Does Jesus accept me, a lesbian, ‘Just as I am,’?

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(Excerpt from enGendered, and a story I tell a lot in speaking)   If you have ever gone through a pastoral search in your church, you know it is a long, drawn out business. Protestant congregations looking for a leader form committees to examine pastor candidates for visible strengths and hidden weaknesses. They must pay close attention to make sure …

The Single Biggest Way to Improve Your Relationships

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To improve our relationships, we must first ask a question with a deep answer. Can you come along with me for a little theology? The question is, Why do we have relationships? The answer for the Christian is that God is trinity. God has relationship within God’s triune Self. The Three are co-equal (and co-eternal), but very different individual Persons. …

Why You Should Believe Gender is Real if You Are a Christian

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Nearly all Christians have a firm belief that humanity is made up of male and female, based on what they read in Genesis 1:27. “…male and female [God] created them.”  But what about the concept of gender? Here they are fuzzy. Masculinity and Femininity are hard to define, and passing through Western schools is liable to convince you that these …

Should Girls Lift Weights? The Bible Tells Us

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Today, another “Scenic Overlook.” Again, I am using historical and archeological study to try to imagine what a particular Bible story really might have been like. The game is to try and guess which Biblical character is being described before you get to the end and find out. Can you guess?       He was coming. She pushed down …

Feel Like Christian Men Are Not Stepping Up In Marriage? Here’s A Big Reason Why

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I find it a helpful practice as a pastor to read through some recommended book on engagement or marriage with each couple I am counseling for marriage. This exercise, along with discussion about the couple’s particular issues, provides perspective for them about what life together will really be like. So, over time I have built up an annotated bibliography of …

Three Questions You Should Ask About Intersex Birth Certificates

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New York State issued the nation’s first intersex birth certificate last week. NBC News reported on it here. I encourage you to read the report on 55-year-old Sara Kelly Keenan who got the state to change the sex on the birth certificate to the non-binary term. Intersex is a current term used to refer to the mercifully rare condition of …

The Big Frolicking Circle on the Deep

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The following is an excerpt from enGendered, one of the “Scenic Overlooks.” This one opens the book.  The idea of these is to try and guess while you are reading what Bibilcal passage is being imagined, before the last line. If it completely throws you for a loop, don’t worry–I’ll explain it after:   I was racing faster than the speed …

Congratulations to the Study Guide Contest winners!

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We’ll be contacting you winners for your mailing address. I am a little concerned though. The first ten subscribers came in within the first ten hours of the New Years Midnight launch. Shouldn’t you guys be sleeping more instead of being on social media in those hours? I mean, really. Maybe you should go to bed.