• Definition of Faith

    Rethinking Faith

    Rethinking Faith Whenever I say, “Rethinking,” I want people to wonder and ask questions. Just for the record however, Rethinking Faith is not to discard faith, as some former Christian leaders are doing today. No, Rethinking Faith is not to dismiss faith. But it is about asking hard questions, unafraid of the answers we might find. Here’s a thought: We can do a quick Google search and find web sites, blogs, podcasts and more on what it means to be a faithful follower of Christ. And, in our churches and small groups we have access to studies and classes on growing our faith. Wonderful, right? Yes. But the question: Why…

  • White and Yellow Arrows

    Rethinking Leadership

    I never planned to be a leader. It never crossed my mind. And now, I’m writing about Rethinking Leadership. My path to this point is surprising, and unlikely—much like my life. Here’s the story:  I was 28 years old, embarking on my fourth “career.” My first—just out of college–was professional golf. Over the course of my one year attempting to qualify for the PGA Tour, I made so much money I had a choice: I could keep playing and go broke, or find a job that would pay bills. I chose the latter. My second job was selling advertising for a local newspaper. I was mildly successful, and they wanted…

  • Old Country Church

    Rethinking Church

    The idea of, “Rethinking Church” may sound ominous. I get it. There will be questions. “Is this about quitting church?” “Is he going to be that guy to tell us we’re doing ‘church’ all wrong? The answers? “No, and no.” Rethinking Church is not about walking away from the idea of church. Nor is it about telling everyone the “right” way to do church. I’m not that smart, anyway. But let’s keep this real. If today’s church is going to somehow maintain its relevancy and influence our culture, it’s time for challenging questions and honest answers. It All Started with Coffee For me, the questions began during what was supposed…

  • Author Kirk Walden Rethinking Leadership

    Fourteen Words

    It was just another day in high school English class, that much I remember. I had no idea two sentences would shift the course of my entire life. Two sentences. Fourteen words. Sitting toward the back of the classroom, I was likely bored. Hardly an academic, my thoughts were focused elsewhere, I’m sure of it. Probably, I was thinking about heading to the golf course at the end of the school day, where I believed my future would be. As a high school kid, I was convinced my future occupation would be “professional golfer.” Since the age of 10, I dedicated nearly every day to practicing, playing, traveling to tournaments…

  • Kirk Walden Rethinking Evangelism with the Article Showing Up

    Showing Up

    Recently, I became a grandfather. So far, I’m good at this gig. I haven’t dropped my grandson, a win for little Henry. And, I haven’t yet changed a diaper, a win for me.   Showing up for the birth of this little guy proved a lesson for us all. Our daughter Laura was induced early, because of issues too complicated for me to understand or explain. Henry would be fine, we were told. This was just a precaution. The good news? We had a set date for baby. This was going to be simple. As we prepared, Jenn and I gave our two youngest boys (ages 11 & 9) an option.…

  • A Lesson in Baseball and Rethinking Church

    The God of Base Hits

    The other day at one of my son’s 8-And-Under baseball games, our team was absent our scorekeeper so I was tossed the book to keep up with what is always a myriad of hits, baseballs being thrown all over the diamond, and more than a few runs. The coaches pitch and while some kids have a difficult time hitting the ball, whenever the bat connects, chaos usually ensues. A ground ball making it to the outfield often rolls through someone’s legs; followed by a wild throw, a frenetic attempt to pick up the ball and sling it where a base runner might be, then more chasing and running the bases.…

  • Kirk Walden Rethinking Leadership, One Step Changes the World

    One Step Changes the World

    “World Changer.” By definition–and I’ve worked hard on this–a world changer is one who . . . changes the world. No applause, please, for my tireless laboring on this topic, at least not yet. The fact is, I’m good at this definition stuff; it just comes naturally. But as we look at world changers, let’s focus on those who change the world for the good. These are the people we love to be around; or who inspire us as we see their stories. Last week Jenn (my wife) and I attended a conference with this theme (“World Changers”) and had the incredible opportunity to hang out with a lot of seemingly regular…

  • Kirk Walden Rethinking Evangelism, Sometimes It Only Takes a Story

    Sometimes It Only Takes a Story

    “Christians need sound teaching,” I’ve been told many times. And this of course, is true. But here’s a question, “How much teaching do we need?” Without starting an argument, I’ll add this: Sitting for sound teaching is beneficial, but we must also be quicker to go and tell. Think about it; Sunday after Sunday we can go to a good church in our community and learn from someone who knows more than we do about the Bible and all kinds of theological ideas. We can even learn how to live a much more fulfilling life. We have some amazing teachers out there we can watch online. Good stuff. Solid stuff. We can…

  • Kirk Walden Rethinking Church and Rahab of the Bible

    One Small Step for Rahab

    By faith Rahab the harlot did not perish along with those who were disobedient, after she had welcomed the spies in peace.Hebrews 11:31 Faith–real faith–can get messy. Because sometimes, faith doesn’t fit in our checklist of “Christian Disciplines” or even The Ten Commandments.  So, let’s talk about Rahab. The harlot. The woman who ran around giving herself to men and held a place among the most despised women in the city of Jericho. Men used her, then mocked her. She was trash. But when Joshua sent spies to Jericho to check it out before he invaded the city, Rahab housed them. But there was a problem with her good deed:…

  • About Kirk Walden's Journey of Faith Part 3

    Kirk’s Journey Part 3 – Sand, Sun . . . And Salvation?

    The Third of a Three-Part Series. You can just read away, or take a look at Part I . . . and Part II. Of All Days for a Downpour Waking up on a Saturday morning, the rain pounded the ground outside of our retreat center. It was pouring. On a normal day, this was not a biggie. But it certainly mattered on this day, May 17, 1980. Because, I was in Panama City Beach. As in Florida. The Gulf of Mexico. The rain was drowning any hopes of splashing in the Gulf. We arrived the night before, too late for beach time. We would leave Sunday afternoon. Time was…