DLGP

Doctor of Leadership in Global Perspectives: Crafting Ministry in an Interconnected World

Nothing Is Permanent, But Change!

By: on January 26, 2019

When my journey started into market place ministry (a Christian outreach into the secular world), I wanted to help the non-believers know more about Christ and his love.  I believe that market place ministry is God’s strategic plan to reach our world for Jesus!  What I found is that I needed to reach this world…

8 responses

Polanyi and Pinball

By: on January 25, 2019

There is an old arcade game, Pinball, in which the player stands at the machine and shoots a ball into the playing field which is filled with barriers, obstacle forces, and point giving opportunities. The idea is to keep the ball in play as long as possible while scoring the highest points achievable. This crude…

7 responses

A Picture Worth A Thousand Words of Polanyi

By: on January 25, 2019

One of the biggest stories of this week’s news was the story of the Covington Catholic High school MAGA wearing students and the Native American drummer.  As a disclaimer, this blog is not about who is right and who is wrong or how the all the issues unfolded that created a media firestorm, but this…

8 responses

Are Evangelicals More Than Your Newsfeeds Talking Points?

By: on January 25, 2019

In some circles the descriptor Evangelical is a derogatory term. With churches like westboro baptist church (left in lowercase on purpose) calling themselves evangelicals and the rise of the alt right in defiance of the alt left and calling themselves evangelicals it is easy to see why. Global Evangelicalism: Theology, History and Culture in Regional Perspective…

16 responses

Mixed Messaging – All welcome but not equal.

By: on January 25, 2019

If you are looking for a fairly comprehensive perspective of the history of evangelicalism and how it has taken over much of the world, a great place to start is with Global Evangelicalism. Beginning with David Bebbington’s classic definition of an evangelical, including a focus on conversion, the Bible, activism, and the cross, Global Evangelicalism…

8 responses

Clarity Can Be a Blessing

By: on January 25, 2019

All Chevys may be automobiles, but that does not make all automobiles a Chevy. I remember a math teacher that once used this same reasoning for an equation; it was a frustrating day in Math when I learned that. Well, I must admit, this is probably the “Global Evangelism” book I have been waiting to…

22 responses

Perkins and Polanyi

By: on January 24, 2019

In 1982, John M. Perkins wrote With Justice for All: A Strategy for Community Development. In this seminal work which paved the way for Christian community development, Perkins reminds us that poverty is much more than just a lack of money but it is indeed a lack of options.[1] Perkins also reminded us that we…

14 responses

Macro, I have not missed you!

By: on January 24, 2019

To summarize the text, Polanyi writes this alleged classic about the industrialization of Europe leading to the collapse of civilization in the 19th century. The balance of powers failed to prevent a war between the great powers, the gold standard failed to maintain the world economies, the markets failed to self-regulate, and liberal states became…

6 responses

Confronted by Economics: who would have thought?

By: on January 24, 2019

“If all the economists were laid end to end, they’d never reach a conclusion.” George Bernard Shaw Until a few years ago, economics had as much interest to me as trainspotting; I knew such things happened and the people involved were interesting in their own way. Economists had a certain Harry Potteresque feel to them;…

13 responses

Economics and Hospitality

By: on January 24, 2019

My brother-in-law is a very conservative guy – politically speaking. A while back several of us were having a discussion about the spike in homelessness that Tacoma is currently seeing. My brother-in-law interjected that homelessness was a result of laziness and a lack of creativity on the part of the homeless. There was a stunned…

15 responses

Broadly Evangelical

By: on January 24, 2019

Global Evangelicalism is a survey of the emergence and spread of the evangelical movement throughout the world. In the Introduction, Mark Noll admits to the elusive nature of the task this book sets out to accomplish. The reason this is elusive is that the evangelical movement has never been an organization in itself, but has overlapped…

10 responses

On my Soap Box…

By: on January 24, 2019

To be honest, I struggled to connect with our reading this week – Global Evangelicalism by Douglas Lewis.  The disconnect wasn’t a result of Lewis’ writing style or his chosen topic.  It had more to do with a heavy heart…the government shutdown is on day 34 and there is no end in sight.  Federal workers are…

14 responses

Considering the Poor Amongst us

By: on January 24, 2019

There is a moment in scripture that has been the cause of much ruminating for me; particularly when looking at issues of social or biblical justice. Jesus said “The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me.”[1] Given the context of this verse, there is certainly a hint of…

5 responses

To Love Thy Neighbor: Understanding Global Evangelicalism

By: on January 24, 2019

For years, North American Evangelicalism has been tied to conservatism, separatism, and capitalism; however, this is simply one variant in the midst of countless definitions. However, due to America’s temptation towards nationalism, this definition has colored all forms of evangelical interaction and tied one’s faith to one’s favorite news network. A few years ago, I…

12 responses

Good Reading Helps Prevent Delusion

By: on January 24, 2019

Donald Lewis and Richard Pierard’s Global Evangelicalism (GE) is a collection of scholarly essays that examines the impact of globalization and the southern shift of Evangelicalism. They begin with a straightforward definition of Evangelicals who believe in the person of Jesus Christ, the Trinity, the authoritative guidance of the Bible, water Baptism, Lord’s supper-communion, fulfilling…

7 responses

Is An Economy Devoid of Morality?

By: on January 24, 2019

Karl Polanyi’s seminal work, The Great Transformation: Political and Economic Origins of Our Time is to be commended for pointing out the dire consequences of leaving market economies unchecked. During his time the role economy played in people’s everyday lives was taken for granted. The idea was simple then. How does one make a lot…

7 responses

Scarcity Mentality and Commodification

By: on January 24, 2019

My dad and I are very close. Over the years, however, there is a topic that has become more difficult for us to engage in – that of American politics and economics. This is probably because I have less certainty and more questions these days and it can get awkward fast. I grew up believing…

8 responses

Polanyi and the Commons

By: on January 24, 2019

While reading along with Polanyi I was pleased to find a very subversive thread in his work stemming from his idea of what is and is not a commodity.  Polanyi lists three things as false commodities, those of land, labor and money: For Polanyi the definition of a commodity is something that has been produced…

5 responses

Global Evangelicalism comes close to home

By: on January 24, 2019

This Saturday morning, I will spend 4 hours with a group of “Inquirers” at our church.  These are people who are new in our community and are learning more as they become “New Members” of our congregation. My favorite part of the class is when people go around the circle and share their stories.  It…

10 responses

Evangelicalism and wealth, unveiled

By: on January 24, 2019

Donald Lewis and Richard Pierard have compiled a book with the help of authors from various continents to review the globalizing pathway that evangelicalism has taken in the past two hundred years. My area of interest is focused on the intersection of wealth and faith, and those of you reading my posts know I can’t…

9 responses