“‘Why?’ in the complaint psalms is never an intellectual request for information but a loaded rhetorical question that conveys emotional bewilderment and protest.” Leslie C. Allen, author of Liturgy of Grief, is interviewed by Words on the Word blog about how to process grief and how this is grounded in the Psalms. He suggests prayers be honest and come from a place of where we actually are.

This week has seen two posts answering the question on why someone would want to be a Christian. Frank Viola responds to Bertrand Russel’s 1927’s essay entitled “Why I Am Not a Christian,” and if you’re a subscriber to Relevant Magazine, you may want to check out an article by Lauren Miller that’s been passed around the internet this week, “Why I Am (Still) a Christian.” Lausanne Global Conference has put together a list of campaigns that are “organized and active ways to encourage generosity.” Lists like these are a great resource to have when looking for credible partners in ministry. Is it ever appropriate to donate or rent your worship space to other religious faith communities? In this article about interreligious relationships and evangelical credibility, a story is shared about a pastor in Memphis TN who opened his church to a muslim community as they waited for their mosque to finish in construction. The response they received from muslims across the world was of deep appreciation and marvel. Here’s an infographic of things that will go extinct in the next 40 years—all speculations of course! Do any of these predictions reveal something about our society’s hopes and values? How do they align with kingdom values? What does missional church have to do with jazz? Is the missional church movement just another passing fad? In this video JR Woodward discusses what distinguishes missional from other recent trends and why it is here to stay. Hear some quick snippets of what creates “missional culture”—which may be the answer to a new generation which is skeptical of truth and cynical to power.