DEEP WATERS

(Interesting note: I had some technical difficulties with this post on spiritual warfare. You'll notice extra spaces between a few paragraphs. Think I had a little warfare going on behind the scenes? Hmmm...) Well folks, I'm coming to the close of another "theme" month. Every time I commit to a specific theme for an entire month, I get really nervous. I wonder, "How in the world am I going to blog twice a week about that same topic?" And some how I pull it off. Actually, the truth is -- God pulls it off. He puts my spiritual antennae up, and everywhere I go I see, hear and experience things that line up with my theme. This month that I've focused around ministry (for Pastor's Appreciation Month) has been no exception. Before I share a short word about what God placed on my heart today, can I ask you for a few favors? First of all, I'd love to hear from you if you're reading. I've been told my comment form hasn't been w...

Me Beaming with Shane and my 14-year-old Kalin Okay so, I'm not going to start this blog like I did Coffee With Dennis Rainey . I'm not going to say that I hung out with Shane Claiborne tonight. Although I did hang out with Shane Claiborne (exhibit A: photo above). No, I'll come right out and admit it. I and about three hundred other people hung out with Shane tonight in a chapel service at Hendrix College in Conway, Arkansas. On a serious note, though, hearing Shane live was really a treat. I'd been wanting to hear from this best-selling author and self proclaimed "prominent Christian activist, sought-after speaker, and a recovering sinner" for years now. So when I heard he'd be speaking only fifteen minutes away, I grabbed my son Kalin and made my way. For those unfamiliar with him, Shane writes and speaks all over the world about peacemaking, social justice and Jesus. With his shaggy goatee, dreadlocs swinging down his back and simple clothes, h...

During the month of October, I have dedicated this blog to Pastor's Appreciation Month. When I began on October 1, I prayed that God would reveal interesting blog topics. Every week He has answered that prayer. Today I dedicate this blog to one of history's most influential and celebrated pastors -- Martin Luther King, Jr. On Sunday thousands of people gathered to commemorate the unveiling of his 30-foot monument on the Mall in our nation's capital. Oh, how I wish I could have been there. As I reflect on yesterday's dedication, I'll approach this event in light of the Past, the Present and the Future. The Past 48 years ago Dr. King stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, proclaiming "I Have a Dream." He was joined by thousands of people of various races and cultures for the 1963 March on Washington, a political rally in support of civil and economic rights. I'll share a small excerpt: I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up a...

I recently began a Facebook Group called "A Pastor's Wife's Garden" with the goal of connecting hearts with other pastor's wives like myself. The idea for this group came totally from the Lord one day while I watched a recording of an interview on CBN. The topic of this interview: William Branch, also known as The Ambassador, also known as Duce, and his wife discussing the challenge of his emotional affair with another woman. To give a little backstory, Duce is a Christian hip hop artist that co-founded and led Cross Movement, a rap group that took the Christian world by storm in 1996. All original founding members, including Duce, grew up in Philadelphia. Having earned a Masters degree in Theology from Dallas Theological Seminary -- graduating with honors, by the way -- he began co-pastoring Epiphany Fellowship Church, a growing and vibrant multi-ethnic church in Philly. That is, until he fell into this emotional affair. At that point Duce was asked to leav...

On October 5, two very influential men passed away: Steve Jobs who I blogged about last week and Reverend Fred Shuttlesworth. Needless to say, much of the media hype that day went to Steve Jobs, this being a technology crazed culture. But Rev. Shuttlesworth's legacy demands our attention as well. And this being Pastor's Appreciation Month , I think it quite appropriate to honor him here. Let me start by saying I honestly didn't know a lot about Rev. Shuttlesworth. I was familiar with his name, and I knew he was strategic in the Civil Rights Movement. Prior to his death, however, I couldn't have listed three facts about him. Well, I decided to remedy that. As a result of my research, hopefully some of you may learn a little more about him as well. Rev. Shuttlesworth, born March 18, 1922, was both a minister in Birmingham, Alabama and a Civil Rights activist. He became pastor of Bethel Baptist Church in Birmingham in 1953. 1956 proved to be a memorable year for S...

We've all seen it done before. A person passes away, and everyone that speaks about him practically deifies the guy. It's as if we clearly see people as very much human and imperfect... until they die. Well, I certainly don't want to deify Steve Jobs here. He was a mere man. A genius -- but still a mere man. And after reading a bit of his backstory, I now see him much clearer than I did before he passed away. He was a man of remarkable achievement. He was also a man with flaws and more than a few poor choices in his past. To list a few markers I read in his biography: he originally denied paternity to his first-born child Lisa, born to ex-girlfriend Chris-Ann Brennan In the late seventies/early eighties he was considered too temperamental a manager Once fired from the company he helped begin, he "took revenge" by creating a competing product He was also a man of great paradox. Having studied Zen Buddhism in his youth, he had considered becoming a monk in...

Last week I had coffee with another pastor's wife. As we sat across from each other in those cool overstuffed leather chairs with our lattes steaming between us, we caught up on life. We discussed the prayer group we had just attended, our families and our kids. Inevitably, our discussion turned to ministry. So I asked Nicolle the question I love to ask other pastor's wives: What's life like for you as a pastor's wife? Like every pastor's wife I've ever posed that question to, she gave me an earful. I'd love to share her thoughts here today. I'll list her top three issues, which I think are pretty universal. 1. Being misunderstood as a pastor's wife She began this point by describing the relationship she had years ago with her former pastor's wife. This pastor's wife was very outspoken, and many church members thought her unsubmissive to her pastor-husband. During her single years, Nicolle offered to serve this pastor's wife and...

How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news! Romans 10:15b Today, October 1, marks the first day of Pastor Appreciation Month. My next series of blogs might seem a little self-serving since I'm a pastor's wife, but I sure hope you hear my heart. As a pastor's wife I see first-hand the good, the bad and the ugly of my husband Anthony's ministry life. On any given Sunday, he might be enjoying the best day in ministry he's ever had, then one conversation with one person can turn that best day into the worst day in ministry he's ever had. And that's only one day of the week. Of course many of the difficulties he experiences have their root in the spiritual realm. The Bible tells us that "we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." (Ephesians 6:12) And yet, sometimes those principalities look a lot like pe...