself. 2. Thou shalt join a family and not an organization or social club. 3. Thou shalt not gossip about your brothers and sisters. 4. Thou shalt not natter about silly little things. 5. Thou shalt focus on what you give rather than what you receive. 6. … Read More “10 Commandments for Church People” »
I have pastored for twenty years and I recommend it as one way to serve God. I had an extremely positive experience but there are certain things that people should understand before beginning a career as a pastor. 1. Your family will not have a pastor This is one of the most important things you must … Read More “5 Things to Know Before You Become a Pastor” »
I have recently moved from doing a daily good news post to a weekly good news post. This allows me to focus on one really good thing for that week. However, as I write this there are three really good things that I have to share. The first thing is that I am very happy … Read More “Three Good Things” »
I recently blogged on how I understand the call to ministry. I mentioned in passing that I felt called to ministry (even though I understand that call differently now) but that now I am not in congregational ministry. I was ordained as a pastor with the Canadian Baptists of Ontario and Quebec. I pastored at … Read More “What Does It Mean to Be an Ex-Pastor?” »
I pastored for fourteen years. While I have lots yet to learn, I did come to understand some things. As a person who now attends rather than pastoring a church, some of those lessons have a new meaning. I am assuming that you want the best for your pastor (Unfortunately, I know that is not … Read More “5 Ways to Bless Your Pastor” »
The newest item to get Christians all riled up is the revelation by Christian musician Vicky Beeching that she is a lesbian. She is not the first Christian musician to come out of the closet (Ray Boltz, Jennifer Knapp) and she won’t be the last. I would like to share some random thoughts about Beeching … Read More “Vicky Beeching, Homosexuality and the Church” »
I am not interested in going into detail about Mark Driscoll’s recent problems. I feel as if leaders of “less successful” churches are watching with glee as this evangelical super-star falls from power. The truth is, unless we are directly connected to Driscoll or Mars Hill, it really is none of our business. Having said … Read More “What We Can Learn From Mark Driscoll” »
Today was the last day of VBS at Queensway Baptist Church. It ended with a community barbecue tonight. That was a lot of fun. While Justus missed out on this and Amanda was working, me and the girls were able to go. I really appreciate our church and the work they do. It was nice … Read More “A Nice Wrap Up” »
Last night Justus had a friend sleep over. That is always interesting as it turns his 8 pm bedtime into an 11 pm bedtime. However, Justus asked if his friend could come with us to church in the morning. I was very proud of him for asking. How many of us are afraid of asking. But … Read More “Proud of My Son” »
My good news today is about Cafe Church. Cafe Church is a parallel service with the sanctuary church at Queensway Baptist Church. It is a small intimate gathering of Christians that gets to enjoy the worship and sermon of the larger service. My wife and I have chosen this as our place of worship and … Read More “Loving Cafe Church” »
When it comes to welcoming those with disabilities into a church, I come at it with two hats. One hat is as a father of two children with autism. The other hat is as one who pastored for over a decade. The father part says that the church must endure everything to embrace my children. … Read More “Churches, Pastors and the Disabled” »
Unfortunately I did not make it to church today as I got sick just as we were leaving. This was disappointing for two reasons. One was that Amanda was on the worship team and this was the first time she was in a long time. She did a great job as always. The second reason … Read More “Proud Dad” »
Tonight Amanda took Justus for his first worship team practice. Justus has some natural talent for music (although not a lot of patience for lessons) and he has a great interest as well. What I am most excited about is not how Justus performs but rather how people at our church have reached out to … Read More “Connecting With Music” »
When people leave a church, the most common reason is, “I just wasn’t being fed.” So they go to some other church where they are fed, until they find another church that will feed them more. It happens all the time. With this in mind, I would like to share some biblical perspective. I have … Read More “Pastors, Congregations and Expectations” »
You know that I was raised Anglican because when I hear someone say “May the force be with you,” I want to respond with “And also with you.” Today is May the fourth, which leads some people to celebrate the great Star Wars movies. I am a Star Wars fan, though mainly episodes IV, V … Read More “May the Force Be With You!” »
We hear a lot about those who identify as spiritual but not religious. These are people who have given up on organized religion and yet still have sense of spirituality, may believe in some god(s) or may even believe in the Christian God. This is becoming more and more popular as people are increasingly suspicious … Read More “Religious But Not Spiritual” »
I usually don’t post transcripts of my podcast, but I was encouraged to do so in this case because of the importance of the subject. Please consider sharing this information with your church, pastor and leadership team. I would like to do something quite different in this episode. Today I would like to talk to … Read More “The Church, Autism and Apologetics” »
