Church Rural and Small Town Ministry August 03, 2016 I hope you won't mind if I indulge for a moment in some shameless self-promotion. Recently, the denomination I belong to and the one most affiliated with Gentle Reformation, the Reformed
Congregation Help! My Congregation Struggles With My Preaching July 19, 2016 In a previous post [https://gentlereformation.com/2016/06/10/help-i-struggle-with-my-pastors-preaching/] I wrote about the real spiritual crisis some people have with regard to their pastor's preaching. Wanting to be fed,
Amos Let Justice Roll Down July 08, 2016 It has been a tumultuous week. Of course, in a very unfortunate way that almost seems normal. Turmoil, discord, confusion, and anarchy appear to be the new normal. That's the society
Eternal Submission of the Son Trinitarian Controversy: Necessary Sharpening or Unnecessary Strife? June 16, 2016 Sometimes the unfortunate idiomatic expression: "Boys will be boys," is used to excuse turning a blind eye to the irresponsible behavior of some. After all, what more can you expect from
Church Help! I Struggle With My Pastor's Preaching June 10, 2016 Call me an old school Presbyterian but in my estimation there is nothing as important as the preaching of God's Word. I don't think it was overbold for PT
Carl Trueman Can Women Teach Sunday School--A Fruitless or Fruitful Question? May 31, 2016 Occasionally I have a mild interest in the intramural disagreements floating around the blogosphere. Okay, let me be a little more accurate. I usually keep one eye on the latest cyber-wranglings but hesitate
Church Helping Rural America in Crisis May 24, 2016 In a recent article Anthony Bradley, professor of religious studies at The King's College in New York, drew attention to the "deadly crisis in rural America [http://www.worldmag.com/
culture What Are We To Do? May 02, 2016 What are we to do? I suspect that's a question many Christians have been asking lately. The rapid sexual descent of our culture either has or will force every Christian to
Celebrity Pastors Spiritual Abuse: It's Not Just Celebrity Pastors April 15, 2016 When I was in seminary there were two sins—all too common among pastors—that frightened me so much I nearly gave up my pursuit of the ministry. One of those was the
Bible Bungling My Way Through Romans April 08, 2016 As a young seminarian I was told: “You would be crazy to try and preach through the book of Romans without twenty years of pastoral experience.” I trust there is probably wisdom in
Decisions How Do I Know What God's Will Is? March 25, 2016 I've heard it and you've heard it, I've used it, and you've used it: "I think it's the will of God that
elections You're Not Electing a Pastor-in-Chief March 15, 2016 It's campaign season. That either excites you, frustrates you, or--if you're like me--a little bit of both. On the one hand it's fun to follow along with
andy stanley So Andy Stanley Thinks I'm Selfish March 05, 2016 I am a pastor of a relatively small church [http://www.winchesterrp.com/]. Well, if statistics are correct it would be more accurate to say our congregation is just under the median size
Blogs Meet the Puritans March 03, 2016 Pardon me for a Thursday afternoon interruption. I just wanted to steal a moment of your time and give a shameless promotion. Fortunately, it's not a shameless self-promotion, so hopefully you
Church Risen: Movies, Faith, and the Bible February 23, 2016 There's an old saying you're probably familiar with: “All that glitters is not gold.” It's an idiomatic reminder that appearances are not everything and often do not
Current Events Our Judge Is Jesus Christ February 13, 2016 Since the earliest centuries the Christian church, in accord with the teaching of Scripture, has confessed with united voice: “He will come to judge the living and the dead.” But what good is
Audio Sermons To Listen or Not To Listen: Audio Sermons February 11, 2016 We live in a day of instant access. Digital media has made most things available to us with a single click. This, of course, has brought untold benefits. We have more opportunities and
biography Though Dead He Still Speaks--C.H.S February 04, 2016 Hanging on my wall just to the left of my desk is a small framed sheet of paper. The fragile paper is the palette upon which in faded purple ink are scribbled the
Evangelism Harvest Eyes January 25, 2016 I grew up surrounded by the cornfields of Minnesota and now I live encompassed by the ones in Kansas. Truth be told, they're my favorite landscape. I know some people prefer
Calvinism Why Are Some Reformed People Such Jerks? December 11, 2015 Almost ten years ago I read a piece by R. Scott Clark called: “Why (Some) Reformed People Are Such Jerks. [http://heidelblog.net/2013/07/why-some-reformed-people-are-such-jerks/]” The article was intended to address, as
Combat Women in Combat, Presbyterianism, and Cases of Conscience December 07, 2015 Presbyterianism has its advantages. One of those advantages is giving the church a framework by which to answer difficult questions. Last Thursday Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced that all U.S. military combat
Olivia Culpo Kyle's Mea Culpa December 03, 2015 Readers of Gentle Reformation, With the fear that this may be read as a bit of shameless self-promotion I want to respond to some criticism I have received over a previous article: "
Abstinence Tebow's Mea "Culpo" December 01, 2015 It is actually embarrassing what makes for "Christian" headlines these days. And, if you've been reading the news you've probably noticed that Tim Tebow is once again
biography In Appreciation of C.S. Lewis November 23, 2015 Yesterday was the fifty-second anniversary of the death of C.S. Lewis. Though his death was eclipsed by the assassination of John F. Kennedy on the same day, his legacy has endured. While
Grace Bearing The Cross of Silence November 06, 2015 Attention is often given to the words of Jesus. Rightly so! He is wisdom incarnate and his words are a wellspring of truth and life. But I wonder if you've ever
