March Discussion Topic Sabbath School classes which feature a mission emphasis or follow the established lesson quarterly are on the decline in some NW churches. What do you think about this trend? Should we work to reverse it, or is this an appropriate change of church... Read more
What I Learned at Nordstrom University The telephone startled me awake. “Huh, um, hello?” I croaked. Read more
Wanderings I stood on the cliff watching the thunderstorm approach, with tendrils of rain feathered from the clouds ahead of me and the soughing of the pines growing louder at my back. In the national forest, my vista was hundreds of acres of dark-green tree... Read more
The Council of Trent, Adventists, and Hewlett Packard, Part VI It was the midst of the Reformation. Men like John Knox, Martin Luther and John Wesley had shaken the Roman Catholic Church to its foundation. But a sincere group of cardinals, archbishops, bishops and priests determined that if the church were to... Read more
It's Not Just About Money On any given Sabbath around the Northwest, offering plates are passed just as they have been for decades. Whatever drops in, from tithe envelopes to loose change, begins its journey through an Adventist system that has garnered grudging praise fro... Read more
Go Out Like a Light Recently, I saw a clip from the movie, "About Schmidt." Although I haven’t seen the movie and can’t endorse it, I understand that Jack Nicholson stars as Warren Schmidt, a man leading a life of quiet desperation. He retired as vice president of an... Read more
The Winnable War One of the most familiar texts to Adventists in the entire Bible is Matthew 24:14, “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all generations and then the end shall come.”Ron Watts, president of the South... Read more
Is Your Church Dormant? During this cold, wet and often frozen time of year, those of us who like growing things can hardly wait until spring. In a few short months, those dead, dormant sticks around our homes will leaf out and flower, much to our delight and the culinar... Read more
Material for Sidebar boxes Go to the Let's Talk section at www.gleaneronline.org, or e-mail talk@gleaneronline.org with your perspective on this topic.• Is it better to grow a bigger church or spawn a new church plant?• What is more important, nurture or outreach?• What kin... Read more