Thursday 's Catch: 'An Inclusive Church Will Be a Growing Church' And More

An Inclusive Church Will Be a Growing Church
Healthy churches pay attention to the people God has placed around them. When ministry reflects the realities of the surrounding community, congregations bear fruit; when it does not, decline often follows. In this piece from his new book An Aura of Hope, Lovett H. Weems Jr. challenges leaders to ask a simple but revealing question: Who is missing—and how is God calling us to reach them?

Churches Are Targets for Predators (Here's Why)
One of the biggest mistakes church leaders can make is assuming that abuse won’t happen in their churches. The belief that “it can’t happen here” is dangerously naïve. Any organization that works with children and other vulnerable individuals can be a target for predators. Satan specifically aims to attack churches and seeks to harm children and vulnerable people. Josh and Sam discuss this very important topic of safety.

How 'Christ is King' became an internet weapon
In recent months, a strange pattern has appeared online. Under posts about Jews, Israel, or antisemitic conspiracy theories, the same phrase repeatedly shows up in the comment section or on social media profiles: “Christ is King.”

King Charles called upon to defend Christian heritage
A bishop from the Confessing Anglican Church (CAC) has called upon His Majesty King Charles III to end the “erosion of Britain’s Christian inheritance” and to live up to his title as “Defender of the Faith”.

Mexican Anglican schism enters its fourth year
The internal crisis in the Anglican Church of Mexico has solidified into a durable schism, with rival structures and competing claims to authority. What began as a dispute over teaching and discipline has become a struggle over how power is exercised, how leaders are chosen, and how truthfulness and due process are handled in the life of the province.

Maryland Episcopal church faces city fines for letting unhoused people sleep on its property
An Episcopal church in Ocean City, Maryland, is facing fines of up to $5,000 a day if it continues to allow people to sleep in church-provided tents on its property.

Stop Being Shocked When Christians Disagree with You
...when differences arise, we question not only the maturity or faithfulness of a brother or sister but also the sincerity of their faith. Hidden motives get attributed to those who, because of their background, their location, or the particular way they’ve applied biblical reflection to their cultural context, simply read the moment differently than we do.

The Art and Science of Making Disciples, with Peyton Jones (Ep 124)
The stats are troubling. In a recent survey, pastors acknowledged that discipleship is the aspect of church ministry that they do least well. And when church members are surveyed, only 23 percent of Christians say they were ever discipled one-on-one.

In this conversation with Peyton Jones, we talk about the severe need for our churches to become better at the main command Jesus gave His church: making disciples.

Thursday Evenings at All Hallows (March 19, 2026) Is Now Online

Welcome to Thursday Evenings at All Hallows.

This Thursday evening, we continue our Lenten message series on the means of grace, the different ways God meet us and works in us. The topic of this Thursday evening’s message is prayer.

Reading: Matthew 6:1-15

Message: In the Way of Prayer

Link: https://allhallowsmurray.blogspot.com/2026/03/thursday-evenings-at-all-hallows-march.html

Please feel free to share this link with anyone who may be interested.

If you are new to Thursday Evenings at All Hallows, you may find these directions helpful:

-It is recommended that after reading or hearing a lesson to take time to reflect on what you read or heard during the period of silence which follows the lesson. It is also recommended that you do the same thing after reading or hearing the message.

-When you open the link to a video in a new tab, check auto-play to make sure it is in the off position. Otherwise, a second video with a different song will follow the first.

-If an ad plays when you open a link to a video in a new tab, click the refresh icon of your browser until the song appears.

-If a song begins partway through the video, click pause, move the slider to the beginning, and then click play.

-An ad may follow a song so as soon as the song is finished, close the tab.

May Thursday Evenings at All Hallows be a blessing to you.

Wednesday's Catch: 'Beyond the Small-Town Stereotype: Rural Churches Are Growing' And More

Beyond the Small-Town Stereotype: Rural Churches Are Growing
What do rural churches and their growth look like?

Research suggests young Canadians showing greater openness to religion
A new research report suggests that young Canadians may be showing greater openness to religion, even as overall religious affiliation in the country remains low.

Jailed Rwandan Bishop Pleads for Justice
Former Rwandan Bishop Samuel Mugisha Mugiraneza, said by many of his former flock and several of his fellow bishops to be unfairly imprisoned, will now have his day in court this week. A hearing on his appeal of a sentence of three and half years in prison for pasturing his cattle on church property is scheduled for March 18.

5 Ways Churches Risk Losing Their Tax-Exempt Status
Here are five of the most common ways churches put their tax-exempt status at risk.

Relief as Scottish Parliament rejects assisted suicide in historic vote
Liam McArthur has lost his bid to to legalise assisted suicide in Scotland after an hours-long final debate in which more MSPs stood up to speak against the proposals than for.

The Challenge and Opportunity of Metamodern Christianity
Gone are the days of coherent systems of belief we inherit from our parents. Gone are the days of stable religious adherence across time. We’ve simply seen too much.

The Pastor’s Betrayal: A Hidden Trauma Many Church Leaders Carry
For most pastors, betrayal is not an abstract concept. It is a lived experience. Sadly.

Here We Are Now ... (Entertain Us)
This blog post isn’t really a plug for Nirvana, although they were the anthem of my youth. But it does capture an instinct that some of us can have when we approach sermons. At our worst, and more often than we would like to admit, we can be people who seek after novelty, stylistic excellence, and ear-tickling preaching. We passively consume sermons and worship services with little effort.

Young adults turn to Quakers' silent worship to offset — and cope with — a noisy world
At the Arch Street Meeting House in Philadelphia's Old City, more and more young people are seeking respite from a clamorous technological age in the silent worship of a centuries-old faith.

The Danger of AI Isn’t Misinformation. It’s Mis-Formation.
The spiritual danger of AI is that it might condition us to take shortcuts in the means God uses to form disciples. Here are three ways this can quietly compete with biblical spirituality.

6 Ways to Encourage Commitment to Small Group 

To combat apathy among small group attendees, here are six ideas to help encourage commitment to small groups.

Regular church attendance associated with lower likelihood of mental health diagnoses
“Conservatives who attend church weekly are the least likely to have ever been diagnosed with a mental health condition,” sociologist Ryan Burge reported Thursday on X.

By contrast, he added, “liberals who have low attendance are the most likely to have a diagnosis.”

[Book review] The other half of church: Christian community, brain science, and overcoming spiritual stagnation
Lots of churches in the Global North are cerebral, shaped by the impact of the Enlightenment on culture. Other churches (non-white, Global South) are often more ‘spiritual,’ prayerful, and expectant. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could all learn from each other’s strengths and find more common ground? It’s just possible that this book could help us do that.

