Throughout history countless examples of people use the name of Jesus to justify or convince themselves & others the sacredness of their party, agenda, or platform. For centuries people tried to stand on the “holy” claim that Jesus is on their side. Countless political movements claim Jesus as their moral compass; numerous colonization efforts are cloaked as evangelism, and outright injustices are perpetrated in the name of advancing the Kingdom of God. If we are willing to honestly read the message of the Gospel as Jesus revealed it, we will find that Jesus never calls us to takes sides or to approve of any movement, governing principle, or ideology that leads to the marginalization of people we define as “the others”. The longer I pastor, the more I realize how deeply our cultural moment longs for clarity—yet how quickly we trade the clarity of Jesus for the certainty of our preferred ideology. Jesus engaged the political issues of His day with remarkable courage, compassion, and...

As we celebrate Trans awareness week (11/13/25 – 11/19/25) I believe it is important as a Christian Pastor to speak up regarding the value of trans people both inside and outside the church. Fact, Trans people exist, have always existed, and being trans isn’t a sin.   As Christian psychologist Mark Yarhouse explains, gender identity is “how you experience yourself… as male or female, including how masculine or feminine a person feels” ( Understanding Gender Dysphoria , p. 13).   I know that this language makes many people uncomfortable so let me make an important statement of my own: societally defined gender can be experienced on a spectrum while biological sex is  generally recognized as male, female, or in a condition known as intersex where the individual possess both male and female traits in their biological make up. I do not pretend to understand all this reality fully, but I do intentionally and without apology support the dignity, value, and beauty of t...

"Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’  And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ - Matthew 25:37-40 (ESV) As our nation continues to debate — or worse, play the blame game — over the current government shutdown (as of 11/4), I want to remind my fellow Christian siblings that a Christ-focused nation would take to heart the words of Jesus in Matthew 25. Jesus gave His disciples — then and now — a clear call to care for the oppressed, the marginalized, the hungry, the immigrant, and even those we might see as enemies. In the Sermon on the Mount, He introduced a counter-cultural kingdom built on loving God in a way that   always   shows up as love for our neighbor. I’m not a...