I have had to take an amount of time to think about the many recent murders that have happened since Orlando, Baton Rouge, Minnesota, and Dallas. I have sometimes thought that this started at Ferguson, Baltimore, and Chicago—however my friends who are people of color have reminded me that this began centuries before that. I […]

I recently passed my 54th birthday. This means I have been alive since John F Kennedy’s presidency and began my voting days during the Reagan vs Carter election. I grew up in a home that was conservative yet interested in what happened politically. I remember hearing my parents talk about the elections as a child […]

Years ago a young Portland State University student, Kelsey Testerman, was brought to Agape by a friend. She stuck with us. She was active with our college group, children’s ministry, Agape Blitz teams, and downtown home communities. She was one of those who came to us with two goals–she was going to be a Christian […]

The picture in this post is a reminder to me that as a minister, as well as a Christian father and husband, I am not only called to wrestle against evil—but enlist others in that same battle. While American Christianity has sounded various battle cries such as “Don’t Judge!” or “Preach God’s Love!” and “We […]

I am writing this post as an outsider looking into a world view that is vastly different from mine. I have to admit, I am a white, middle-class, highly educated, male who has been raised in that environment. I don’t apologize for being that person, but admit I have a privileged perspective on life. Over […]

  Dec 20: The Spirit Comes…Joel 2:28-32; Acts 2:17-21  Sermon The prophet Joel spoke during a time when Jerusalem’s impending doom lay around the corner. He spoke as if he could see the clouds of a great storm moving over a valley. Like a weather forecaster he not only spoke as if the destruction from […]