As I’ve thought and prayed about what to say to you tonight as we begin, I’ve chosen a short passage from Philippians.  It seems most appropriate because it is Paul’s letter to the church with which he has had a long and deep relationship.  Some have even described it as the church he loved the most.  It was certainly one of the most diverse – an accomplished businesswoman, a redeemed fortune teller and a jailer all in the same congregation.  It reminds me so much of us here tonight as we all come from so many different backgrounds and traditions.  We all have such varied interests and passions and we…

Bill Stagg and I started badly. I heard about Bill before I met him…but just ten seconds before.  It was 1978 and I was a 31 year old novice Dean of Students at Charlotte Christian School.  I was confident, inexperienced and a danger to myself and others.  But worse than that, far worse that that – I had just busted one of Bill’s beloved and three other boys.  For me it was cut and dried, simple justice and only a matter of notifying the parents with a short and courteous reminder of the rules and a clear explanation of the punishment.. One day later the mail arrived at the Staggs…

All of us make purchase choices and decisions on criteria that are not always objective. . Where I come from it is fairly normal behavior to show a preference for doing business with people you know and oftentimes whose values you share. We shop together, our kids are in school together and many of us are in religious and civic organizations together. We buy local when we can because we want to support the people of our community. We still shop online or go to Dallas but we have a mild preference for local merchants. Some of us have the same degree of mild preference for certain services and organizations.…

I want to make the introductions a little differently tonight.  I want to introduce you to Lisa instead of her to you.  You would have had to be living in a place completely isolated from any media to not have had exposure to Lisa this year – but she has never had any exposure to you.  You probably feel you know her and her heart.  But she does not know yours.  Come to think of it many of you do not know much about each other.  For those of you who may be with us for the first time this week-end you probably know very little about The Gathering.  It’s…

In light of the events of this past week, I have decided to focus on Psalm 79. I want you to listen very carefully to what I am saying this morning as I may end up in a place that is different from where you think I am starting. First, let’s read the entire passage: O God, the heathen have invaded your land. They have desecrated your holy Temple and left Jerusalem in ruins. They left the bodies of your people for the vultures, the bodies of your servants for wild animals to eat. They shed your people’s blood like water; Blood flowed like water all through Jerusalem, and no…

The topic of “religious giving” is far too broad for my limited perspective and experience so I would ask your permission to allow me to focus on a particular area of religious giving.  It is where I spend my time and about which I have thought the most:  Protestant Evangelical giving. And if I have your permission to focus there, then I would like to push even a little further and limit it to two general areas – but the areas where I think the bulk of giving occurs:  the local congregation and parachurch organizations. As you probably know, half of all philanthropy in this country is directed to and…

“Listen carefully to what I am saying – and be wary of the shrewd advice that tells you how to get ahead in the world on your own.  Giving, not getting, is the way.  Generosity begets generosity.  Stinginess impoverishes.”  Mark 4:24-25 The basis for giving groups is two fold:  First, a genuine desire to become a joyful giver and, second, an openness to doing that not alone but as a part of a group.  If the motivation is to merely leverage then it will not work.  If the motivation is to control those with whom you give or those who receive then it will not work.  It will work and…