Does Your Church Have a Discipleship Culture? How to Cultivate It
Discipling others is essential to ministry. As one pastor well explains, “Churches don’t need programs so much as they need cultures of discipling, cultures where each member prioritizes the spiritual health of others.”1

But if this is the case, how can a church build that culture of discipleship?

Tuesday 's Catch: 'The Great Unmooring' And More

The Great Unmooring: How Cultural Upheaval Is Creating a Gospel Opportunity
Unmooring is also an accurate description of the complexities and confusion of our moment. People—even whole communities—are becoming disconnected from the realities that held previous generations together.

While this “Great Unmooring” is certainly true of American society, it can also be felt throughout the world. Its impacts are multifaceted, creating turbulent times, division and uncertainty. But it also presents tremendous opportunity for the gospel.

Denominations That Are on Red Alert for Rapid Decline
Using a recent study by Ryan Burge, Jess and Thom examine the sobering reality of demographic decline in two groups: the Southern Baptist Convention and non-denominational evangelical churches.

Two Denominations That Are Surprisingly Young
In the previous podcast, Jess and Thom examined the aging and dying denominations. In this podcast, they discuss the two youngest denominations.

Church of Ireland marks St Patrick’s Day with worship, music and pilgrimage
Church of Ireland dioceses and cathedrals have prepared a wide programme of worship, music and community events to mark St Patrick’s Day on Tuesday.

The commemorations are in honour St Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, who is remembered for bringing Christianity to the island in the fifth century.

The story of St Patrick’s Day
On March 17 every year, people in Ireland and across the world celebrate St Patrick’s Day. What began as a religious feast has grown into a global celebration of Irish culture, history and identity.

But who was St Patrick, and why is he remembered centuries later? His story is one of hardship, faith and a remarkable mission that changed the course of Ireland’s history. So, let’s dive right into it.

Disestablishing Church of England 'will not be a priority' at next election, says Green Party
The Green Party has responded to claims it wants to disestablish the Church of England by saying that this will "not be a priority" at the next General Election.

The Daily Mail reported that it had seen the plans in a Green Party policy document stating that the Church would be disestablished and instead become "self-governing" so that future appointments of offices like the Archbishop of Canterbury would be done without involvement from secular government officials. Bishops would also be removed from the House of Lords under the alleged plans.

Why Harassment Training Is Essential for Small Churches (And How to Protect Your Ministry)
For many pastors and church leaders, the idea of “workplace harassment training” can feel like something designed for corporations, not congregations. After all, churches are communities built on shared faith, trust, and service. They’re supposed to be immune to things like this. Right?

But the reality is that most churches are also technically workplaces, too. Staff members, volunteers, and ministry leaders interact daily, often in emotionally intense environments. And like any workplace, misunderstandings, poor boundaries, or inappropriate behavior can occur.

The Afterlife Isn’t Going Away
One thing I am always probing the edges of is how deeply religion is embedded in each one of us. There’s a saying that bounces around the sociology of religion: “you may be done with religion but religion is not done with you.” I really like how Daryl van Tongeren describes this phenomenon: religious residue. You may not have gone to church in a decade and have no plans of raising your kids in a religious household, but there are probably parts of your psyche that are still impacted by religious concepts and frameworks.

I think that the idea of the afterlife is one of those things. It seems pretty common to reject the idea of Moses parting the Red Sea or to question whether Jesus died and actually resurrected. Lots of folks cast serious doubts on those types of miraculous events. But then when surveys include questions about concepts like having a soul and what happens to your existence after you die, that religious residue reemerges, and you can see that lots of Americans do tend to have some type of supernatural belief.

How Pastors Can Lead Through Culture Wars and Political Division
Picture this: You preach on caring for the poor. After the service, a longtime deacon named Harold corners you in the hallway by the coffee table. “That sounded pretty liberal,” he says, and walks away. Next Sunday, a young couple stops you at the door. “We love that you’re speaking up about justice,” they say. “We’ve been looking for a church that actually cares.”

Same sermon. Opposite reactions. Welcome to ministry in a culture war. This isn’t a guide for making everyone happy—that’s not possible, and chasing it will hollow out your ministry. It’s something harder and better than that. Jesus calls his church to rise above worldly divisions, uniting in his truth. Understanding America’s culture wars isn’t optional for pastors—it’s essential.

Actually, You Do Have Time to Read
Literacy in the Western world is in freefall. A study from the University of Florida found that the time Americans spend reading for pleasure declined 40 percent between 2003 and 2023. Pleasure reading among children is now at the lowest level on record. After 300 years of becoming more literate, more intelligent, more communicative, we in the West are regressing. Like Miller’s mobs of Simpletons, we’ve ceased to see the value in books. It seems to not be something we did intentionally, unlike the mobs, but that we just sort of let happen to us.

I probably don’t need to tell you that the decline in literacy tracks with the introduction and widespread adoption of the smartphone, a device that may as well have been developed by a Simpleton to ruin our capacity to read. All previous technology that could (and did) displace reading for pleasure—television, movies, even radio—was designed to get and keep our attention for extended periods of time. But the smartphone and its accompanying software is the first device that is purpose-built for minimizing attention and maximizing distraction. We flip between apps, scroll between videos, and receive notifications of things that seem to need our attention right away.

Relational Ministry in a Technology-Dominated World
Why is relational ministry so important? Read on to find out!

Ground Rules for Counseling Students
If it hasn’t happened already, it’ll happen soon enough:

The late night phone call from a student or parent dropping a bombshell. “Tim, my dad just beat me up. What should I do?” “Tasha, my mom just left my dad, and I don’t know where I should go now.”

For years, Tasha has worked as a counselor, and Tim has served with students. Their experience in these areas has helped them develop ground rules when it comes to counseling students.

Monday 's Catch: 'Does the World Notice When Christians Fight with One Another?' And More

Does the World Notice When Christians Fight with One Another?
While I have interacted with Celsus quite a bit over the years, I was recently reading through his True Doctrine again. And I was surprised by one of his critiques that I had never really noticed before.

Celsus did not reject Christianity merely because he found historical problems in the Gospels or found the idea of incarnation to be incoherent. He found the Christian religion to be problematic also because of the degree to which Christians fought and argued with one another.

For Celsus, these were no minor squabbles. He saw the early Christian movement as characterized by their in-fighting....

The divide tearing America apart just hit a new extreme: Conservative
The word "polarization" was being used to describe the United States' political environment long before Donald Trump launched the MAGA movement with his 2016 campaign. During the 2004 presidential election, quite a few political journalists stressed that liberal and progressive urban Americans and rural Republicans were living in two different worlds. And 12 years before that, during his 1992 presidential campaign, paleoconservative Patrick Buchanan (a major influence on Trump and MAGA) said the U.S. was in the middle of a "culture war."

