Jonathan Shradar

In the U.S. we have arrived to the holiday for which we are all encouraged to come up with a list of things to be thankful for. What a great opportunity, one we should take more often. But waking up in a foreign country, walled in if you will, there are no turkeys, no pilgrims, but still lots of native people. So this makes my thankfulness more genuine! With that in mind let me share what makes me ever thankful. First, that the Creator of the universe would desire a relationship with me (and you) and that he would accomplish it by taking on the cross himself. That he would take a stubborn sinner and call him son. What grace. Next, that this same God would give me Stacy, Iona, Ewen, and Adia. (Also Jones and June). This family brings me so much joy. We laugh, we argue, we wrestle, we journey, we get sick, we get tired, we eat too much sugar, we sing, we dance, we sleep, we binge Disney+, and we do everything else all of which is meant to awaken us to the tremendous gift we are to each o

The calendar pages keep turning (unless you have a calendar on your phone then you have no idea what that means). Here we are approaching Thanksgiving, at war with our family and friends over how soon is too soon when it comes to decorating for Christmas and playing the appropriate music for the occasion. Leaving all that alone, below are some worthwhile bits to check in on as you saunter into the weekend. As our elder team has started to evaulate ourselves, and I have been thinking through how to lead and form the right team to lead the church into the next season, this bit from Seth Godin has me thinking. Allies and accomplices . To be an ally means that you won’t get in the way, and, if you are able to, you’ll try to help. To become an accomplice, though, means that you’ve risked something, sacrificed something and put yourself on the hook as well. We need more allies, in all the work we do. Allies can open doors and help us feel a lot less alone. But finding an accomplice–that’s an

Today I am giving a little talk on politics in exile, how Christians engage in such a way that our witness is unhindered. It is not a complete survey of our posture and it won't make anyone too uncomfortable or gleeful! You can read it here . "Politics in Exile" Advance West Coast gathering. Download Otherwise I thought I would share a few things that have been helpful in forming my thinking that you might find helpful as well. I point to it a lot but This Cultural Moment is a podcast with valuable, rich content on the underlying realities in our Western culture. Mark Sayers, and Australian pastor and author, has brilliant insights. John Mark Comer interviews him in most of the episodes and each will help you think through how our worldviews are being formed and lived from. Check it out here. A book that I found extremely helpful recently in shaping the way we engage is from Scott Sauls. Jesus Outside the Line: a way forward for those tired of taking sides. This is cente

I can't believe it is November. 2019 has been flying by and I suppose that is great because it get's us that much closer to the return of Jesus! This week was a busy one so there is one item worthwhile that is fresh and couple that I came across cleaning out older files. Let's see if they hold up! The one item you must check out this week is the lastest bonus episode of This Cultural Moment . It is a recording of an interview session among some leaders at the global Alpha conference. Mark Sayers, John Tyson, and Pete Hughes discuss revival and renewal with Todd Proctor. It is no a long session but within there is so much good fruit. Keenly for me was a statement by Tyson: "I don't want to partner with just people who believe what I believe but want what I want." That being revival. Such an important word and guiding principle in this season of leading a church. We so often align based on foundational theology but the outworking of that, or our goal for minist