Tuesday on the blog means that I get to share some of what I have found interesting and thought provoking over the past week with all of you from around the internet. To make sense of all of these links I have grouped them by the following categories: Church and Ministry Thought & Practice; Cross-Sector Collaboration; Leadership Thought & Practice; Millennials; Neighbor Love; Social Media & Blogging; Stewardship; Vocation and Miscellaneous. I hope you enjoy these links!

Church and Ministry Thought & Practice

If you are planning worship or for a sermon this coming weekend and using the revised common lectionary, check out this resource from Bishop Michael Rinehart on “Pentecost 2B,” as well as this one from Rev. Dr. David Lose, “Pentecost 2B: Offering a Wide Welcome.”

Rebekah Simon-Peter wrote about, “3 Ways to Mess Up with Worship.”

Friend and mentor Dr. Terri Elton shared an update, “Announcing the Second Round of the Confirmation Project Survey,” from Michael Gewecke and Katherine Douglass at the Confirmation Project.

Rev. Dr. David Lose shared “The Truth About Disruptive Change.”

The Nebraska Synod shared thoughts from Bishop Brian Maas‘ recent address at the Nebraska Synod Assembly in “Hope. Connect. Go.”

Friend and now pastor Rachel Ringlaben was ordained over the weekend in Little Rock, Arkansas by Bishop Michael Rinehart. He shared some photos from the beautiful ordination on his blog.

Wayne Meisel wrote and shared about “Where Faith Still Thrives! Summer Camps and the Future of the Church.”

Uff Dah! Robert Schnase shared about, “When Churches Say No.” This post reminds me of a related one I wrote earlier this year.

As a soon to be clergy husband this post by Kira Schlesinger about “The Awkward Lives of Clergy Husbands” caught my attention.

Arthur Farnsley wrote, “Forget the Numbers. The Big Story is that Religion has Lost Social Influence.”

Friend, pastor and blogger Aaron Fuller shared thoughts about “Transitional Ministry.”

Presiding Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), Bishop Elizabeth Eaton wrote that, “Luther’s quote got it right- We’ve fallen but are also raised up- a prescription against paralysis.”

Speaking of Martin Luther, news broke recently that the “Protestant reformer Martin Luther’s 16th Century notes (have been) found.”

Friends Dr. Dan Peterson & Pastor Joe Smith both shared this interesting piece by Marcie Sillman and Kate O’Connell, “Don’t Believe in God? Move to Seattle.”

Ron Edmondson shared, “7 Ways to Respond to a Church Bully.” The ways Ron highlights are: understand their pain; pray for them; love them; speak truth; don’t let them dictate your actions; remember your calling; and confront when necessary. What ways might you add from your experience?

Here’s an important “Open Letter from Faith Leaders Across the USA.”

Pastor and writer Nadia Bolz-Weber was recently interviewed by the BBC in “The Pastor with the Bible for Tattoos.”

Friend Dr. Kristen Contos Krueger at LEAD shared about how “Internships Change Lives: Three Years of LEAD Interns.”

Jan Edmiston wrote and shared, “Five Generation Church Staffs = Amazing Possibilities.”

Church and Social Media shared a transcript from last week’s chat about “Online Digital Prayer.”

With Holy Trinity Sunday being this past weekend, friend Rev. Dr. Karoline Lewis reflected in “The Necessity of Three.”

Are you in the Twin Cities and willing to volunteer and enjoy being outside in the garden? If so, check out this opportunity from Loaves and Fishes.

Friend and Seminarian Ian McConnell wrote and shared, “Young People asked the Lutheran Church: #AreYouWithUs?”

Cross-Sector Collaboration

In an interesting story with major implications for land rights and eminent domain, Pam Louwagie wrote about a “North Dakota holdout landowner refusing to sell rights for Sandpiper oil pipeline.” Check this story out and see what you think.

Friend Rev. Dr. Eric Barreto wrote about “Framing the Academic Year.”

The Economist shared an interesting post about collaboration and partnership in “Managing partners: The pressure on companies to form alliances with rivals is growing inexorably.”

