John 10:11-18 It’s Good Shepherd Sunday, Dear Partner in Preaching, which means the text before us is a portion of the “Good Shepherd Discourse” found in John 10. This long address follows, and is actually a narrative extension of, the healing of the man born blind in John 9. In light of the failure and spiritual blindness of religious authorities who condemn the healing of a man sightless from birth, Jesus offers himself as a counter example, picking up a theme that runs throughout the Old Testament of God’s good shepherds contrasted with leaders who shirk their responsibility and fail to care for God’s people. This year, we...

…well? And that matters. Because it’s not just about using social media, but using it well. That is, responding to the Digital Age isn’t just a matter of having a Facebook page or semi-lame (or even pretty good) website. Rather, it’s thinking with care about the variety of channels of communication that are available to us today in order to support our people in their Christian walk. Of course, the very thing that makes this moment so amazing in terms of our ability to share the Gospel and equip people for lives of faith – the nearly uncountable number of communication channels available to us – is precisely that which makes...

Dear Partner in Preaching, I want to start with a question: how often do you think about your baptism? Perhaps your family reminded you of its importance by celebrating the anniversary of your baptism each year and so baptism has always been important to you. Or maybe you learned to appreciate it later, at confirmation or sometime as an adult. Or maybe your appreciation of baptism was deepened during your study at seminary and now you think of it every time you wash. Or maybe you know the theological significance of baptism but, truth be told, don’t think of it all that often. (Don’t worry, I’m not judging, just asking.) Now I want you...

I’m always intrigued by how social media is shaping the way we make and share meaning. Usually, that takes the form of thinking about how various elements of social media or the larger digital culture can help us share the good news. But from time to time it’s also fun to “look back” and imagine what our forebears would have done with social media. Last year I found “The Digital Story of the Nativity” quite fun in that regard; this year it’s “A Social Network Christmas.” Without wanting to spoil too much, I think my favorite moment was when 23 people “unfriend” Joseph for...