A Recent GriefIn recent days, the Southern Baptist Convention voted to move forward with a constitutional amendment that would further restrict women from serving as pastors, elders, overseers, or preaching to the gathered congregation. The amendment still requires another vote next year before it would become part of the SBC Constitution, but the direction is clear enough. A large part of the Ame...

Dear Church Family,This week, Brooke and I returned from Holston Annual Conference, where we attended as clergy and David Frost, Alice Lucas, and Jennifer Mongold attended as laity representing our church and district. At the conclusion of Conference, it became official that Brooke and I have been appointed for another year of ministry with you at Gray United Methodist Church. This will be our sev...

Continuation of “Where Are We Putting Our Roots?” In my last post, I asked a simple but important question: Where are we putting our roots?Roots matter. They determine stability. They determine nourishment. They determine whether a tree survives shifting soil and unexpected storms.Over the past several years, many churches — including ours — have walked through seasons that felt like shifting grou...