The Cactus & The Cross Blog

Ash Wednesday is on February 14th this year—Valentine’s Day. While some may think it strange to celebrate romantic love on the same day...

This past October I was privileged to sit through a workshop lead by our very own Pastor Lowell Nelson, a member of St. John’s, who was...

Have you ever had your phone working but not quite right, dropping calls and apps suddenly closing? Sometimes the best thing is to reset...

At my seminary graduation I felt like an all-star. As I looked back at the growth I experienced thinking of my first seminary class being...

Advent and Christmas are natural times to talk about peace. Jesus is, after all, the Prince of Peace (Isa 9:6)! At his birth, the angels...

Picture this friends, You are in Frys wearing your yellow “God’s Work, Our Hands” t-shirt and you see a fellow shopper reading your...

It’s mid-October as I am imagining myself forward in the future to November and what may be on your hearts and minds in November with All...

Fewer and fewer people in the U.S. are participating in Churches. What can we do? More on that in a minute. The 16th century Reformation...

While attending this summer’s ELCA Rostered Ministers Gathering here in Phoenix, I was met by a group of hounds hanging out at the ELCA...

Leaders aren’t born, they’re grown. Yes, there are some people who seem to have native leadership skills, but I think it only looks that...