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Continue reading →: Ending a Sermon on Time
By Joe LaGuardia Several weeks ago, I wrote that it takes nothing short of a miracle for a pastor to write a sermon every week. It is true that sermons are the stuff of miracles, and I stand by my premise. Yet, for far too many sermons, it seems that…
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Continue reading →: White Horsemint: A Thing of God’s Beauty
By Orrin Morris While teaching one summer at a seminary in the San Francisco area, I visited the Humboldt Redwood State Park. I was dwarfed by the size of those magnificent trees. The Scripture verses for today come from Psalms 91:1-2: He who dwells in the shelter of the Most…
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Continue reading →: Scott Boulevard Baptist: A Church Without Walls
By Joe LaGuardia A pile of rubble and a towering, broken steeple are all that is left of the historic Scott Boulevard Baptist Church building on the corner of Scott Boulevard and North Decatur Road in Decatur, Georgia. To many passersby, it is an eyesore. To those who are entrenched…
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Continue reading →: Jack of all trades, master of none
By Joe LaGuardia An advertisement from a church looking for a new pastor read: “Wanted: Pastor for small church. Must excel in preaching, teaching, pastoral care, administration, leadership, vision setting, missions, ministry, church growth. Also, ten years experience a must.” A satirical ad, similar in tone, added: “Pastor must know politics,…
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Continue reading →: Virginia Creeper Reminds us of God’s Nourishment during Drought
By Orrin Morris Drought is hard on the wildflower kingdom, as it is on every other facet of nature. The photo for this drawing was taken one fall sunrise in such a year. Deep in the woods below my house was a mighty white oak that was aglow with red.…
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Continue reading →: Every Sermon a Miracle
By Joe LaGuardia How is it that a preacher can come up with a sermon each week? I can’t speak for other pastors, but I’m quite certain that each sermon idea that hits me–especially on a weekly basis–is a miracle in and of itself. There is something to be said…
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Continue reading →: Report from the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship General Assembly
CBF Commissioning Service/Dallas 2015-Courtesy CBF By Matt Sapp Julie and I along with several other members of our congregation spent three days last week in Dallas for the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship (CBF) General Assembly. If you’re not sure what CBF is, Heritage was founded as a CBF church, meaning that we —…
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Continue reading →: Rohingya Muslims: Among the most persecuted groups
By Joe LaGuardia For all of its bad ratings, the movie Waterworld with Kevin Costner had a creative premise. Costner plays the Mariner who fights for survival within a (literal) sea of villains and mercenaries. The story takes place in the near future, when melting polar ice caps result in all of earth’s existing land…
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Continue reading →: Period, End Of Sentence: Why Writers Should Go for Some Old-Fashioned Writing
Originally posted on University 101: Getting in touch with our inner Ernest Hemingway is a creative and healthy way back to our writing roots. Practicing classic writing habits and methods the greats once used will help you realize why they were as such. Typewriters The old ones are hard to…
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Continue reading →: The Rise of the Nuns
By Joe LaGuardia Everyone is making a stink out of the rise of the “nones,” people who do not subscribe to any organized faith or denomination. What about the rise of the “nuns”? A bad pun with a nun? Not quite. The Catholic Church in England and Whales is claiming a 25-year…
Engaging Heart, Mind, and Soul
Rev. Dr. Joe LaGuardia
Rev. Dr. Joe LaGuardia is a pastor, writer, and chaplain residing in Florida. He is author of three books and regular contributor to Smyth & Helwys’ Formations Series. His articles have appeared in USA Today, Baptist News Global, Christian Ethics Today, TCPalm, and Rockdale Citizen.
Baptist Spirituality explores the intersection of faith and culture incorporating biblical scholarship, culture and the arts, politics, science, and theology.
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