There is not a fight between science and the Church/Theology. Within the decade humanity will likely know life has existed off planet (Mars). The church needs to prepare for this reality. We need to teach that the creation myths in Genesis are not literal, but theological stories.Stories that tell us about relationships with one another/creation,…
Read MorePaul Prins
Theology – What is it?
Theology attempts to answer one or more of three questions:
1) How does God relate to people and creation?
2) How do people relate to God?
3) How do people relate to the rest of creation?
The Church against Fascism
The future of the Church in the west is at stake. Today we know the name of Dietrich Bonhoeffer. This is in large part because he denounced the fascists of his day while most of the church was silent and complict. I pray that this time there would be too many names to remember as…
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Merry Christmas to All
This night we remember two teens who found themselves alone on a cold night. Alone in the stable. These two faced childbirth without any help. Jesus, Emmanuel, born in the quiet of night. The heavens erupted in praise. The long awaited king has come, humanity and divinity in one. He would proclaimed his kingdom that…
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Practices over Ideas and starting Urban Monasticism
This is the transcript of a talk given earlier in the summer of 2020. I was one of a dozen or so presenters looking at how the church might need to adapt for the future. There is the global pandemic, climate change/catastrophe, beginning of the end of the American Empire, the rapid secularization of the…
Read MoreThe river of Justice is reaching us all
With all happening in Minneapolis (Justice for George Floyd) and around the country it should be clear. You are either anti-racist, or racist. The years of me believing that racial justice wasn’t my fight are one of the reasons that George Floyd was murdered. I believed passive support of others was enough to bring change,…
Read MoreFrom Lament to Celebration, can we as the church learn to do both well
Today I lead a group of ministry peers in a conversation about what might come out of this current pandemic for the church. Through shortened breaths (due to still being in recovery from covid-19) I read the following notes. Normally I don’t prepare notes like this, but my mind has been so scattered I felt…
Read MoreA Season unlike any Other
We are in a season of life unlike any we, or our parents have lived through for a century. People we know and care about will get sick, we will get sick, and many more than we want to will not survive. With all that said I want to make a few points: It is…
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To be Found
Nearly torn apart in grief and gripped by fear Mary Magdalene returned to the empty tomb alone.
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My Heart is Weak
My heart is weak. Yesterday a man overcome by evil killed scores with a truck in Nice, France. I’ve grown tired of being surprised, shocked, or acting as though the attack was unexpected. This is a sad reality of our world today. That a 24-hour news cycle hunts for tragedies affecting a group of people to grab…
Read MoreIn the Wake of Hate
It’s been a little over 24 hours since the most recent attack in Paris. This was not an isolated event, it was not the first, and will not likely be the last (thought I pray for a long break). There is hurt, pain, and death in life. I believe that the best of humanity surrounds…
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4 Reasons Suburban churches should stay out of the city
I’ve heard that several prominent suburban churches in Minnesota announcing plans to open locations downtown. As an urban dweller – who is also a missionary and student of the church – I thought I’d share some major reservations about this development. At the core this is an issue of culture and world view. A mentor…
Read MoreThe 3 Biggest Challenges to Evangelicalism
A lot of very interesting things are happening right now in the evangelical movement in the western world. As far as I am able to tell, this movement has enjoyed a level of prominence over the last several decades as the growing voice of the non-Catholic church in the eyes of the media and public.…
Read MoreWhen the Bible Changed for Me
Over the past several years there was a subtle shift that occurred in how I see Scripture and the bible. It was so subtle that I only noticed it through conversations with family and friends. I think that I now have a bit of an understanding of what two key things changed for me. The…
Read MoreIn Solidarity with Us
It’s almost incomprehensible that the cosmic God of all things could allow evil to be inflicted upon others. As bombs explode, buildings crumble, seas rush in, or bullets tear through streets we ask questions of a God who seems disinterested and distant. We’ve been told that we’re exceptional in Gods eyes and have taken this…
Read MoreThe Life of my Discontent
Hope is contingent on discontentment. Though every aspect of life attempts to content me. Telling me that if I just do X, achieve Y or buy Z then some/all of that discontent will be taken away. But what if we were called to live into our discontentment so that we might long for an audacious…
Read MoreChanging for the God who doesn’t
As I look to learn more of God in scripture I come to discover that his character is unchanging. That there is no more room for Him to be loving, compassionate, patient, and graceful. It is in the very core of God this unchanging and undying reality that many find comfort and rest. Yet for his steadfast…
Read MoreChurch as a Base Camp
Church is not the goal. To journey and be transformed is. As a pastor my heart beats so that others may have their own intimate and exciting experiences with Jesus and the Holy Spirit. For the church to facilitate this, we need to see ourselves as the base camp of life. Where we prepare others…
Read MoreDissecting my Construction
People thrive within the boundaries they construct to understand the chaos and confusion that is the life around them. As Christians we are no different, but with the thrust to interpret divine reality our constructed realities easily become self-serving, vicious, and abusive. One of our most critical jobs is to dissect how and why we’ve constructed our world with the hope that…
Read MoreFaithfulness is Everything…ness
In a visual world it is second nature to count, collect, and compare what is seen. It seems natural to desire more and from a young age we do. We believe that 72 crayons are better than 12, even if we only use 6. We compare important things too: ministries, callings, follower, and bank accounts. Yet…
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