“And he set out, not knowing where he was going . . .” (Hebrews 11:8) — Hi! I’m Sam. Thanks for checking out my About Me story. I’m a former pastor turned quality and continuous improvement professional that always wanted to be an academic theologian. I still secretly hope to be a professor someday. But I think the time’s running out for that dream. I have…

Death, addiction, and the meaning of life — maybe you do too — My father died when he was 44. I was 25. Pretty much every year since my dad died I’ve had this thought when my birthday rolls around: “Dad only had X number of years to live before he died.” When I turned 30, for example, I thought, “Dad only had…

The virtue needed most today — There’s a sign in someone’s yard on the route my wife and I regularly walk. It’s painted blue and red and proclaims in bold white letters: JUST BE KIND. I like that sign. And even though I don’t know the people who live in that house and made that sign…

I think love and inclusivity are the central virtues of Jesus’s kingdom vision. I’ve thought this for quite a while. And it’s a significant reason why I resigned from my post and surrendered my ministry credentials after 10 years as a lead pastor in a conservative evangelical denomination. I reached…

And perhaps finding it in Orthodoxy — I re-read Timothy Ware’s The Orthodox Church: An Introduction to Eastern Christianity. I first read it years ago in seminary. Back then it was an assignment. Though interesting and informative, it didn’t have much personal impact. This time was different. I find myself amid an unexpected mid-life exploration of Orthodoxy…

It happens every day and it needs to stop — Another week in America, another mass shooting. It’s so common we’re numb to the epidemic. Otherwise, why would there be a meme on Facebook reposted over and over in the immediate aftermath of the Nashville school shooting last week that says: A rock in bad hands killed Abel. A rock…

Living in the tension of faith and doubt — Moving from certainty to doubt has been an important part of my spiritual and intellectual journey. Twenty-five years ago, I was a budding evidential Christian apologist. I thought answers to most hard questions could be reduced to tidy logically cohesive packages. Then I became a pastor and lived another two…

Lessons on love from St Paul — We’re often the worst version of ourselves to those we love most. Do we mistake love for license? Do we presume forgiveness? I’m astonished and ashamed by the incivility and carelessness with how I sometimes speak to my wife in the heat of an intense argument. I say things to…

Learning from other religious traditions — When I was a pastor, I assumed everyone in the congregation would be as excited as me to draw on the best spirituality and practices of the broader Christian tradition. I was wrong. Introducing Lent in a context where many people pejoratively and wrongly thought Lent was something only Catholics…