Where's the Good Stuff this week?
Friday 5/22/26 roundup of what I've discovered on Substack
‘Good Stuff’ = articles I’ve read this week that inspired, educated, entertained, or moved me.
Which for a Free Range Priest, means reading more amazing, inspiring things about God, the church, the universe, and running.
Here’s this week’s roundup:
God stuff
‘I Know the Author’ by Laura Lynch . ‘But God has been writing. He has authored a new chapter with twists and turns none of us expected. I look at my daughter today and I couldn’t be prouder of her. I am grateful to a God who sees it all, holds it all, and never gives up through it all.’
‘Theology of Eating Alone, II: The Table That Remains’ by Br. Andrew-Thomas. ‘Eating alone can carry a sense that something is missing, and in human terms that perception is often accurate. Still, the Christian tradition suggests that the act itself remains connected to a larger reality.’
Church stuff
‘Do You Believe This? The Crisis of Ecclesiology in Mainline Protestantism’ by Dennis Sanders. ‘I think that is the question that is staring Mainline Protestantism in the face: do we believe this? Do we believe this Jesus stuff is all true? Do we believe God is alive and not just a concept? Do we believe God can change lives, set the prisoner free, give sight to the blind, and raise the dead?’
‘Anglican Missives: On the History & Theology of the Eucharist’ Marshall Jolly. ‘Communion has always been the result of (rigorous) formation. And given the fallow harvest after fifty years of next-to-no formation in the church for much of anything, I think we need to start requiring higher commitments, not lower ones!
Other stuff
‘You can’t build trust without vulnerability’ by Eric Hoke. You don’t need more relationships. We all say we want deeper trust. Easy way to practice this week, someone asks how you are, tell them how you are (really).’
‘Why I'm Writing This’ by Whayne Hougland, Jr. ‘I am writing it because I need to know if what remains is enough.’
What I wrote this week:
‘Why you should make Substack your church website’. ‘Today, I use any browser’s search function and just ask, “Where is [friend’s name] serving right now?” and I immediately get the info I’m looking for. I never see the church’s website.’
From Trexo:‘The table of the Lord is an act of resistance.’ ‘When I ‘asked’ Perpetua what she would want us to know today: far removed from her time and her suffering, she reminded us all that when we come to the table, we are saying yes to Jesus.’
From Substack Seminary (and written by Loren Richmond Jr.):‘What does “thriving” actually look like?’ ‘How do we minimize the work that drains us and maximize the work that brings life?’
And finally…
At Free Range Priest, we’re bringing church to people.
Bite-sized ways that YOU can re-imagine ministry and get ‘unstuck’.
Right now. Today.
Subscribe to re-discover ministry JOY.