The Cost of Attention I go to Twitter before I watch the news. There, I catch a glimpse of what is on the minds of my fellow human beings–what has succeeded in grabbing our collective attention (at least until the next trend). Attention is powerful. It is a valuable and much sought-after commodity. Many of […]
Category: Pastoring & Leadership
My good friend Jemar Tisby recently wrote an excellent article for The Witness BCC about the latest controversy to surround Transformation Church in Tulsa, OK and Pastor Mike Todd. In his article, Jemar offers a poignant response to “Spittlegate” and casts vision for the church as it should be. I hope that you will take […]
Editor’s Note: This article contains a full and graphic description of the indecent at hand. Reader discretion is advised. A spitty situation As much as some churchgoers may like to attend a congregation with a well-known preacher, they probably don’t want him to end up in a story on TMZ. For members of Transformation Church […]
By now, you’ve probably encountered the infamous video of Pastor Mike Todd of Transformation Church in Tulsa, OK. No, not that one, the other one. No, no, no, even more recent than that. There you go, THAT one. I could sit here and break down bar for bar what made Pastor Todd’s sermon illustration so […]
The white nationalism cloaked in self-righteous Jesus worship absent Christ-likeness has been enthroned as the state religion in America yet corrupting many expressions of Christianity beyond her shores and is such a telling indictment. So many of the Christian voices I’d come to love and respect have become loudly complicit in this dangerous religious circus and Jesus cult that many are growing increasingly despondent of.
In our story, the black story, we have the best of us and we have the worst of us.
We are viewed as problems to be solved rather than people to be admired.
Eugene Peterson had a knack for holding up a mirror to his reader through the stories and poetry he shared.
The more I grow into my identity as an adopted son in the family of God, the more I grow as a father to my children. The Lord has blessed my wife and I with a blended family of five children—three daughters and two sons. Each one of them captures my heart in a unique […]
Haynes shows us Christ is all, and Christ is better. He is better than the best things we can accomplish, and the worst things we experience.
On July 26, 1838, Maria (Ma-rye-ah) Fearing was born a slave near Gainesville, Alabama. As a house servant, she spent much of her time with her mistress and the other children. Though her owners taught their slaves the Presbyterian catechism, told them Bible stories and tales of missionaries in Africa, they refused to voluntarily free her. After […]
From Brian Dye (Grip Youth, Legacy Disciple Conference): The phrase “context is king” applies not only to biblical interpretation, but also to race relations in the United States. It is impossible to understand present racial tensions without comprehending the history of racial conflict in this country. This workshop by Jemar Tisby explores how a greater awareness […]
We Persevere Roundup – Foreign Policy Edition We Persevere is a roundup of items of interest concerning religious freedom at home and abroad. It is curated for RAANetwork by K.A. Ellis, Ambassador for International Christian Response. The policies that the US government enacts, the relationships it fosters and the initiatives it supports all often have […]
This article was originally posted on Muta’s personal blog. You can find the original and more great content here. — It’s 2:55am as I’ve begun to type this. The room is dark and somber like many of the hearts of millions across America. Donald J. Trump has just won the highest office in the land, […]
Election Day is Tuesday, November 8. The International Day(s) of Prayer for the Persecuted Church are on November 6 and 13. With so many American Christians understandably anxious about the results of the election, I cannot think of a better way to frame the Election than with prayerful remembrance of faithful, marginalized Christians. Learning from […]
75% of world’s population now lives without religious freedom, & the numbers continue to rise. – Pew Research Center WE PERSEVERE WEEK OF NOVEMBER 4, 2016 MIDDLE EAST: If you don’t want your concept of church planting challenged, or have your tidy sociological categories called into question, don’t watch this movie. INDONESIA: Tens of thousands […]
Narratives, whether self-curated or imposed upon us, are strong influencing factors in creating our identities and defining the shape of our lives. For instance, Alexander Hamilton in the musical Hamilton desperately and obsessively seeks to create a narrative that is different from the one he was born into so that his identity is his own. […]
We Persevere is a roundup of items of interest concerning religious freedom at home and abroad. It is curated for RAANetwork by K.A. Ellis, Ambassador for International Christian Response. WORLD: November brings us the International Day of Prayer for the persecuted church, with events happening month-long. Now’s the best time to think about incorporating ideas […]
Ask Trump and Clinton How They’ll Respond to Unprecedented Global Persecution Thursday, September 29, 2016 Bill Bumpas (OneNewsNow.com) “Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves; ensure justice for those being crushed.” (Proverbs 31:8) One of the issues that didn’t come up in the first presidential debate was the topic of persecution of Christians […]
We Persevere: Roundup 14 – Week Ending September 17, 2016. We Persevere is a roundup of items of interest concerning religious freedom at home and abroad. It is curated for RAANetwork by K.A. Ellis, Ambassador for International Christian Response. NIGERIA: Former US Representative Frank Wolf, who is now senior fellow at the human rights […]