Letters to a Congregation
Every Thursday I write a pastoral letter to the west congregation of The Austin Stone Community Church. These letters are simple, pastoral musings on what it looks like to live a life that is attentive to God in the midst of a shared context.
The One About Our Broken World and the Comfort of Knowing That Jesus Left It
In short, I feel a little exasperated as I sit down to write this.
Why is the world so busted? Is there truly a way to live in the tension of the now and the not yet Kingdom of God without giving into empty platitudes or cold-hearted decrees?
So, I am asking the Lord for His help, for help to face the world as it really is, and as I have been sitting here I believe that He has given it. I just remembered that today is actually a significant day in the church calendar. Today is Ascension Day, the day that comes forty days after Easter Sunday, when we remember that the resurrected Christ ascended into heaven and sat down at the right hand of the Father.
The One About the Slap Heard Around the World and What It Teaches Us About Being Human
Go to counseling. Say “sorry.” Say “I forgive you.” Try to mean it.
Go to counseling again. Repeat.
As recipients of the gospel, we are able to take our hurts to a God who understands pain and so we don’t have to carry it around forever, with the constant risk that one day it will flare up and hurt us or those around us, or both.