Category Archives: Ministry

Spiritual Warfare – Our Armament

Posted on February 7, 2023 by Richard Heyduck

If, as we saw last week, our “warfare” is for people, not against people, how can we understand the military images Paul uses to describe the Armor of God?

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Spiritual Warfare – Our Enemy

Posted on January 30, 2023 by Richard Heyduck

Spiritual Warfare has been a popular topic in some segments of American Christianity. In the age of Christendom we were prone to take the “warfare” aspect too literally. Though many instances of “killing people for Jesus” come to mind, just … Continue reading →

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Easy Ministry in the Time of Coronavirus

Posted on March 17, 2020 by Richard Heyduck

Here are a few easy things you can do in this time of “social distancing.” Prayer Walk: You can walk through your neighborhood and pray for the families in each house/apartment. If you know their names & situations, you can … Continue reading →

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Psychiatry and Ministry (sort of)

Posted on February 25, 2018 by Richard Heyduck

Pretend this piece on Slate Star Codex isn’t about psychiatry but about ministry. Alexander describes two ways of understanding psychiatry: Attitude 1 says that patients know what they want but not necessarily how to get it, and psychiatrists are there … Continue reading →

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Are We There Yet?

Posted on May 20, 2015 by Richard Heyduck

Maps are idealizations of territory. They are useful to the extent that their methods of idealization help us orient ourselves in space and figure out where to go and how to get there. This is true whether the space be … Continue reading →

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Scot McKnight’s The Kingdom Conspiracy

Posted on January 27, 2015 by Richard Heyduck

In his latest book, The Kingdom Conspiracy, Scot McKnight cuts across the grain of both recent scholarship and contemporary ministry practice. Biblical and theological scholarship for some time now has insisted that kingdom and church are two different things, generally … Continue reading →

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Miserable Job

Posted on October 20, 2013 by Richard Heyduck

On page 53 of Bishop Will Willimon references Patrick Lencioni’s definition of makes a job miserable: “Lack of measurement. Lack of accountability. Anonymity.” I’ve read a few of Lencioni’s books, but not this one (Three Signs of a Miserable Job.) … Continue reading →

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Maintaining Your Constituency?

Posted on August 8, 2013 by Richard Heyduck

What would we think of doctors who work to keep people sick so that the doctors’ services are required? What would we think of auto mechanics who sabotaged vehicles to ensure more business? What would we think of politicians who … Continue reading →

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Definition-phobia

Posted on June 10, 2013 by Richard Heyduck

In a recent post Tony Morgan writes about reasons churches lack a strategy for life change. The first of his four reasons is that churches don’t define success, fearing the accountability that will come with it. I ran first ran … Continue reading →

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Morale

Posted on June 2, 2013 by Richard Heyduck

At the meeting of the Texas Annual Conference this past week and on Facebook in the days following the meeting, I’ve heard a lot about clergy morale. Some think it’s gotten pretty low, while others think it’s about where it’s … Continue reading →

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