But Never Trump conservative David French, in his March 15 column for the New York Times, argues that the United States' political polarization is entering an even more dangerous phase than before.

MAGA churches are flouting the law with impunity: report
President Donald Trump and his supporters are engaging in “more overt” defiance of laws prohibiting nonprofits like churches from explicit partisan activity — and this is because, one journalist alleges, MAGA is run by Christian nationalists.

The little-known story of the woman who rescued Mothering Sunday
15 March 2026, or the fourth Sunday in Lent, is Mothering Sunday in Britain and Ireland. The tradition nearly died and was rescued by a determined vicar’s daughter about a hundred years ago. This is the story....

Mother’s Day: reflecting the serving heart of God
March 15 marks Mother’s Day in the UK - a special day set aside to honour the love, effort and sacrifice of mothers and motherly figures in our lives. It is a moment to pause and recognise those who have nurtured us, cared for us and quietly carried burdens for our sake.

Motherhood reveals something deeply profound about the nature of love. In many ways, being a parent is one of the closest human experiences to God’s heart for mankind.

Mother’s Day: Love that stands
Mother’s Day is a beautiful pause in the calendar. Cards are written. Flowers are bought. Restaurants are fully booked.

And somewhere, I suspect, heaven smiles because whenever we honour sacrificial love, we are echoing the heart of God.

Motherhood is one of the clearest reflections of divine love on earth. Gentle and strong. And when I think of a mother in the Bible who embodies that strength wrapped in surrender, one name rises above the rest: Mary, mother of Jesus.

Who Is Watching Out for You?
Pastor, you probably know what it’s like to watch over others while quietly feeling unseen yourself. You help people stay steady in temptation, grief, conflict, and doubt. You pray for them, counsel them, and carry burdens you cannot always share.

So here is a Monday-morning question worth asking: Who is watching out for you?

Plan an Abundant Holy Week with Your Neighbors
Last year, six Episcopal churches in our corner of southern Virginia advertised 37 services between Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday. The year before, it was 34. We did everything: the Proper Liturgies, Monday to Wednesday in Holy Week, Stations of the Cross, Tenebrae, and one shared Great Vigil of Easter. To someone seeing our collective Facebook posts or shared fliers at the coffee shop, we didn’t look like a dying tradition struggling to keep the lights on. We looked alive, full-throated, like we offered something worth people’s attention.

This didn’t happen because any one of our parishes is particularly large or well-resourced. It happened because we sat down together in late January, opened our calendars, and hammered out a schedule. We already live and worship near each other, so why not pool our energies in the holiest week of the year?

I’m writing to invite you—whether you’re clergy, a senior warden, a retired priest doing supply work, or anyone who loves your church and wants to see it thrive—try this. This year. Start now. Not because it’s easy, but because it’s faithful. Not because you have spare energy, but because this is the mission.

Sam Sheridan has point.

Making the Leap: Is It Time to Add Another Worship Service?
A new worship service will either thrive under healthy systems and culture or be strained by its fragility.

Pipe organs could be extinct by 2070 

Pipe Up, a charity devoted to the preservation of organs, has warned that every year over 400 church organs are going unused or even being scrapped every year.

A spokesperson for the group said, "A cultural catastrophe is staring Britain in the face: the imminent loss of its pipe organs," reports the BBC.

Five Hidden Costs of Digital Convenience in the Local Church
...convenience is a helpful tool. It is a dangerous foundation.

When convenience becomes central, something subtle begins to shift in the culture of a church.

Let me share five hidden costs I am seeing.

Many US adults are skipping parenting or having fewer kids – and it’s forcing schools to close
At a February board meeting for Memphis-Shelby county schools in Tennessee, a parent of five children who currently or formerly attended Ida B Wells Academy, an alternative education school, asked board members a question.

“This is a high-performing school. This is not a school in crisis,” she said. “So I respectfully ask, why are we considering closing a school that is working?”

What Singles Need from Married Friends
While it’s true some singles struggle with contentment, plenty find joy and fulfillment.

Singles’ accomplishments can easily go unnoticed without a spouse to share them with. The same can be true of grief.

Does Attracting A Crowd Make Discipleship Harder?
Drawing a crowd to church may not be the best way to start people on a path to discipleship.

In fact, it may hurt our discipleship efforts more than help them.

When a person’s first encounter with the gospel (and their second, and their one-hundredth) is as a member of a crowd they can get a twisted perception of what discipleship means. They start to think that Christianity is about being a passive observer, consumer, and judge of religious content.

When we try to make the shift from that to discipleship it can feel like the ol’ bait-and-switch.

Implement Intergenerational Discipleship in Your Church
What might it look like to cultivate intergenerational discipleship for children and youth in your local church?

Saturday Lagniappe: 'The World After Reading' And More

The World After Reading
We’ve all seen the headlines: Johnny can’t read anymore. Reading scores are plummeting. Forty-six percent of Americans didn’t read a single book in the past year. Young people no longer read for pleasure. The ability of most college students to comprehend even a paragraph of decent English prose is all but non-existent. We don’t even need to click the links or read the studies. We all have plenty of our own anecdotes to back them up at this point.

And we all know why: It’s the screens, dummy.

8 Things Caregivers Should Know About Dementia
Dementia can drive a caregiver either to exasperation or to the cross.

From Titles to Teamwork: Strengthening Your Staff With 5 Clarity Questions
Most often, staff challenges are rooted in a lack of clarity. There are five clarity questions that will help strengthen your staff team.

>What Happened to Our Pastor?
In recent years, the church has suffered numerous reports of catastrophic moral failure by some of its most talented and visible leaders. But it isn’t only famous, highly regarded pastors who falter. It happens to all sorts of pastors from churches large, small, and mid-sized. They hail from every nation and every branch of Christendom. Their sins violate all sorts of biblical standards—and not just the most obvious ones of abuse of power and sexual sin; some leave the faith, dishonor authorities, take their own lives, break vows, misuse funds, plagiarize, covet, and more. Why are so many pastors failing in these ways? Is moral failure among pastors really as much of an epidemic as it seems? How can we have confidence in our leaders amidst all the bad news?

As we consider these questions, we’ll discuss here four potential explanations that have been offered. Two of these, while having some merit, I believe fail to get at the heart of the matter; the other two, I think, come closer to helping us understand the real issues affecting how and why pastors fail, and the church’s own role in that process.

Understanding AVoIP
Keeping up with changes in technology can be a challenge for churches of all sizes even at the best of times. But for those churches that don’t have dedicated staff who have expertise in audio, video and lighting (AVL), it is especially hard.