Friend and musician Stephanie Johnson wrote and shared, “Collaboration in music (art) offers its own beauty.”

Sean Kim explained “Why Working Remotely is Better for Business- Stop preparing for the ways your workflow, coworkers, and management will change- because they already have.”

Anne Loehr wrote and asked, “Freelancer or Employee? How to Avoid Employee Misclassification.”

Julian Stodd shared a couple intriguing posts and questions: “What’s With Words?” and “Change or Church?”

Leadership Thought & Practice

Erika Andersen shared an important leadership reminder about listening.

Friend and professor Dr. Mary Hess shared this post from the Executive Soul Blog highlighting “6 Leadership Lessons of St. Francis.” The lessons are: be true to yourself; love God passionately; embrace all; live with joy; approach power courageously; and reach across differences.

Justin Irving shared about the leadership practice of “Valuing and Appreciating People.”

At Switch & Shift, Ed Pierce wrote and asked, “Is Leadership Manipulation and is there a Science to it?”

Sabrina Baker shared thoughts about “How Leadership Impacts Customer Service.”

Dan Rockwell shared a few very interesting posts including: “7 Powerful Ways to Reignite Your Energy“; “12 Ways to Make the Most of Opportunities“; and “The Seven Judgments All Leaders Face.”

Tanveer Naseer wrote about “Building Emotional Competencies In Our Leadership.”

Kate Nasser asked, “Do People See You as Open-Minded or Argumentative?”

Dan Forbes and Lead with Giants shared a guest post by Mark Salke about “Role-Centered Leadership.”

Michael Wheeler explained about “How relationships can trump dollars.”

Robyn Stratton-Berkessel shared and reflected about “What are Appreciative Inquiry Principles?”

Rev. Dr. David Lose wrote and asked, “How Do We Define Competent Leadership?”

Ben Lichtenwalner shared, “Nelson Mandela- 8 of the Greatest Servant Leadership Quotes and Images.”

Steve Keating reflected about “Social Leadership,” reminding me of some of the work of Julian Stodd and Ted Coine among others, as well as this recent post on the topic on this blog. Steve also shared thoughts about “The Value of Planning.”

Jon Mertz at Thin Difference shared about “Why Leaders Get Employee Engagement Wrong.”

Millennials

Over at Thin Difference, Heidi Oran shared generational based reflections in “The Seasons of Our Dreams.”

Chris Altchek shared, “7 Facts Every Business Should Know About Millennials.”

Logan Robertson wrote and shared about “One Millennial’s Disconnect” about multi-campus churches.

David Watson wrote, “The Millennial Obsession.” What do you think?

Neighbor Love

Nick Visser shared about how author, “J.K. Rowling Reveals Awesome Reason for Challenging Westboro Church’s Hate Speech.”

Friend and blogger Hannah Heinzekehr shared powerful and moving reflections on loss in sharing, “On the loss of a friend.” Within this Hannah wrote, “And the older I get, the more I realize that loss never really leaves us. It always cuts deeply and it fundamentally reorients our world in unexpected ways. The best I can do is to carry the hearts of those who I’ve lost with me, and to remember all the ways that knowing them was a gift, plain and simple.”

Friend and professor Rev. Dr. Matthew Skinner shared, “My Favorite Bible Passage” featuring a podcast discussion with Eric Barreto and Cameron Howard.

Julie Bosman shared news that “Nebraska Bans Death Penalty, Defying a Veto.”

Friend, artist and blogger Vonda Drees shared a number of beautiful posts over the past week. These posts included: “From the evidence- why was I given this day?“; “outward vision“; “keep delivering life“; “your kingdom come“; “participation is key“; and “why not now?”

Eric Jacobsen shared “A Pastoral Case for Bike Lanes.” If you ride your bike you should check this out.

Friend, pastor and blogger Diane Roth shared life, vocational and missional themed reflections in “Language School” and “Before You Were Born.” They are both nice reflections, but the second one is absolutely beautiful as Diane writes, “this little girl, almost eight years old.  She came forward, and she grabbed my arm, and I held her hand, while the congregation prayed. I blessed her before she was born with words I didn’t know I had until I said them. On Sunday, she blessed me.”

