In the Name of Jesus

I am sitting in a coffee shop at Baylor University thinking about my day. Drs. Terry York and Ron Cook led a discussion of Henri J.M. Nouwen's philosophy of leadership during our morning seminar. Nouwen wrote, "Words like 'right-wing,' 'reactionary,''conservative,' 'liberal,' and 'left-wing' are used to describe people's opinions, and many discussions then seem more like political battles for power than spiritual searches for the truth." This process of labeling and demonizing has long been a part of church history and has slowed the spreading of the gospel. This process has been true of my denomination. There have also been those, through the ages, that have practiced missional Christianity and servant leadership. They have passed God's story from generation to generation. This is of great interest to me because I have been following the blog reports of the Southern Baptist Convention during breaks. It seems that a new day may be dawning. I hope that the shaking will result in a new era of genuine cooperation and missional participation. I am very positive about the future and am glad to be part of it.