Because there’s a big change that is already happening in the church tech world, I want to set you on the best path to adapt your equipment so that you don’t have to catch up later—and spend a lot of money to do it.

How to Repent of Sin and Rejoice in Christ Together with a Discipleship Group
How can we fight the good fight of faith? I want to explain the concept of “discipleship groups” as a way for all disciples to fight for what is noble and beautiful. My hope is that discipleship groups will help you experience victory over the world, the flesh, and the devil and enjoy Jesus Christ.

Discipleship groups are small, simple groups of two to four people who meet regularly to repent of sin, rejoice in Christ, and reproduce disciples. Men meet with men and women meet with women in order to effectively address gender-specific issues head-on. I have been in discipleship groups for years. Some have been better than others. Along the way, I’ve discovered groups that make the gospel central are much more effective and enjoyable.

What Does It Mean to Exhort One Another?
You know the experience. Someone in your church or among your friends says something distasteful, does something concerning. A little alarm bell goes off inside you, but you decide not to say anything. Surely it’s an anomaly....

Sundays at All Hallows (March 15, 2026) Is Now Online

Welcome to Sundays at All Hallows.

This Sunday is the Fourth Sunday in Lent, also known as Laetare Sunday, Mid-Lent Sunday, or Refreshment Sunday.

In the Church of England and some other Anglican Churches, it coincides with Mothering Sunday, a Sunday on which Christians have historically visited their mother church—the church in which they received the sacrament of baptism.

Regrettably I am unable to observe this custom as my mother church is St. Mary the Virgin in Therfield, in Hertfordshire, in the United Kingdom, a goodly distance from where I now live.

Among Mothering Sunday customs are the baking of Simnel Cakes and Mothering Buns, "plain yeast-leavened buns, iced, and sprinkled with hundreds and thousands,” for the occasion and children gathering and presenting their mothers with bouquets of violets.

The topic of this Sunday’s message is spiritual blindness.

Readings: 1 Samuel 16: 1-13, Ephesians 5: 8-14, and John 9: 1-41

Message: Born Blind

Link: https://allhallowsmurray.blogspot.com/2026/03/sundays-at-all-hallows-march-15-2026.html

Please feel free to share this link with anyone who may be interested.

If you are new to Sundays at All Hallows, you may find these directions helpful:

-It is recommended that after reading or hearing each lesson to take time to reflect on what you read or heard during the period of silence which follows each lesson. It is also recommended that you do the same thing after reading or hearing the message.

-When you open the link to a video in a new tab, check auto-play to make sure it is in the off position. Otherwise, a second video with a different song will follow the first.

-If an ad plays when you open a link to a video in a new tab, click the refresh icon of your browser until the song appears.

-If a song begins partway through the video, click pause, move the slider to the beginning, and then click play.

-An ad may follow a song so as soon as the song is finished, close the tab.

May Sundays at All Hallows be a blessing to you.

Friday 's Catch: 'What if they don't come back?' And More

St. George's on St. Charles Avenue 

What if they don't come back?
The connection cards are on your desk. Someone on staff has formatted a spreadsheet. You've been told there's a 48-hour window — that this is when the harvest happens, when the people who showed up on Easter Sunday are still warm, still reachable, still maybe-convertible into regulars.

You look at the cards. You wonder, not for the first time, if any of this actually works.

8 Questions Church Leaders Are Asking About Safely Navigating Protests
There’s no single playbook for safety. Every ministry and community operates differently. But there are steps you can take now to start the right conversations.

How To Hear God’s Voice: 5 Things You’re Forgetting To
Have you ever longed to be hearing from God? Have you ever wanted God to speak to you? Do you know how to hear God’s voice?

A Missing Ingredient in Our Sermons and Studies: Biblical Theology
We can slip into viewing the Bible as a scattered collection of wise sayings or disconnected moral lessons. Biblical theology helps us see how all of scripture testifies to Christ.

A Prayer You Can Replay: Extending Care through Voicemail
Looking for a simple, intimate way to extend your pastoral presence? Laura Heikes reminds us that a voicemail prayer only takes a few seconds to record but can be replayed for hours, days, or long nights of waiting.

Marriage Discipleship Is the Missing Piece in Family Ministry
If your church cares about reaching the next generation, there’s an upstream strategy that strengthens every part of ministry: investing in marriages. Children’s and youth ministries matter deeply, but without discipling the parents who shape the spiritual culture of the home, churches often work harder than they need to. When marriages grow in grace, stability fills the home, volunteers serve with joy, teens show up more open, and the entire church experiences deeper unity. Brad Rhoads of Grace Marriage joins Sam on this episode. They explore why marriage discipleship isn’t just another ministry. It’s the source that feeds every other stream of church life, creating a generational ripple effect of gospel impact.

Why Youth Ministry Needs Seasoned Saints
In many churches across the U.S., youth ministry has become synonymous with energy, relevance, and staying current. We look for leaders who understand youth culture, social media trends, and the ever-shifting language of the next generation.

While these qualities are important, an unintended consequence has quietly taken root: We often overlook the older generations sitting faithfully in our pews. These men and women’s lives are rich with spiritual depth, hard-won wisdom, and a steady faith formed over decades.

What if we find one of the greatest untapped resources for youth ministry not in the newest curriculum or the most charismatic leader, but in the seasoned saints of our churches?

Five Essential Gifts to Give Your Kids: Weekly Corporate Worship
I’m working through five essential gifts to give your kids. The five essential gifts are five practical steps parents can take to effectively guide and nurture their children. Caring for your child’s body and soul is your most important responsibility. These five gifts explain how you can do discipleship effectively.

Turning Hospitality into Discipleship
Hospitality is more than a friendly greeting or a warm cup of coffee—it’s the soil where discipleship grows. Julie Hagen shares her journey of finding a welcoming faith community and explores how intentional, mutual hospitality can transform a church into a place where people are seen, loved, and ready to share God’s love with others.

New Orleans church builds community through feeding, outreach ministries
Immediately after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, Louisiana, in 2005, Episcopal congregations assisted their communities in any way possible. Among them was St. George’s Episcopal Church, which began serving food donated by a nearby docked cruise ship.

The regular food distribution, with the help of money from grants and donations, quickly evolved into a full-blown breakfast ministry known today as the Dragon Café, named after the medieval legend of St. George, who slayed a man-eating dragon. More than 20 years later, the ministry’s volunteers haven’t missed a single Sunday, not even during the COVID-19 pandemic, to serve free breakfast to the community.

Thursday's Catch: 'Many Britons fear impact of nation's drift from Christianity - poll' And More

Many Britons fear impact of nation's drift from Christianity - poll
A new poll has revealed widespread fears that drifting further from Britain’s Christian heritage could negatively affect future generations.

