This July was a busy one for my family. I took a couple of weeks off to spend time with my family before we moved Carly into her dorm last weekend for her freshman year in college. This meant that while I got to worship online, I was not present for in-person worship for three weeks in a row. For me, this is rare! I grew up in a family that went to church and have worked in churches as a pastor si...  Read More

When I was a kid, we played a made-up game that was a cross between capture the flag and tag. We had neighborhood boundaries, special house rules, always played at night, and played on several teams. Each team had a home base. Like any normal game of tag, you could wander and roam, but you always wanted to be mindful of where your base was. You never wanted to get too far away. The further away, t...  Read More

I just returned from Northwest Arkansas where I attended the last of the big United Methodist Conference meetings of the year (it has been a lot). This Jurisdictional Conference is a meeting of the United Methodists in the south-central part of the United States. Typically, it is where we elect new bishops. This year, I was honored to be able to give a short talk to the conference about the future...  Read More

Wednesday, I did something that I have never done. I mounted a flagpole at my house and hung up the American flag in preparation for the 4th of July.  Some of you love the flag. Others of you, not so much. I get it. I had mixed feelings about hanging up the flag. With injustices still pervasive in our country and the broken nature of our politics, there are many who wonder if our country is worth ...  Read More

Recently someone asked me, “Matt, why do you talk about Jesus so much?” They went on to explain that they usually think more broadly about God. After all, God is universal, encompassing a lot of viewpoints, perspectives, and traditions. But Jesus. He seems so…specific! They confessed to me that they struggle thinking about Jesus, especially equating him with God.They aren’t alone. I think this per...  Read More

Last week, I ran into a retired pastor who recognized me (and I confess, I didn’t recognize her). She remembered me because her church and my childhood church would team up for student mission trips each summer. Way back when I was in high school, I went on several of those trips. We talked, swapped a few memories, and talked about what those trips meant to us. At the end, I thanked her for being ...  Read More