Based on the information I shared last time, if we are going to reach the majority of people in Fort Wayne we need to think about people who are young, have one kid, own their home, and have a modest but decent living. Who are these people? In general people in their 30s today multi-task […]
These are the People in Your Neighborhood Part 1
The Allen County Vulnerable Populations Study was released this week and based on the 2016 research data. The executive summary is available here. I have pulled and digested the following information from the full 400+ page document which is also at that link. I have limited my research to Allen County as a whole and […]
17 years ago
Seventeen years ago today I was about three months into a new pastorate, as I am today about three months into a new pastorate. I was getting ready for the funeral of a woman I had never met when my house mate, Craig, called and said I needed to come see the news. It is […]
Baptist Boy
In Philippians 3 Paul recites what he could boast about if he was so inclined: “circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless.” Anything Paul can say about being a […]
Cleaning Out Welcoming In
Cleaning Out, Welcoming In (note: this letter originally appeared in the September Newsletter) I have been working hard lately to get my office looking like the kind of place people might want to sit and talk to their pastor and hope many of you will do so. It is not done yet, but it might […]
What do you see?
What do you see when you look at another person? Do you see their race? Gender? Do you guess about their religion? Politics? Sexual orientation? Hobbies? Job? Home life? It can be a fun game, as long as it remains a detective game. Far too often we then let it be a gut reaction on […]