Just over half of Brits (52%) share this concern, according to a poll of 2,095 adults conducted by research organisation Whitestone Insight on behalf of Anglo-Catholic study centre Pusey House, Oxford, the Danube Institute of Budapest, and the International Reagan-Thatcher Society.

10 key questions Congress must ask about the Iran war
The Trump administration has opened Pandora’s box by this war of choice.

Tennessee lawmakers kill bill seeking to criminally punish women who have abortions
A subcommittee in the Republican-controlled Tennessee House of Representatives has killed a bill that would have imposed criminal penalties of homicide on women who have abortions, as the pro-life movement remains divided on that particular approach.

Churchgoers Aim to Serve in and out of Church
Most churchgoers say they’re looking for ways to serve God as well as the people in the church and community.

Let George Herbert Deepen Your Faith
Great spiritual poets awaken us to the sweetness of spiritual realities, the devastation of sin, and the majesty of God.

Woven Into the Web: Meaningful Friendships in Rural Ministry
When rural pastors were asked whether they invest in meaningful friendships, the overwhelming majority said yes. Here’s why.

Be the Predictable Pastor
People don’t aspire to predictability. We value spontaneity and freshness above being conventional or routine. Yet a minister of the gospel should be this for his people: the predictable pastor. That is not the same as saying the pastor is boring or uninteresting or that he never does things on the spur of the moment. But it is saying that he is consistent. His ministry will be marked by a reliability that speaks of his deep devotion to Christ and to Christ’s flock.

3 Poor Reasons to Read the Bible
Reading the Bible is no exception. We can exploit even this act of devotion for selfish gain.

How to Create a Discipleship Plan for an Established Church
The four steps in the DisciplesPath process can help any established church move forward with its unique discipleship plan.

Ready to Share Hope
As church leaders, we all know Easter is the most important Sunday of the year. It represents hope, renewal and new life—but only if people hear about it. In the rush of planning special services, it’s easy to overlook a key reality: Many of our neighbors don’t know Jesus or the true story of Easter.

So, how do we reach out and invite them to Easter services, and make it easy for them to say yes?

Thursday Evening at All Hallows (March 12, 2026) Is Now Online

Welcome to Thursday Evenings at All Hallows.

This Thursday evening, we continue the message series on the means of grace. In this Thursday evening’s message we examine what John Wesley understood Scripture to teach about the means of grace and the Lord’s Supper as a means of grace.

Reading: 1 Corinthians 11:17-34

Message: The Supper of the Lord: A Channel of God’s Grace

Link: https://allhallowsmurray.blogspot.com/2026/03/thursday-evening-at-all-hallows-march.html

Please feel free to share this link with anyone who may be interested.

If you are new to Thursday Evenings at All Hallows, you may find these directions helpful:

-It is recommended that after reading or hearing a lesson to take time to reflect on what you read or heard during the period of silence which follows the lesson. It is also recommended that you do the same thing after reading or hearing the message.

-When you open the link to a video in a new tab, check auto-play to make sure it is in the off position. Otherwise, a second video with a different song will follow the first.

-If an ad plays when you open a link to a video in a new tab, click the refresh icon of your browser until the song appears.

-If a song begins partway through the video, click pause, move the slider to the beginning, and then click play.

-An ad may follow a song so as soon as the song is finished, close the tab.

May Thursday Evenings at All Hallows be a blessing to you.

Wednesday 's Catch: 'Why Churches Are MUCH Older Now...' And More

Why Churches Are MUCH Older Now...
Are aging churches a real problem? The US population has a median age of 39 years old. Most denominations have a median age of congregants close to 60 years old. Josh and Sam discuss why churches are a generation older than their surrounding communities. What are the implications of the aging trend in churches?

Reaching Senior Adults for Christ: An Interview with Jeff Cranston
Thom and Jess welcome Pastor Jeff Cranston from Lowcountry Community Church in South Carolina.

Hypocrisy and intolerance drive religious doubt among college students
College students often question their faith because of the intolerant or hypocritical behaviors of religious groups, and while these doubts can increase emotional distress, they also frequently foster intellectual humility and an open-minded search for meaning. These nuanced effects of questioning one’s faith are detailed in newly published research in the journal Psychology of Religion and Spirituality.

Religious influencers repackage Christianity for an always-online generation
At a time when religion in the U.S. has been flat or declining for decades, influencers including Redeemed Zoomer, Religion for Breakfast, Data Over Dogma and Esoterica are revealing a large audience hungry for details and distinctions about the vast array of religious choices available to them. With social norms or pressures to be religious much weaker, experts say people seem to want deeper, specific reasons for why they should practice one way or another — if at all.

Record majority of Americans say belief in God isn’t necessary to be moral
A record majority of Americans now say that it isn’t necessary to believe in God to be moral and have good values, but this view is primarily held by individuals who already don't believe in God, according to new data from the Pew Research Center.

The research, published earlier this month, also highlights a growing share of people around the world who say belief in God isn’t necessary to be moral and have good values.

5 things I wish every U.S. citizen knew
The Trump administration has erased the distinction between those who fall into one of the legally defined pathways and those who do not.

Immigration Brought Us Together Across Political and Generational Divides
Christians may disagree on a lot of things, but showing compassion should not be one.

Bridging the Gap Between Church and Academy
...many leaders in theological education want to bridge the gap between the academy and the church and are working hard to do just that. In particular, there are three ways in which bridges are being built between church and academia. I call the first two ways the accessibility-driven option and the competency-based option.

The Top 10 Reasons We Don’t Trust God 

Jesus models for us the practice of letting go of control, earthly power and reputation. He empties himself at the cross, trusting in the goodness and love of the Father. God intends that we follow the same path. Yet, in situations both large and small, we find this incredibly difficult. Why?

Uncertain Terms: A Guide to Modern Roman Catholic Missions
What the church must understand, however, is that behind every word in that sentence lies a theological reality that presents a very different gospel. They are the same words, but they represent different worlds. The church cannot afford to neglect these realities but for the sake of gospel clarity must study them carefully. Where do these differences come from and how did they develop? Much could be said in response to this question. For our purposes here it will be helpful to look at key developments in the Roman Catholic Church, starting with the Second Vatican Council. Indeed, modern-day Roman Catholicism cannot be understood apart from Vatican II.

Tuesday's Catch: 'Creating a Culture of Evangelism in Your Church' And More

Creating a Culture of Evangelism in Your Church: An Interview with Jeff Cranston
Thom and Jess interview Pastor Jeff Cranston, Lowcountry Community Church, about creating a culture of evangelism.

