Author Archives: chappelltemple

When Worlds Collide

Posted on May 12, 2016 by chappelltemple

It wasn’t exactly the response anyone was expecting.  But when the woman from Angola asked through her translator if she could sing her answer to a question, nobody was about to tell her “no.” And so she began, first in … Continue reading →

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Playing Chicken

Posted on May 8, 2016 by chappelltemple

It’s been making the rounds on Twitter but I couldn’t begin to tell you where it actually is located.  It’s understandable, however, why some on the internet have dubbed it the “Church of the Confused Chicken,” for clearly there is … Continue reading →

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The Amazing Mr. Asbury

Posted on March 29, 2016 by chappelltemple

He was never himself exactly sure when he was born, but it was either August 20 or 21, 1745, in the small English town of Sandwell near Birmingham. It’s likely as well that he was not ever actually baptized, as … Continue reading →

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A Timely Word for Today

Posted on March 15, 2016 by chappelltemple

Shakespeare made it famous, of course, when he suggested that a soothsayer called out the warning to Julius Caesar in the year 44 B.C. But the term itself actually went back centuries before either Shakespeare or Caesar. For 700 years … Continue reading →

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A Song in the Air

Posted on December 13, 2015 by chappelltemple

She grew up singing with her sisters, her strong alto voice easily settling upon the natural harmonies that complemented the sweet sound of her four siblings as they visited from church to church in the central Texas countryside. But even … Continue reading →

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What God Is Indeed “Fixing”

Posted on December 4, 2015 by chappelltemple

To some degree they are right. For to be painfully honest, we should probably admit that sometimes when we tell folks that “our thoughts and prayers” are with them, that seemingly sympathetic statement is actually the last real thought that … Continue reading →

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Finding Refuge

Posted on November 23, 2015 by chappelltemple

There was no good reason for anyone to take them in. For the times were not only perilous ones, but coming from so very far away, there simply was no effective way to check them out and to know their … Continue reading →

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The Bethlehem Star(bucks)

Posted on November 10, 2015 by chappelltemple

As Tony Campolo once styled it, sometimes it is a matter of “Following Jesus Without Embarrassing God.” For the current brew-ha-ha, so to speak, over the “Christmas Cups” at Starbucks is a good example of when Christians overreact to perceived … Continue reading →

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What Methodist Bishops Can Learn from the Pope

Posted on September 23, 2015 by chappelltemple

In the world of the church, it doesn’t get much higher than this. But then it’s not just the office but it’s clearly the man himself who commands both the respect and attention of millions around the globe, including much … Continue reading →

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The Problem with Precedents

Posted on September 4, 2015 by chappelltemple

Recently one of the leaders of our annual conference shared with me her reluctance to take an action regarding a friend because of her fear of the “future precedent” it would set for the group she chairs. And while I consider her … Continue reading →

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