Faith Improvised

It is possible for a Bible-loving culture to see itself as committed to Scripture and to know so much of the language of the Bible and to not know the Bible. I know this because it is my story. I grew up in the most loving home imaginable and it was a Bible home. By […]

This is how I have come to think about politics in the way that I do. There are several different ways to talk about it, and there’s always more to say, but this is the heart of it. The political teacher I regard above all others is Jesus. I don’t mean this in a flippant […]

In anxious times we look to hold onto something certain. We seek guarantees and we want to believe that someone is in control. Christians find themselves saying things like, “God is sovereign and in control of this situation.” But this is not a faithful representation of how Scripture portrays God’s sovereign kingship. This mindset has […]

Early American evangelical ancestors like Jonathan Edwards saw themselves as committed to the gospel and faithful to Christian Scripture, while they enslaved and visited unspeakable horrors upon African people. There is a way of reading the Bible that relieves the discomfort of holding these two realities together. In my city there is an ever-growing crisis […]

Each morning I take a very long walk and I begin it by mentally rehearsing my gratitude list. This is important because it reminds me of my identity and the narrative I inhabit. I live in a world of plenty, filled with rich gifts. And I am someone dearly loved by God and I am […]

In discussions of the president’s astonishing incompetence and morally outrageous venality, people supportive of the president typically engage in what’s been called “whataboutism.” This term describes the conversational subject-changing move that diverts discussion to other figures: “Well, what about Obama?” “What about Hillary Clinton?” I’ve encountered “whataboutism” when I’ve had discussions with people about the […]

Below is my sermon for the third Sunday in Lent The Collect: Almighty God, you know that we have no power in ourselves to help ourselves: Keep us both outwardly in our bodies and inwardly in our souls, that we may be defended from all adversities which may happen to the body, and from all […]

After laying the groundwork for several chapters, Chanequa Walker-Barnes, in the fourth chapter of I Bring the Voices of My People, articulates a vision of reconciliation that is brilliant and bracing. It is profound in its theological grasp of the complexity of sin and evil, its articulation of historical and social realities, and its clarity […]

I have so enjoyed working through the Greek text of Romans over the last year with some friends. I’ve thought of rolling out some thoughts in this space, to enjoy further discussion, and may do so in the future. These are some provisional thoughts from working through Romans 2 and following. It seems that “boasting” […]

Below is my sermon for the sixth Sunday after the Epiphany. The Collect: O God, the strength of all who put their trust in you: Mercifully accept our prayers; and because in our weakness we can do nothing good without you, give us the help of your grace, that in keeping your commandments we may please […]