More Christians think US gov't should help care for vulnerable children at home and abroad: Barna
A lower percentage of Christians in the United States believe that churches and believers have a responsibility to help care for orphans, while a higher percentage believes that the U.S. government should take more responsibility to care for vulnerable children worldwide, according to new data.

The Barna Group released new research based on responses collected from 3,351 self-identified Christian adults between Sept. 24 and Oct. 8, commissioned by the Faith to Action initiative and the Martin James Foundation. Results were compared to findings from a similar survey of 3,000 self-identified Christians conducted between Nov. 11 and Dec. 3, 2020.

American farmers dealt new blow as Trump's Iran war escalates
As the U.S.–Israeli bombardment of Iran continues with no end in sight, the economic shockwaves are already hitting American farmers, with some struggling to buy fertilizer and gasoline prices rising.

The war zone sits at the crossroads of the world’s fertilizer supply. Since the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran a week ago, maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has ground to a near standstill. The waterway moves roughly 20 percent of the world’s daily oil and a quarter of its nitrogen fertilizer.

What affects US agriculture affect the US food supply and US food prices as well as US rural communities and their churches.

The goal of National Women's History Month should be to make misogyny history
Imagine what women could accomplish if they did not have to contend with misogyny every day.

Greed runs wild in the United States of Avarice
A wide swath of American Christianity has supported the politics and political leaders who have made the sin of greed a political virtue.

Georgia Senate unanimously approves clergy sexual abuse bill
The Georgia Senate voted 55–0 last Friday to pass Senate Bill 542, legislation aimed at strengthening criminal accountability for clergy sexual abuse in Georgia. Advocates say the measure closes a gap in state law and creates a path to justice for survivors of abuse by religious leaders.

The Most Important Lesson Older and Younger Ministers Can Learn from Each Other
Younger ministers need to listen to older ministers' stories. Older ministers need to listen to young ministers' questions.

Children’s Lesson: Prayer for Children Far Away
Use this lesson, Prayer for Children Far Away, to introduce your children’s ministry students to the world around them and the need for Christians to serve God’s needs in the mission field.

5 Ways To Adapt Bible Lessons for Kids With Disabilities
If you think children’s ministry at your church doesn’t serve any kids with disabilities, you’d be surprised. According to the CDC, 1 in 6 kids have a disability, so it’s likely kids with disabilities are coming to your church.

Three Reminders For Christian Parents
Here are three things to keep in mind as you seek to raise church-loving children....

Monday 's Catch: 'God’s Mission Has a Zip Code' And More

God’s Mission Has a Zip Code: Tangible Ways Your Church Can Love the People Next Door
As Paul wrote, “Christ’s love controls us” (2 Corinthians 5:14, NLT). Your home, your job, your school—they’re not accidents. God has placed you exactly where He wants you. Your neighbors are not random. They’re part of God’s plan. Even the quirky ones.

Religious ‘nones’ reach record high, only 47% of Americans say religion is ‘very important’
Americans with no formal religious identity, popularly known as the “nones,” reached a record share of the population in 2025, according to Gallup data that shows fewer than 50% of adults also report that religion is “very important” in their lives.

The findings, based on interviews with more than 13,000 U.S. adults across Gallup’s monthly 2025 surveys, show that the share of Americans identifying as “nones” reached a new high of 24%, up from 21% to 22% over the previous four years. The share of Americans identifying as “nones” has grown steadily from 2% in 1948 to its current record.

Welcome Back, Church Planting
For a while, it looked like the church-planting party was over....

World is at a 'dangerous tipping point', say Church leaders in appeal for peace
Four global Christian denominations have issued a joint appeal urging governments and international institutions to recommit to peacebuilding and diplomacy, warning that the world is reaching a "dangerous tipping point".

Leaders of the World Communion of Reformed Churches, the Anglican Communion, the World Methodist Council, and the Lutheran World Federation came together to express deep concern over the growing human toll of ongoing conflicts.

Also See: Leaders of global Christian communions call for renewed efforts towards the ‘gift of peace’

What the Iran War Could Do to Your Soul
On the war with Iran.

Also See: Keeping peace: loving the enemy to the end

GAFCON Nixes Primus Plan
Sources have told The Living Church that only five Anglican primates attended the gathering: the archbishops of Nigeria, Rwanda, and Uganda, whose churches have largely refused to participate in the Anglican Communion’s life for nearly two decades, and the leaders of the Anglican Church in Brazil and REACH-SA, GAFCON-founded churches that have never been part of the Anglican Communion.

The primates of six conservative Anglican churches that have been associated with GAFCON in the past, while also retaining close ties to the Instruments of Communion—the leaders of the provinces of Alexandria, Chile, Congo, Kenya, Myanmar, and South Sudan—all stayed away. Several had attended multiple GAFCON gatherings in past years....

The Global South Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans (GSFA), which had a major presence at the last major GAFCON gathering, in 2023 in Kigali, Rwanda, was also noticeably absent in Abuja....

The story of the Bible’s female leaders

8 March is International Women’s Day. In the Bible we can read about the roles that many women played in leadership and ministry. This is the story....

Why the Incarnation Matters: Jesus Is Fully God
See how the incarnation makes the God of the universe knowable—overcoming cultural, religious, and personal doubts.

Distracted By Things We Can’t Know
It seems that every few years there’s a new best-selling Christian book that creatively fits the latest news headlines into Scripture, specifically the book of Revelation. These authors find hints and clues throughout Scripture that fit together in a way that tells us that Christ is coming at a specified time. Although none of these books have proven true, we can’t stop buying them thinking the next one might be real.

Does God intend for us to spend so much time and energy trying to guess the Second Coming? Would knowing such things be edifying and beneficial, or merely a distraction to our spiritual growth and our mission?

A Pastor’s Guide to Preparing Families for Easter
Every year, pastors prepare sermons, worship centers, and lobbies. But how can pastors prepare families for Easter?

Sundays at All Hallows (March 8, 2026) Is Now Online

Welcome to Sundays at All Hallows.

This Sunday is the Third Sunday in Lent. The topic of this Sunday’s message is Jesus’ teaching about worshiping God.

Readings: Exodus 17: 1-7, Romans 5: 1-11, and John 4: 5-42

Message: What Did Jesus Teach about Worshiping God?

Link: https://allhallowsmurray.blogspot.com/2026/03/sundays-at-all-hallows-march-8-2026.html

Please feel free to share this link with anyone who may be interested.

If you are new to Sundays at All Hallows, you may find these directions helpful:

-It is recommended that after reading or hearing each lesson to take time to reflect on what you read or heard during the period of silence which follows each lesson. It is also recommended that you do the same thing after reading or hearing the message.

-When you open the link to a video in a new tab, check auto-play to make sure it is in the off position. Otherwise, a second video with a different song will follow the first.

