Cultural Studies… What is the Word of God? 14 Oct 2024 By Justin Rossow Quick: if I say the phrase, “The Word of God,” what do you think of first? I suspect most people in our current church culture, and maybe…
Cultural Studies Thou with a capital T 24 Jul 202424 Jul 2024 By Conrad Gempf I don’t think it’s all in my head; I think some of the language of worship has changed since I was little. I feel like we say Holy…
Cultural Studies… Defining “Discipleship” 21 May 202429 Jan 2025 By Justin Rossow In my work for Next Step Press, I get to talk about “discipleship” with different people from across the country and, sometimes, even around the world. I’ve…
Cultural Studies… On Being Human 10 May 202413 Nov 2024 By Jamie Wiechman I have really been wrestling with my humanness lately. Do you know what it means to be human? According to Merriam-Webster, “human” means “representative of or susceptible…
Cultural Studies… Strangers on the Beach 14 Mar 202418 Mar 2024 By Elizabeth Rossow You would think that sitting by the ocean would make me feel insignificant. I mean, we hear stories all the time of how, when faced with that…
Cultural Studies… To See Ourselves as Jesus Sees Us 30 Oct 20231 Nov 2023 By Justin Rossow I have had a song stuck in my head for over a week, humming it to myself since we we sang it in worship a Sunday ago:…
Cultural Studies… More Meditation Myths 23 Oct 202323 Oct 2023 By the Disciple Like You Mean It Summer Cohort, 2023(Edited by Justin Rossow) Introduction This blog captures some of the responses to Lesson 6.2 in the online course for discipling…
Cultural Studies… Busting Meditation Myths 3 Oct 20233 Oct 2023 By Justin Rossow Editor's note: this blog recreates Lesson 6.2 in the online course for discipline leaders called Disciple Like You Mean It. Whether you are a small group host,…
Cultural Studies… Ozymandias 26 Feb 2023 By Kim Longden Ozymandias is one of my favorite poems to use as an interpretive reading exercise with the kids. In it, a traveler describes the ruins of a statue…
Cultural Studies… Messy Christmas 24 Dec 202215 Nov 2023 By Justin Rossow It’s Christmas Eve, and my daughter was supposed to be home three days ago. She made it to the Minneapolis airport. She made it onto the plane.…
Cultural Studies… Why I Owe My Faith to the Jews 2 Dec 20223 Dec 2022 By Kristeen Bruun When I was in my twenties and very definitely searching in my faith life, I spent several years working in New York City. I loved my time…
Cultural Studies Your Eternal Life Starts Now 8 Nov 20229 Nov 2022 By Justin Rossow In his famous allegorical narrative, The Great Divorce, C. S. Lewis has his most reliable character say: “Both good and evil, when they are fully grown, become…
Cultural Studies… Holiday Prep with Lüthla and Güthla 2 Nov 2022 By Katie Helmreich Don't panic, but it's November. Blink and it will be Thanksgiving. Blink twice and it will be Christmas! THERE IS SO MUCH TO DO!! When Elise, my…
Cultural Studies “Jesus wept.” 17 Oct 202218 Oct 2022 By Rachel Hinz Six years ago my mom died. That’s not how I usually say it, though. I’ll say something like, “My mom got to see her Savior.” Or, “My…
Cultural Studies Don’t Wear the Gorilla Sweater 11 Oct 202212 Oct 2022 By Katie Helmreich I just finished knitting a cardigan for a gorilla. It wasn't exactly what I was going for. I thought I was following the pattern, but somehow things…
Cultural Studies Great (and Not-So-Great) Expectations 17 Aug 20221 Nov 2022 By Ted Hopkins Expectations are a funny beast. On vacation this summer, we ate at a restaurant that was a bit sketchy when we first walked in. They had open…
Cultural Studies… Mary and Martha, GPA or GPS? 28 Jul 202215 Nov 2023 By Justin Rossow (with Valerie Matyas) A couple of weeks ago, I got to lead a Next Step workshop at a congregation outside Buffalo, New York. As part of the…
Cultural Studies… Take My Moments and My Days 8 Jun 20221 Nov 2022 By Katie Helmreich My alarm went off at 5:50 this morning. I hit snooze a few times, but then I remembered today's the day I'd arranged to swap kid-free hours…
