Embracing A New Normal, Just Like The Disciples
Over the past three months we’ve all learned lots of new words and phrases like coronavirus, Covid-19, social distancing, and flatten the curve. An old phrase is being reused a lot these days: the new normal. I recently saw a cartoon of a husband and wife having their morning coffee. The husband apparently just said […]
COVID-19 Musings From A Vineyard Pastor
We have heard it time and time again. We have thought about it. We have dreamed about. Normal. . I can’t wait to get back to normal. . A meal at your favorite restaurant. A date night with your spouse. A ball game with friends. You know… normal. . Sunday morning with your church family. […]
Pastoring Through A Pandemic
I am the lead pastor of the North Jersey Vineyard. My wife Norma and I planted the church 23 years ago right outside of New York City. I enjoy the challenges and opportunities of pastoring a church in this region of the country. I love the diversity, enjoy the hustle and bustle, and even like […]
Into The Desert: Consenting To What We Did Not Choose And Fighting The Right Enemy
On this episode, return guest Jared Boyd provides a counter-intuitive posture for those seeking spiritual formation in a time of global pandemic. Knowing how and what to fight against begins only when we can move from thinking we are in isolation to embracing solitude. This is very personal look into what God has been doing […]
A Letter From Phil | May 2020
Dear Friends, Greetings from Maine, where we are still waiting for the full reality of spring! Last week I was chatting with a pastor in Arizona where it was 105 degrees, while that morning it was spitting snow in Maine …not a complaint, just a fact. As you know, there are so many different realities […]
Code Yellow: Thinking Through When & How Churches Should Reopen
[Original Publication By The Project On Rural Ministry] On Friday, May 8 much of Northwestern and North Central Pennsylvania will move out of the red phase and into the more permissive yellow phase of Governor Wolf’s plan to reopen the commonwealth. In addition to feeling a bit like a game of Red Light, Green Light […]
Between Reality & Return: One Church’s Approach To Reopening
By Sharon McCarter (Pastor, Vineyard Church Maryville in Maryville, TN) Two text messages, two opposite ends of the bell curve … Our governor gave the churches in our county permission to reopen on May 1st, with a laundry list of restrictions. Before our church made any announcement about what we would do, one of our […]
The Miracle Of Multiplied Rice And Dhal
A Story From Vineyard Missions USA By Ruth (Vineyard India) I have goosebumps as I write this, and I am trembling with emotion. As you know, we are a small church, but our great desire is to help the poor at this time. We have no support right now. And also, we have to observe […]
When The Story of COVID-19 Gets Told, Let’s Make Sure We Have Stories Worth Telling
Pacific City Church was planted in 2018 by Chris Meekins and his team in Santa Monica, CA. In this episode Michael and co-host Liz Moore (also a church planter in Princeton, NJ) talk through the issues facing church planters in the era of COVID-19. Chris and his team have tackled these new challenges with lots […]
The Asian-American Experience And Confronting Racism Amplified By COVID-19
Vineyard of Harvest Church is a multi-generational, multi-lingual, and multi-cultural church in southeastern Los Angeles County in Southern California. Pastor Dennis Liu has recently transitioned into a co-lead pastor role with the founding pastor (and Dennis’s father-in-law) Kenneth Kwan. Vineyard of Harvest is an amazing church community on many fronts but in this season of […]