-If an ad plays when you open a link to a video in a new tab, click the refresh icon of your browser until the song appears.

-If a song begins partway through the video, click pause, move the slider to the beginning, and then click play.

-An ad may follow a song so as soon as the song is finished, close the tab.

May Sundays at All Hallows be a blessing to you.

Saturday Lagniappe: '''A lie from the pit of hell': Episcopal leaders push back on rumors of fatal decline" And More

'A lie from the pit of hell': Episcopal leaders push back on rumors of fatal decline
More than 850 Episcopal Church leaders gathered in Charlotte to talk about the future of the church and what the denomination still has to offer.

Orthodox Anglicans pursue path of 'principled disengagement' from Canterbury-led Communion
The Gafcon movement has declared itself to be the true Anglican Communion as it continues its shift away from the historic instruments of communion under the spiritual leadership of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

In the Abuja Affirmation, issued at the end of a weeklong meeting in the Nigerian capital, Gafcon Chair Archbishop Laurent Mbanda said that recent Archbishops of Canterbury "have failed to guard the faith" and that the "moral and spiritual authority of the Seat of Augustine" has been "severely compromised" by their embrace of same-sex blessings.

Also See: Conservative Anglican bishops seek 'disengagement' from Canterbury without naming rival leader

GAFCON G26: The Abuja Affirmation
Here is the text of the Abuja Affirmation released by Gafcon.

Number of Americans with biblical worldview remains critically low; Gen Z polls at 1%
A recent survey of American adults found that despite a surge of interest in Christianity and church attendance in the months since Charlie Kirk's assassination, the number of people who adhere to a biblical worldview remains critically low, including just 1% of Gen Z.

Conducted in January by Arizona Christian University's Cultural Research Center under the guidance of researcher George Barna, the latest installment of the American Worldview Inventory asked 2,000 American adults a series of 53 questions to discern if they live consistently with a biblical worldview.

Scott McConnell: The State of Discipleship
Making disciples was the Great Commission Jesus gave his followers before he returned to heaven, but are churches actually helping disciples in our churches to grow?

Recently, Lifeway Research conducted surveys of Protestant pastors and churchgoers to share findings about the state of discipleship in the U.S. today.

A practical way of thinking about local church discipleship is intentionally encouraging believers to follow Christ more closely. The survey of pastors gives us insight into how churches aim to develop healthy, mature Christians.

Why Guests Don't Come Back to Church After a Big Ministry Event
Big events can be a way for churches to reach people, but they often fail to draw people back once the event is done. Thom and Sam unpack what it actually takes to turn community events into gospel opportunities.

Seasonal Outreach Ideas: Refresh VBS, Autism Awareness, Baseball
This spring and summer, engage with those in your church and community in new ways.

Friday 's Catch: 'Gafcon elects council instead of figurehead to rival Archbishop of Canterbury' And More

Gafcon elects council instead of figurehead to rival Archbishop of Canterbury
The Gafcon movement of orthodox Anglicans has opted not to appoint a primus, choosing instead to form a Global Anglican Council.

The council will be tasked with leading the Global Anglican Communion recently created by Gafcon out of frustration with the liberal direction of the Church of England - frustration that eventually led to the movement rejecting the spiritual leadership of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

No primus for GAFCON -- rebrands itself as the Global Anglican Council
A late night “movement of the Holy Spirit” led the leaders of GAFCON to shelve plans to elect a primus inter pares – first among equals – adopting a conciliar or committee style of leadership for conservative Anglicans – and to downplay the name Global Anglican Communion, rebranding itself as the Global Anglican Council.

The decision to avoid a confrontation with the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Anglican Communion by not setting up rival structures perplexed the delegates, as the u-turn in structure and strategy appeared without warning.

As missiles fly overhead, Christians in Lebanon are 'exhausted', says bishop
Almost 30,000 people have been forced from their homes in Lebanon after a series of overnight missile attacks struck Beirut on 2 March, bringing an end to the fragile ceasefire that had been in place since late 2024.

Explosions were reported by Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) charity staff across the Lebanese capital in the early hours of Monday morning, with over 10 strikes targeting the southern outskirts of the city at about 2.30am local time.

Iranian Bishop of Chelmsford denounces 'unjust and illegal' war
The Bishop of Chelmsford, who fled from Iran as a teenager, has denounced the US-Israeli attack on the country as “unjust and illegal”.

The Rt Rev Dr Guli Francis-Dehqani is the daughter of Hassan Dehqani-Tafti, who served as the Anglican bishop of Iran from 1961 to 1990.

The calling of Christians in these solemn days
The renewed escalation of conflict involving Iran and the wider Middle East has once again unsettled the nations. Air strikes, retaliation and rising tensions – ordinary families carry fears about what tomorrow may hold.

And in such an hour, the church must neither panic nor grow silent. We are called to pray and to proclaim.

United Methodist Church to close facility that manages 65,000 relief kits a year
The United Methodist Church is set to close a 48,000-square-foot facility that houses approximately 65,000 disaster-relief supply kits each year.

The United Methodist Committee on Relief, which is part of the denomination’s humanitarian work, will close its Sager Brown Depot in Baldwin, Louisiana, in January of next year.

A Liturgical Theology of Preaching—Preaching as Pastor
This is the fifth and concluding essay is a special series by the Rev. Dr. Nathan Jennings, Professor of Liturgics at Seminary of the Southwest. These essays have been presented in intervals through the winter of 2026. A “round up” with links to all five essays will be published tomorrow.

A Liturgical Theology of Preaching: Series Roundup
Through the winter of 2026, the Rev. Dr. Nathan Jennings, Professor of Liturgics at Seminary of the Southwest has offered a five-part series on a liturgical theology of preaching. Preaching connects God’s word to God’s people gathered. It is a work of pastoral care and a declaration of the Good News. Here’s a round up of the essays.

“Let the Little Children Come”: A Brief Case for Welcoming Children into Corporate Worship
Zack DiPrima makes the case that children should be welcomed into the church’s corporate gathering based on the examples and instructions we have in the Bible. While including younger children may initially have its challenges, the opportunities it provides for evangelizing and discipling the next generation far outweigh any potential costs. The church’s gathering shapes children as they are exposed to God’s Word and the gathered worship of his people.

The Christian Alone
Is solitude part of the Christian life?

Didn't Jesus at times leave his disciples and the crowds and seek the solitude ofa deserted place, setting an example for us?

Thursday 's Catch: 'The Easter Illusion' And More

The Easter Illusion
It’s Easter. The sanctuary is full, the parking lot is overflowing, and the greeters can’t hand out worship guides fast enough. You look around and think, This must be the unchurched finally showing up.