Friend, blogger and Ph.D. student Sara Wilhelm Garbers shared this post by Heather Lynn Temple reflecting about “Why We Sabotage Relationships with People Who Treat Us Well.”

Sad news came last week about a Peace Corps volunteer from Minnesota, Robbie Lehman, who passed away.

Friend, blogger and preacher Emmy Kegler shared a recent sermon that she gave in her “Sermon on Ezekiel 37:1-14: Breathe.”

Have you heard about the “Selling Off (of) Apache Holy Land?” Check out this op-ed from Lydia Millet.

Friend and professor Rev. Dr. Dwight Zscheile wrote, reflected and asked, “Who Is My Neighbor?” Not only is this an important neighbor love reflection, it also is full of missional theology, thoughts, ideas and questions. Within this Dwight writes and asks, “The question we must wonder about is, To which neighbors are we called? I’ve come to believe there are no simple categorical answers to this—it is a matter of ongoing discernment. Jesus is asked by the lawyer seeking to justify himself in Luke 10:29, ‘Who is my neighbor?’ He answers with the parable of the Good Samaritan, a tale of an outsider crossing social, cultural and religious lines in compassion. How do you define ‘neighbor’?” Spend some time with this.

In The Christian Century Ronald Simkins asked, “What’s the biblical definition of marriage?”

Friend, pastor and blogger Frank Johnson shared his sermon for this past weekend based on the Narrative Lectionary’s focus text, Psalm 1, asking, “Where are you planted?”

Social Media & Blogging

Vidar Brekke shared about “What the Twitter & Google Partnership Means for your Content Strategy.”

Friend and blogger J.W. Wartick shared his version of the links with his “Really Recommended Posts.”

Stewardship

Daniel T. Stephens wrote and shared, “Back to Basics: Intentional Stewardship.”

Friend Gary Hoag maintains a wonderful daily blog called the “Generosity Monk.” I’m honored and grateful that he has shared some of my posts on his blog before, especially, “Is it time for a ‘budget breakfast’ with your spouse or a friend?”

I am also grateful that my post, “Eight stewardship potholes to avoid,” was recently shared by the West Michigan Conference of the United Methodist Church.

Friend and “Classy Frugalist” Grace Duddy Pomroy provided a guest post for the COMPASS blog sharing “Frugal Tips for Recent Graduates.”

Michelle Schroeder-Gardner wrote that, “Living Life to the Fullest is Something Everyone Should Start Doing.”

Blogger and pastor Nurya Love Parish shared a guest post by Rev. Chris Slane about, “The #GoodSoilProject: Stewardship. Seeking. Sustainability.”

Last week I shared thoughts and ideas about a “Gratitude Wall,” in “Taking a Congregation’s Stewardship Temperature.”

Vocation

Friend and blogger Julia Nelson shared her vocationally rich (and birthday themed) installments of “Tuesday Tea Time,” a “Friday Favorite,” and “Sunday Snippits.”

David Brooks wrote and shared about “The Small, Happy Life.”

Friend, professor and blogger Ron Byrnes wrote and shared about “What We Get Wrong About Work and Retirement.”

The Pacific Lutheran University (PLU) Choir of the West is in the midst of a European tour. Check out about the first day of their tour here, and be sure and follow the whole tour on their tour blog.

Pastor and writer Clint Schnekloth wrote and reflected about “What should Christians do with their brains?”

Miscellaneous

I want to share this one miscellaneous post with you just because I found it hilarious to read about how “San Andreas was reviewed by an Earthquake Expert.” Check out what an earthquake expert thinks about this new disaster movie. (Especially if you are not from areas with earthquakes.)

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That concludes this week’s edition of the links. I hope you have enjoyed them. As always, if you have articles or things to include in future editions of the links, please let me know. Also, let me know if you have topics, ideas or questions that you would like me to think about on the blog. Until next time, thank you for reading and being part of the conversation. Blessings on your week! -TS

Image Credits: The Links; Rachel and Bishop Rinehart; St. Francis; and “Participation is Key.”