Just Imagine: God a Shepherd!

By Greg Forster: part two of a series. In a talk on Sending Disciples to a Pluralistic World, Vincent Bacote said: “Many Christians live in an imagination desert, unable to connect faith to vocation.” That’s a deep insight – that it takes imagination to make the connection between faith and work. And Bacote draws the work/imagination connection tighter when he…

Bad Boss? A Small-Group Study

Reprinted from the Theology of Work Project. Introduction to the Issue Because they are human and subject to the effects of the Fall, bosses can be arrogant, self-centered, or even abusive. Dealing with a bad boss requires extra tact and forethought. Here is a case study from the bible on one bad boss. A Bible Hero with a Bad Boss…

Ordinary Work and the Babel Temptation

By Chris Armstrong, reprinted from Humanism as a Way of Life. Part one of a series. Ordinary Work Author Michael Horton says, “Ordinary” has to be one of the loneliest words in our vocabulary today. . . . Who wants to be that ordinary person who lives in an ordinary town, is a member of an ordinary church, and has ordinary friends and works an ordinary job? Our life has to…

So What Are We Meeting For? Discernment

By Jo Trickey, reprinted from the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity. I am saying this so that no one may deceive you with plausible arguments. Colossians 2:4 In his letter to the Colossians, Paul expresses a deep pastoral concern: that believers should not be misled by teachings that sound great but are ultimately false. ‘I am saying this,’ he writes,…

A Christian Vision for Compassion

Reprinted from the Oikonomia Network. Our vision paper “A Christian Vision for Flourishing Communities” lays out how we see the challenge of renewing theologically formed Christian wisdom for the common good and human flourishing in the advanced modern world. En Español: “Una Visión Christiana para las Comunidades Florecientes“ Inside, you’ll find: While the Twelve Elements usually get most of the…

Principles for Going Beyond the Four Walls

Reprinted from the Chalmers Center. Local churches are designed by God to be on the “front lines” of proclaiming His love to a hurting world. But churches often make a significant mistake when it comes to helping those in poverty. They sometimes create divisions in their efforts that aren’t really necessary, according to Scripture. When we split up the act…

Running the Race to the End

By Pam Tinsley, reprinted from Living God’s Mission. Last fall we were thrilled to watch our six-year-old granddaughter Sienna run cross country. (Yes, we are that kind of grandparents, the ones who beam with pride at pretty much anything she does.) When you run cross country, you encounter many obstacles: the terrain, the weather – especially in the wet Pacific Northwest, and…

The “Little Saints” of Vocation at Christmas

By David Williamson, originally posted here at TGR. We are re-running this post for Christmas. Thank you, Lord, for David’s contributions to TGR and legacy in the movement! My favorite Christmas nativity scene comes from the French region of Provence. I first discovered this scene in the lobby of a local French hotel. At first glance, it looked like another Christmas nativity scene…

Gleaning: Make Space for the Outsider

By David Gill, reprinted from the Bay Area Center for Faith & Tech. What would an economic system look like if God designed it?  I mean the God who loves everybody on earth. The God who loves the poor as well as the rich, east and south as well as north and west. Would it be all about free enterprise…

Just Imagine: God a Worker!

By Greg Forster: part one of a series. Do we really think of God as a worker? We may say he is one, citing John 5:17 or other passages. But does our concept of God match our theology?  How we imagine God is one of the most profound formative influences on our faith and life. That’s why scripture gives us…