I am a huge fan of Stephen Colbert. I think he’s incredibly smart and incredibly funny. Along with John Stewart, Colbert has elevated satirical humor to the level of art form that Mark Twain would have admired. Plus, you’ve got to admire – or, at least I marvel at – how he has maintained a three-dimensional media persona – and a completely different private (i.e., real) life – for years on end. I can’t wait to see what happens when he goes to the Late Show. In the meantime, it’s also interesting to know that he’s a faithful Christian. And – if you’ll watch the six-minute interview with Father James Martin below –...

Dear Partner in Preaching, John 3:16, everyone’s favorite Bible verse. But I’ve wondered whether, if people thought about what this verse says for just a little longer than it takes to read a bumper sticker, it might just prove to be one of our least favorite verses in the Bible. Let me explain. Jesus articulates in this statement what Luther called “the Gospel in a nutshell” – that God is fundamentally a God of love, that love is the logic by which the kingdom of God runs, and that God’s love trumps everything else, even justice, in the end. I realize not everyone reads it this way. After all, Jesus says “everyone who...

I have next to nothing to say about the four-minute video clip below…except that IT IS SO COOL! Really. It comes from Oprah Winfrey’s SuperSoul Sunday program and, whatever you may think of Oprah’s theology or spirituality or whatever, you’ve got to admit she’s got style. 🙂 And resources. And so it’s a wonderfully made short film that raises questions about the relationship between faith and science. And here I’ll be frank: I’ve never quite understood those who see these two in stark opposition. And that includes combatants on both sides. Science is nothing to be afraid of, and faith is not...

Along the lines of paying attention…I saw this saying on a picture in a high school counselor’s office recently and it, well, just resonated with me: Pay attention to your thoughts, because they become your words. Pay attention to your words, because they become your actions. Pay attention to your actions, because they become your habits. Pay attention to your habits, because they become your character. Pay attention to your character, because it becomes your destiny. I’m not sure why I’m putting it in the “parenting” section. Maybe it’s just because I saw it in our son’s high school guidance counselor’s office while we...