On American Exceptionalism…

This past Sunday, Vice President Pence was invited to speak at First Baptist Church in Dallas for the “Celebrate Freedom Rally” at their Sunday morning services. Pastor Robert Jeffress called the event, “Our annual patriotic service” in which the church celebrates “God’s unique blessings on our country.”  While some may celebrate this display as faithful …

What I’ll Tell Our Kids About War

As I write this, violence (and rhetoric) is quickly escalating between the United States and Iran (and those caught in their midst). My heart is deeply grieved at what this means for the world, our neighbors and our children. The impact of war is far reaching and I still hold out hope that a strategy …

A Few Thoughts on the Migrant Caravan

A couple thoughts on the Migrant Caravan moving through Central American and Mexico toward our border… My heart is heavy and saddened as I watch so many compassionate people talk about this group of human beings in such dehumanizing ways. I understand the fear. Of course we need to protect our children. I get that …

Conflicted Allegiance

This past Sunday, our community spent some time wrestling with the implications of “allegiance” in light of the 4th of July holiday. It was good, hard and so, so important.  As followers of Jesus and citizens of a nation-state, we have a dual allegiance to the kingdom of God and to the United States. Reality …

The Wall, The President and The People: Let’s Have a Conversation.

Today, President Trump will make his first visit to California since his inauguration. In fact, his motorcade is driving to the border as I type this. As we know, one of his campaign promises was to build a wall on the southern border and contractors having been submitting bids for the project ever since. There …