Serving Families in Broken Situations

    • Essays 2 Comments

    We are entrusted to walk alongside people during some of the most difficult and vulnerable times in their lives. It’s work that God could do without us but God still allows us to be a part of it. Social workers show up when abuse is occurring, when violence is erupting, and when homes are dirty. We are asked to meet families during times of loss, adoption, school problems, divorce, addictions, trauma, and relationship problems. We get to hear stories, play with kids, sit in team meetings, solve problems, and see people heal and get well.

    Shooting in Ferguson

    • Essays 4 Comments

    In the past year, the nation’s attention has been repeatedly drawn back and forth from Ferguson to New York City as events in the two cities have had an eerie and disturbing resonance with one another. From an officer-involved death that set off controversy in Ferguson to one in New York, from a no indictment in one city to one in the other, and, now, tragically, the ambush killing of two officers in New York has been echoed in the ambush shooting (thankfully not fatal) of two officers in Ferguson.

    Are the FCC’s “New” Regulations really an “Obamacare for the Internet”?

    • Essays Leave a Comment

    A few days ago, news services everywhere were abuzz with news about the Federal Communication Commission’s (FCC) new “Net Neutrality” regulations. While many internet sources have been advocating for this concept for a while now, recent coverage has increased not only because of decisive action by the FCC but also because of a rising tide of criticism and outcry, particularly …

    Imagining the Kingdom

    • Essays 1 Comment

    All religions must grapple honestly with issues of violence, both in terms of the limits and means of righteous zeal and in terms of the ultimate goals of the movement. One potentially instructive way for the monotheistic religions to do this may be to ask the question “How do we imagine the Kingdom of God?”

    A Farmer’s Perspective

    • Essays 1 Comment

    The disconnect between food producers and consumers increases every year. Most North Americans and Europeans live in areas either non-cultivatable or too congested for growing food. When you add in the fact that our populations continue to increase (for example, the U.S. just reached 300 million people) and that tillable land is only 1/32 of the earth’s surface, then we must be mindful that we need to do a very good job with the resources God has provided.

    Were the Terror Attacks in Paris motivated by radical Islam?

    • Essays 10 Comments

    Were the terror attacks in Paris motivated by radical Islam? In an interview published on January 13 by the Weekly Standard, White House press secretary Josh Earnest explained why the Obama Administration is intentionally distancing itself from French Prime Minister Manuel Valls’ statement that France is “at war against terrorism and radical Islam.” This logic used by Mr. Earnest to support this rhetorical decision is deeply problematic.

    The Long Invisible Bag

    • Essays 2 Comments

    I’m Reformed for a bunch of reasons. They’re not the same as they were back when I was an arrogant 18 year old, when I wielded a theological hammer in the shape of the Dutch Reformed TULIP. It’s taken living a while. It’s taken dying a lot. It’s taken succeeding and failing in ministry for almost two decades. It’s taken the sober realization that the rabbit hole of my sin goes far deeper than good theological texts could have shown me. Let me explain.