But here’s the surprise: Most of those new faces aren’t new at all.

Is the Gen Z 'revival' in the US skin deep?
Following the assassination of Charlie Kirk last year, anecdotes began pouring in of churches filled with young men and more and more Bibles being sold. Now, however, veteran researcher Dr George Barna has questioned whether what looked like the beginnings of spiritual revival may have been only skin deep.

Dr Barna, of the Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University, said that his own research suggests there are no signs that a biblical worldview has started to take root in America.

Survey: Americans alone in finding fellow citizens 'morally bad'
Still, the findings ‘don’t support that Americans are overarchingly more judgmental or moralistic than in other countries,’ said Jonathan Evans, senior researcher at Pew Research Center.

A Council to Lead the Communion
"Believing that the current Instruments of Communion no longer meet the needs of the majority of Anglicans around the world, the Global Anglican Communion is to be led by a conciliar structure. The Global Anglican Council has discerned that if we are to move past old structures, we must leave behind old titles as well."

Related: Conservative Anglican leaders meet in Nigeria to elect a leader, fueling concerns of schism

EPN speakers press Christians to resist anti-democratic movements as church plans for future
Keynote speakers at the Episcopal Parish Network conference underway here this week emphasized the importance of The Episcopal Church’s faith-based witness in the public sphere. The church, they said, has both the privilege and the responsibility to counter movements toward Christian nationalism, a political ideology that distorts Christian beliefs, and to oppose the Trump administration’s attacks on American democratic norms.

Who was St Piran and why is he the patron saint of Cornwall?
5 March is St Piran’s Day, the feast day of the patron saint of Cornwall. But who was St Piran, and what do we know about him? This is the story....

Equipping Students for Evangelism and Summer Mission Trips
If you have a summer mission trip planned, begin helping students grow in familiarity and comfort with the gospel now.

Thursday Evening at All Hallows (March 5, 2026) Is Now Online

Welcome to Thursday Evenings at All Hallows.

This Thursday evening’s message is the third in the series on the means of grace, the ways which God meets us and works in our lives. The topic of this Thursday evening’s message is the ministry of the Word.

Reading: 2 Timothy 3

Message: The Ministry of the Word: A Channel of God’s Grace

Link: https://allhallowsmurray.blogspot.com/2026/03/thursday-evening-at-all-hallows-march-5.html

Please feel free to share this link with anyone who may be interested.

If you are new to Thursday Evenings at All Hallows, you may find these directions helpful:

-It is recommended that after reading or hearing a lesson to take time to reflect on what you read or heard during the period of silence which follows the lesson. It is also recommended that you do the same thing after reading or hearing the message.

-When you open the link to a video in a new tab, check auto-play to make sure it is in the off position. Otherwise, a second video with a different song will follow the first.

-If an ad plays when you open a link to a video in a new tab, click the refresh icon of your browser until the song appears.

-If a song begins partway through the video, click pause, move the slider to the beginning, and then click play.

-An ad may follow a song so as soon as the song is finished, close the tab.

May Thursday Evenings at All Hallows be a blessing to you.

Wednesday's Catch: 'Gallup Poll: Fewer than half of Americans say religion is 'very important' in their lives' And More

Gallup Poll: Fewer than half of Americans say religion is 'very important' in their lives
President Trump said he was ‘bringing back religion,’ but the latest Gallup Poll shows no evidence of that.

The Real Reason Women Are Walking Away From Church
Beth Moore talks about leaving the SBC a decade ago, how to know when it's time to leave, why so many women are leaving the church, and proof-texting scripture to keep the pulpit and power.

It’s Hard to Find a Progressive Church (and Getting Harder)
Before you read this article, three notes need to be made. First, this post draws heavily on the research of Ryan Burge, who studies the impact of religion on American life. Second, since I don’t have the experience or expertise to speak knowledgeably about the Black church (or other nonwhite congregations), this article focuses on the white American church. Third, at the end of this article, I ask for reader feedback. I hope you will participate.

What are disappearing today are churches that genuinely embody the teaching of Jesus rather than a conservative or liberal political ideology.

US military personnel object to Armageddon talk
U.S. military personnel are being briefed by superiors that ongoing combat operations in Iran are willed by God and will help usher in the end times, according to independent journalist Jonathan Larsen.

Also See: Dispensationalism is going to get us all killed

Is Trump's fight against Iran a just war?
Christians do not need to be pacifists to question Trump’s war against Iran.

MAGA vs. the Teachings of Jesus: The Christian Nationalism Debate 

In this episode of The Bulletin, Mike Cosper speaks with New York Times and The Atlantic author Pete Wehner about his recent argument that “MAGA Jesus” reflects a growing divide between the political imagination of many believers and the teachings of Christ. As Evangelical support for Trump remains strong, Wehner situates the moment within the longer history of the religious right and the rise of evangelicals who embrace Donald Trump.

The conversation explores the ongoing Christian nationalism debate and asks: Is Trump compatible with Christian values? From the Supreme Court and evangelicals’ policy wins to questions of moral character in leadership, Cosper and Wehner examine the tension between political success and spiritual integrity. They also consider cognitive dissonance in politics, the pressures facing pastors to speak out about Trump, and whether Christians should criticize Trump in a time of deepening culture wars in America.

What does it mean to have faith under political pressure, and can the church can resist moral compromise in politics while remaining anchored in the way of Jesus?

Global Anglican Communion meets in Nigeria to elect rival to archbishop of Canterbury
A movement of orthodox Anglicans is meeting in Nigeria this week to elect their own "first among equals" to rival the incoming female archbishop of Canterbury.

The first formal gathering of the Global Anglican Communion began Tuesday in the Nigerian capital of Abuja and will continue through Friday, just weeks before Bishop of London Sarah Mullally is slated to be formally installed in Canterbury Cathedral as the 106th and first female archbishop of Canterbury on March 25.

“Leading Faithfully in a Changing Church” featuring Karen Stewart
How do we lead faithfully in a world that’s changing faster than the church ever expected? In this episode, Lewis Center Director Jonathan Page speaks with Karen Stewart, a seasoned ministry leader and Project Director at the HUB for Re-imagining Ministry at Wesley Theological Seminary. Together, they reflect on Karen’s 30-plus years of pastoral and nonprofit leadership experience, her passion for intergenerational faith formation, and the opportunities and challenges facing today’s church.

The Outside-Inside Parallel of Church Leadership
Lewis Center Director Jonathan Page says that church leadership today requires holding two realities at once: engaging the needs of the community while also forming disciples within the church. He draws on examples from two recent United Methodist gatherings to illustrate how faithful leadership requires movement between the life of the church and the life of the community it serves.