Drew Downs

Make a New Normal

Church

  • Liberating Pentecost by David R. Henson is a must read before Sunday!

  • a Homily for Easter 7B Text: John 17:6-19 Jesus leaves twice. We forget that. We celebrate Jesus dying and rising again. But Jesus doesn’t rise like a ghost on the way up to the clouds. Jesus comes to his disciples and clears the air. Think of it this way. In preparing for his death, Jesus…

  • We often speak of being “off duty” when not at work. We speak of our work days and the double lives of “work me” and “real me”. For the presbyter, there is no such distinction. Or at least there shouldn’t be. The toxic effects of split roles in ministry are numerous. So for clergy, there is…

  • Awhile back I wrote about how much I hate announcement time.  Go back and take a look at it, because I feel justified in saying that.  Announcement time, as I’ve experienced it in the several congregations I’ve served has, for the most part, been a horrible train wreck.  This is mostly the case because it is…

  • Yesterday I wrote that when we claim we don’t have enough time for church, it is really code for “I don’t want to”. Today I’ll say that living in the U.S. right now is like living in a time-sucking vortex of anxiety and despair.  Or maybe that’s just what it feels like when I get 30 minutes…