Incarnational Evangelism
I used to work at a farm that sold sheep and goats to ethnic Muslim immigrants from all over the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. One day, as I was working on some chores, several young Mauritanian men walked in the door and asked me to help them choose a … Read More
This Is Not AI Generated
AI is everywhere, it seems. Newscasters are talking about it, tech companies are hyping it, and students are cheating in English class with it. Some people are worried that their jobs will be replaced by AI, others are scared it’ll take over the whole world. But today I’d like to … Read More
Identity in Christ: Individuality, Belonging, and Story
Have you ever asked yourself the question, “who am I?” If you have, you’re certainly not alone. The question of personal identity has been a recurrent topic of human thought throughout the ages, and is likely one that each of us has encountered or will encounter some day. This is … Read More
Why Don’t We Like Evangelism?
It was a sweltering summer afternoon in Columbus, Ohio. I stood on the sidewalk, staring into the irate eyes of a woman who had been passing by. I, along with some folks from church, had left my secluded house in the country to hold signs and pass out tracts outside … Read More
Longing for Home
Recently, Elijah and I and our baby son packed up our home in a Pennsylvania city and moved ourselves to the land of our ancestors. We now live on the edge of a little village nestled in the Taunus mountains and are slowly discovering what it means to call this … Read More
Why Do We Want to Be Distracted?
I haven’t written in a while. I wanted to write this post months ago, but with cruel irony, my mind was too cluttered to find the creative space needed to write an article about technology and isolation. I found myself succumbing to the very giant I wanted to encourage others … Read More
Bully Pulpit: On Spiritual Abuse
In the last several years, our society has become increasingly attuned to the prevalence of abuses of power and the incredible damage that is all-too-often inflicted by the powerful. Since some of this movement has been accompanied by our culture’s allergic reaction to some legitimate authority, we may be tempted … Read More
Reason Enough: Art and Creating
I am a theatre-maker by training. As I write this essay I am planning costumes and scheduling rehearsals for a production of William Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure. Anabaptist communities, as I understand, are generally averse to the theatre, so I may be setting myself at odds with my audience by … Read More
Learning from the Prohibition Failure
America had a drinking problem in the late 1800s. If you look through old Baptist and Methodist hymnals (I’ve done this myself), you’ll find a slew of odd songs about drunkards, playing cards, praying moms and the evils of “booze.” Additionally, children’s story books from the turn of the century … Read More