I can't help but think that part of the Good News I'm called to share is this: the Church does not hate vaginas. Even better, God certainly doesn't. Of that I'm certain.

If we expect the church and its clergy to be relevant by offering up what was done before, we will have the train wreck that so many pundits are predicting. But if we see ministry as a place to stand, we will move the world.

It sounds cliche to say that being a pastor is the hardest thing I've ever done, but it's true. And yet, I can't imagine doing anything else.

While many mainline churches say "we want young people," they don't really. If young adults actually showed up and joined their church for good, the change they'd naturally bring with them would be stark, even off-putting.

"Let the Spirit do what the Spirit will. And while you're at it, relinquish the need to label everything "Christian" or "not Christian." Be a Christian. People can figure the rest out. It's a noun, after all.

If atheists and Christians started seeing one another as necessary partners in making the world a better place, what might we come to understand about each other? What might we come to better understand about ourselves? What might we accomplish together?

When we have controversy and conflict within the church and speak badly of one another as Christians, it actually turns people away from Christ.