Religion and Faith Articles (Sorted by date)

A Pastor’s Dirty Little Secret

In the past 14 years I’ve rubbed shoulders with more ministers than I can remember. I’ve talked with ministers of large churches, small churches, and every size in between.
Brian JonesOctober 02, 2005

Overcoming Pride

The first church I ever served was located in an extremely small town in Eastern Kentucky. There wasn’t even a stop-light at the time. The church was full of wonderful farmers, which was ironic, because the only time I had ever been to a farm...
Brian JonesOctober 02, 2005

Overcoming Grief

During my first year of college a life-long family friend and mentor tragically lost his son. Separated by distance, I assumed that his Christian friends, the staff at his church, and his Sunday school class would step in and wrap their arms around...
Brian JonesOctober 02, 2005

I Still Believe In Hell

At first glance you’d probably think I’m resistant to change. I don’t drink Starbucks coffee. I not a big Abercrombie & Fitch fan. I’m still not used to women having tattoos. I’m not getting an earring any time soon.
Brian JonesOctober 01, 2005

Overcoming Prejudice

When I entered junior high I quickly set two goals for my seventh grade year: First, to get Kacey Gire to kiss me; and Second, to keep my friend Eric Green and myself out of the hospital.
Brian JonesOctober 01, 2005

Overcoming Uncertainty

Eleven years ago I had just graduated from Princeton Theological Seminary and the Senior Minister I was serving with encouraged me to write a letter to the editor of the local newspaper.
Brian JonesOctober 01, 2005

Leading a Growing Church

Recently I spent the day reflecting on my fumbling attempts to lead our church in growth. To say that I’ve felt unprepared for my current assignment is an understatement…the Three Stooges meet Forrest Gump strikes me as a more accurate...
Brian JonesSeptember 30, 2005

The Myth of the Happy Church-Growth Pastor

Once upon a time there was a young man who felt called to become a Pastor. He went to a Christian college where they taught him many wonderful things...how to love people and teach the Bible and win people to Jesus.
Brian JonesSeptember 30, 2005

Making Things Harder

In a letter historians call “The Epistle To Diognetus,” an unknown second century disciple wrote to a skeptic named Diognetus to answer his questions about this strange new religion called “Christianity.” The opening lines of his...
Brian JonesSeptember 30, 2005

The Church of Christ and The Protestant Sects

Actually I don’t want to write a post for this blog about religion. But, I just couldn’t stay here in front of my computer without answering the question raised by a friend which was sent to me through email.
Sustines LaplanaSeptember 27, 2005