How does a writer fuel the creative muse? What role could poetry or music play? Could sermons or scripture generate creativity? For years, I've believed poetry--or at least being familiar with good poetry--elevated prose. The instructor for my first creative writing course (more than 20 years ago) taught a unit on poetry before teaching prose, … Continue reading What inspires creativity?
Who says a small church can’t do big things? With only 11 families on the membership rolls, the United Reformed Church of Wellsburg is Classis Central’s smallest organized church. But it hosts an annual women’s retreat that brings Christian sisters together from beyond ecclesiastical boundaries. The annual retreat at a nearby Christian camp grew out … Continue reading URC of Wellsburg: keeping and sharing the faith
Phoenix, AZ, named after the mythological regenerating bird associated with the sun, consistently tops the charts of the sunniest US cities. The legendary phoenix can symbolize Christian themes of rebirth and resurrection, and it’s those timeless truths that members of Phoenix URC seek to bring to the almost 1.5 million people living in American’s sixth … Continue reading Phoenix URC focuses on God’s mission to the city
In August of [2013], Rev. Arthur Besteman gave up preaching. He’d hoped to continue until he was 85, the age at which his wife’s father retired, but he was 80 and felt that it was time. He still goes out on pastoral visits and conducts funerals. In fact, the same week he gave up regular … Continue reading The privilege of proclamation: Reflections on 55 years of ministry
My friend, Yvonne Anderson, reflects today on the tension between marketing and writing. Having two books published this year has shown me how that tension increases exponentially. There seems to be a continual tug of war between these two priorities. But one thing I'm learning is that the lines blur between marketing and ministry. Since … Continue reading Marketing or ministry?
Glenda Faye Mathes 