Analysts and church growth experts say the North American church is in decline and “in a state of lethargy.” The signs are everywhere: a steady decline in church membership, especially among mainline denominations, a striking increase in the percentage of Americans who do not attend church, and a decrease in the numbers of young adults … Continue reading Reflections on Spiritual Maturity
Churches of Christ
The Road Back to Church – Church as an Incubator of Faith
During my time at Hermitage, while I was learning the Bible and some rudimentary theology, I was also learning a bit about how the church functioned. And I quickly learned that there was a difference between how the church was intended to function and how it sometimes fell short of that. From what I’d seen … Continue reading The Road Back to Church – Church as an Incubator of Faith
The Road Back to Church – The Relentless Power of Grace
When I eventually left the Hermitage Church of Christ to move to Texas to go to preaching school, the congregation threw me a party. Along with his family, Sperry Hogue, the minister at the church, put together a video in which they went around and talked to almost everyone at the church and gave them … Continue reading The Road Back to Church – The Relentless Power of Grace
The Road Back to Church – Old Life/New Life
In 1987 I packed up my little blue Volkswagen Rabbit with my meager worldly possessions and moved to Montana. Well, I spent the summer in Washington state first. I’d been granted a small stipend through the Student Conservation Association to work on a U.S. Forest Service trail maintenance crew in the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest … Continue reading The Road Back to Church – Old Life/New Life
