davegipson@hotmail.com

How to be friends with a pastor on Social Media

UncategorizedFebruary 23, 2019186Views 0Likes 0Comments

I had to do something that broke my heart last week. I actually blocked a friend on Facebook. Blocking him made me extremely sad. But he just couldn't resist getting combative with me every single time I hit his “hot button issues”, even though I always try to stay away from hot buttons. When I…

Five Surprising Things About Discipleship

UncategorizedFebruary 6, 201992Views 0Likes 0Comments

When I served larger churches, I never really understood what discipleship was. If someone had told me I had to do it, as a minister over hundreds I would have replied, “I don’t have time to do that!” But as I planted a church, I began opening my life to the people who joined us.…

Have another piece of pie

parentingNovember 21, 2018157Views 0Likes 3Comments

Of our three children right now, Gracie is the least serious-minded. But she always demands to say the prayer at dinner each night. At first, it was the prayer she learned in her Christian preschool: “God is great, God is good…” Every night, she’d clasp her little hands together and say the entire prayer, while grinning…

A View of the Ocean

belief, Blog, UncategorizedSeptember 1, 2018123Views 0Likes 0Comments

The old man answered the apartment door in his wheelchair. It had been a development from his fight with what appeared to be Parkinson's. I could tell his limited mobility, now in his late 80s, was a continual source of frustration for him. His wife, a woman several years younger, was there too. “I’ll let him show…

If you only knew…

UncategorizedAugust 12, 2018114Views 0Likes 0Comments

I remember the first time someone called me “pastor” and it finally felt normal. Actually, I only thought they were saying “pastor”. I was in a Starbucks I frequent, and someone called out something like “faster”. It could have even been “disaster”, but I’ve been called that before. But after I turned around to look, I caught…

Before You Hit Send

UncategorizedJuly 30, 2018138Views 0Likes 1Comment

I just got a text from a friend that shocked me. It wasn’t as much what they said as who they said it about. You see, the text was about someone we both knew. But its author had accidentally sent it not to its intended recipient, but instead to the subject of the text. My friend sent…

When God Wants You Unhappy

UncategorizedJuly 7, 2018167Views 0Likes 0Comments

I recently got a Facebook message from a well-meaning Christian friend: "God has seen everything you've been going through, and He told me to tell you 'IT'S OVER'! Your trial has ended, and now God's about to open up the windows of heaven to bless you beyond your wildest dreams!!!!!" (Full disclosure: I may have…

Your pain

UncategorizedJune 27, 2018101Views 0Likes 0Comments

I am so sincerely sorry for your pain. But... Your pain is not the only pain in the world Your pain does not make you right. It doesn’t justify your lashing out Your pain does not necessarily make you noble or brave Your pain may indeed destroy you, if you let it Your pain is a curse...or…

When Worship Doesn’t Work

UncategorizedMay 31, 2018129Views 0Likes 0Comments

I watched a worship service on the internet recently. I was pretty familiar with the church I was watching. It had been known for powerful worship, and a big joyful choir. Clearly God had worked in this church in a dynamic way for many years. But since moves of God are hard to sustain, over the…

Bitter / Better

UncategorizedMay 3, 201821Views 0Likes 0Comments

Once there was a man on our street who I knew was watching our house, every single day. And even worse, he was constantly leering at our children. Anywhere else this occurred, they'd call the cops on him. But in Florida, they elect him to the Neighborhood Association. Anytime my teenage kids parked their cars…

Blinding Them With Science

UncategorizedApril 26, 201890Views 0Likes 0Comments

I’m afraid I may have just triggered someone. First, let me explain. I watched over the weekend as the March for Science took place in Washington D.C. (Earth Day - April 22, 2017). The organizers had made it clear they didn’t want their event to become a partisan political forum: We unite as a diverse, nonpartisan group…

I’m Unfollowing You on Facebook, Bless Your Heart

UncategorizedApril 23, 2018102Views 0Likes 0Comments

I’m unfollowing you on Facebook, bless your heart. Not unfriending, but I won't be seeing your posts, at least for now. And as I've mentioned before, "bless your heart" is a pastor's code word... ...it's code for "what an idiot". I know that's something as a pastor I'm not supposed to say. But I'm afraid…

Author page: davegipson@hotmail.com

davegipson@hotmail.com