• Fred's Blog

    Is Justice Just a Fad?

      This should probably be a letter to the editor of the Huffington Post or maybe a comment on the article by this same title written by Ken Wytsma this week. Ken is the president of Kilns College in Bend Ore. ” where he teaches courses on philosophy and justice. He is also the founder of The Justice Conference—an annual international conference that began in 2010 with a few hundred participants and will have several thousand attending in Philadelphia this year. It's not the only conference focused on the topic of justice” but it is one of the best examples of the momentum the issue of justice has reached. The…

  • Fred's Blog

    The Tin Man

      I’ve never followed the career of Lance Armstrong but for some reason decided to watch his sessions with Oprah this past week. What I saw was disturbing: arrogance pride narcissism deceit betrayal out-of-control desire to win bullying disloyalty ” disgrace and the emotional disconnect required to isolate himself from the guilt of his own judgments. Yes” there was remorse and the realization of what he had done but it has still not become sin for him. He used words like “sick” and “flawed” when the one word he needs to understand is “sin.” But there is nothing in his background that would lead him to that ” and I…

  • Bible Studies

    Amos 5-6

    1.  “The biblical prophets continue to be the most powerful and effective voices ever heard on this earth for keeping religion honest, humble, and compassionate. Prophets sniff out injustice, especially injustice that is dressed up in religious garb. They sniff it out a mile away. Prophets see through hypocrisy, especially hypocrisy that assumes a religious pose. Prophets are not impressed by position or power or authority. They aren’t taken in by numbers, size, or appearance of success.” – Eugene Petersen’s introduction to Amos in The Message. Richard Stearns in the introduction to The Hole in Our Gospel. “What does God expect of us? That’s what this book is about. It’s a simple…

  • Fred's Blog

    Lincoln and Leadership

    One of the most watched events of 2012 was Nik Wallenda's tightrope walk across Niagara Falls. In so doing he became the first man to walk over the falls in 116 years and the first ever to walk right over the falls. If you saw it you probably remember the mist-obscured image of his dropping to one knee fist-pumping ” and running to the end of the rope into the arms of his family. It was a great moment of personal victory. I've not seen any leadership books so far based on

  • Fred's Blog

    A Team of Rivals

      One of the most watched events of 2012 was Nik Wallenda's tightrope walk across Niagara Falls. In so doing he became the first man to walk over the falls in 116 years and the first ever to walk right over the falls. If you saw it you probably remember the mist-obscured image of his dropping to one knee fist-pumping ” and running to the end of the rope into the arms of his family. It was a great moment of personal victory. I've not seen any leadership books so far based on

  • Fred's Blog

    I Dreamed a Dream

      Thirty years ago I convened a small group of friends from around the country and they became the “Dream Team” charged with thinking about the future of The Gathering. We spent two days filling up newsprint sheets and hanging them on the walls of the hotel conference room. We followed all the usual steps of brainstorming and strategic planning. We asked great questions and speculated about customers values niches and brands. Still just one thing remains for sure in my mind – our common desire that we not become an “elite” group or what one team member called “a Bohemian Grove for Christian donors.” In the years since we…

  • Bible Studies

    Hosea 13-14

    1.  The challenge of a long life is to stay vital and not drift. Not many of the leaders of Israel were able to be good for the long run. They eventually give in to deceit or drift or the ever present temptation to worship other gods. There are many strong starts but few that finish. Ephraim was exalted in Israel but he failed to finish well. It’s a question for us as well. Many of us have just made it through mid-life transition by the skin of our teeth and now we face the next challenge. It’s like climbing a mountain and finding out you are on a plateau…

  • Fred's Blog

    The Right Use of Money

      I have been teaching from Hosea for the last several weeks and also reading John Wesley’s Sermon #50 on the use of money. It is in this sermon that Wesley develops the now famous three-point formula for the right perspective on wealth.  It would have been relevant for Israel then and is certainly so for us today.  Israel had become so caught up in the pursuit of wealth ” and men had so perfected the art of financial deceit that they are described as literally loving fraud – not just wealth but the deceit itself. Getting wealth in legitimate pursuits no longer appealed to them.     Here is…