Carl Trueman from Reformation 21 offers some insightful and humorous comments about middle-aged ministers and their often ridiculous efforts to try and relate to the young and hip generation.

After briefly discussing the beauty of baldness, Trueman states what the real priorities of the minister should be:

"The priority of the minister is not to be hip or cool. It is not even to `connect with the kids.' It is to immerse himself in the word, to know the gospel inside out, and to communicate that gospel with care, clarity, love, and force.

OK, my criticism of the hair obsession and vanity of so many ministers is overstated; and they are scarcely the only Christians with skewed priorities. We all know Christians who are more concerned about where children are educated than the doctrine of the Trinity, or who are more passionate about Bible translations than guarding their tongues from malicious gossip.

But the point of priorities is basic and important: don't let your mid-life crisis determine the way you think about the gospel and the church. A hairstyle which tries to hide the ageing process is one thing, ridiculous but harmless; a theological agenda which mimics the world's obsession with locating wisdom in the very sector of society with least experience of, and perspective on, everything is far more serious and potentially damaging.

Let's hope that the hairstyles of the forty-something clergy with soul patches are not sacramental: outward signs of inward spiritual realities. As to my brothers who are follicle-challenged but who faithfully study, pray and preach the gospel week by week, Be bald, be strong, for the Lord your God is with you."

This discussion should serve as a good warm up for our interview tomorrow with Diana West, Author of the book "The Death of the Grown-up: How America's Arrested Development is Bringing Down Western Civilization"