Tag Archives: christianity

Singing, We Need Revival

16 Friday Jun 2017

Posted by in Community of Christ, discipleship, Religion

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Holy Spirit rain down. Change us from the inside.
Singing. We need revival.

These lyrics from the song “Revival” by Soulfire Revolution (feat. Kim Smith) became an anthem for me as I sensed my ministry focus shift a few years back. It was a shift that led to my call, acceptance, and ordination to the office of Seventy. In many ways, congregational life in the Christian church is in the midst of its own huge shift as well, or at least needs to be. The needs and demands are changing. Building glorious structures of praise, beautifying our property, and traditional 11 am worship on Sunday meet the needs of many of our active members, but they no longer meet the needs of many in our communities. An “If we will build it, they will came” approach to living out congregational life is no longer relevant in our Western culture society today.  Continue reading →

A Year Later: Orlando, Equality, and the Journey Forward

12 Monday Jun 2017

Posted by in Culture, Religion

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When senseless acts of tragedy remind us
That nothing here is promised, not one day
This show is proof that history remembers
We live through times when hate and fear seem stronger
We rise and fall and light from dying embers,
Remembrances that hope and love last longer.
And love is love is love is love is love is love is love is love,
cannot be killed or swept aside.
I sing Vanessa’s symphony, Eliza tells her story.
Now fill the world with music, love, and pride.

-Lin-Manuel Miranda, excerpt from his acceptance speech
after winning “Best Score” at the 2016 Tony Awards
just 24 hours on the Pulse Nightclub Massacre.

A little over a year ago I had begun to finally understand my sexual orientation. It was a journey that took a long time and, in that moment in time, I was relieved to finally begin to understand who I was. The next step for me was to begin to stop living in fear, publicly “come out”, and claim my truth as a bisexual male. Of course, that eventually happened on December 5, 2016. Though, before I had even picked the date that I wanted to come out on, I almost came out one year ago today in response to the tragedy that occurred in the early morning hours of June 12, 2016. Continue reading →

Because you asked… Why come out?

15 Wednesday Mar 2017

Posted by in Community of Christ, Culture, Personal

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After about 6-8 weeks of sharing my personal truth with close friends and family, I publicly came out as bisexual on Monday, December 5, 2016. I must admit, I was fearful. I was concerned. I was scared. As a full-time minister for a denomination that was just three years shy of being fully supportive of LGBT rights in the United States, I was concerned about potential backlash from people who just weren’t there yet on this issue. Especially so since a large part of my ministerial focus is working with youth. I was concerned about stereotypes and stigmas and how parents, congregational leaders, fellow leaders in youth ministry, etc would respond. To put it in the context of our present-day culture, I was fearful about people’s possible perceived truths (aka alternative facts) with what it even means to be LGBT. I also knew that I couldn’t let the fear of the “what if” control me any longer. I knew that I needed to come out and that I needed to so publicly. Continue reading →

A Holiday Blessing: O God Of All Children

24 Saturday Dec 2016

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A few years ago while preparing for a sermon on the Sunday before Christmas, I discovered a special Christmas Prayer on Huffington Post. I have included it in a few sermons since then.  At this holy time of centering and celebrating, I share it again. 

Through out the month of December, I join many other Christians around the world in celebrating the birth of Christ. In the midst of the commercialization of this sacred holiday, I pause to remember that Christ came and showed us a better way to live. A way that should inspire all to work towards justice and build communities of peace. A way that that embodied spirit of equality and not one of privilege. Whether you celebrate a Christian interpretation of the Divine, an interpretation through the lens of another faith, or are do not believe, may you be challenged by this blessing. May it carry us through this holiday season and into the new year. Amen. 

O God Of All Children
by Marian Wright Edelman

O God of the children of Somalia, Sudan, and Syria, of South Africa and South Carolina,
Of Afghanistan and Pakistan, and of India, Iraq, Iran, and Israel
Of the Congo and Chicago, of Darfur and Detroit
Of Myanmar and Mississippi and Louisiana and Yemen
Help us to love and respect and protect them all. Continue reading →

Why Uncommon Devotion?

10 Wednesday Apr 2013

Posted by in discipleship

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God is calling for a prophetic community to emerge, drawn from the nations of the world, that is characterized by uncommon devotion to the compassion and peace of God revealed in Jesus Christ. – Doctrine & Covenants 163:11a

When I attended the 2007 Community of Christ World Conference I was on the edge of my seat listening to President Steve Veazey share Words of Counsel to the church. “Uncommon Devotion” was one of the phrases that immediately stuck out to my that night. Later in the week the conference body accepted it as Section 163 of the Doctrine & Covenants. “Uncommon Devotion” was such a powerful phrase that the Young Adult group that I was the Co-Leader of in the Seattle area planned worship services around it.

So why does it speak to me? Continue reading →