Month: March 2015

The Redemption Of Boredom – But whether you love chemistry or not, we’ve all been there. For you, maybe it was Shakespeare, or sitting on hold waiting for the cable company to answer your call, or one of those pointless, endless meetings at work that a two paragraph e-mail could have covered. Have you ever noticed how many boring moments there are in life?

Young People’s Greatest Problem Is… – At least, according to Matthew Henry. In his little book, Sober-Mindedness Pressed Upon Young People, Henry says, “I have seen more young people ruined by pride than perhaps by any one lust whatsoever.”

Can Your Congregation Answer The Questions Of A Post-Christian Society? – Christians are often stymied because they simply don’t know how to apply biblical truth to all of life. As a result, they are continually in retreat before competing ideas. The dominant theories in virtually all fields are secular, and sometimes explicitly anti-Christianity. In order to obey the cultural mandate, we need a strategy that empowers us to show where those theories are mistaken, and then to craft positive biblical alternatives.

4 Reasons To Write Down Prayer Requests – As I thought about this a bit more I’ve decided to always write down prayer requests. If you are one of those tech savvy dudes you can use something like OneNote to keep a record of these. I’m not one of the cool kids so I still use pen and paper and stick little notes in my Bible.

C.S. Lewis Said It: God’s “Goodness” Cannot Be Wholly Other – For years now I have been insisting that the main reason I am not a Calvinist (or any kind of divine determinist) is that, taken to its “good and necessary consequences,” Calvinism makes God morally monstrous.

Why Did Christianity Grow? – A few years ago I made my way through one of his best known books, The Rise of Christianity. Stark, in debunking a number of historical myths, tries to explain from a sociological perspective “how the obscure, marginal Jesus movement became the dominant religious force in the western world in a few centuries.”

Tim Hawkins – 8% Body Fat

It’s The Little Things – It’s the little things that members of a church or church plant do that help the ministry thrive—and without which the growth of the local church would be greatly hindered.

22 Benefits Of Meditating on Scripture – Some great thoughts here on encouraging you to meditate upon God’s Word.

The Life & Mission Of St. Patrick – Patrick’s work firmly planted the Christian faith in Irish soil and left a deep imprint on the Celtic church that would grow up from this soil. 

Poptarts, Budweiser, and Leadership – Poptarts and Budweiser. I am endorsing neither, but one of these brands has experienced 25 years of consecutive decline and one has experienced 30 years of consecutive growth.

A Glimpse Of Grace: This Is NOT A Disney World – We would all love to live in a Disney World, where everything and everyone are clear-cut and perfect. The “bad guys” are always caught, and the problems always solved. Someone else picks up the litter and delivers our snacks.

Legalism Is Your Spiritual Illusion – If you’re living in a narrative that tells you God’s love for you is contingent on your performance, you’ve been told a lie. There is not a scripture in the Bible where Jesus tells us that God only loves us when we get it all right. 

It All Points To Christ

https://vimeo.com/121265107

The Hard Question Of Missions – If we are committed to serving a country and truly helping its people, we should consider one of two things: 1) moving there long-term and dedicating ourselves to learning the practices and the ways of the people as we try to help them, or 2) if we aren’t willing or able to move there long-term, entrusting the ministry to nationals as much as possible.

The Cost Of Relativism – But it’s increasingly clear that sympathy is not enough. It’s not only money and better policy that are missing in these circles; it’s norms. The health of society is primarily determined by the habits and virtues of its citizens. In many parts of America there are no minimally agreed upon standards for what it means to be a father. There are no basic codes and rules woven into daily life, which people can absorb unconsciously and follow automatically.

6 Ways To Become A Welcoming Church – Most churches do consider themselves to be friendly…but are they really?

Can “Authentic Christianity” Be Found Today? – When I read the New Testament I get several impressions about what the apostles thought authentic Christianity looks and feels like in its corporate expression.

Rough Country – Review of Robert Wuthnow, Rough Country: How Texas Became America’s Most Powerful Bible-Belt State (Princeton University Press, 2014).

5 Things You Are Doing Wrong Every Morning – Our morning tasks are much more significant than we’d like to admit, and our bad habits tend to accumulate over time. The morning sets a tone for how the rest of the day is going to go, and even a handful of small mistakes can take its toll on your productivity in the afternoon and beyond.

Why Principals Matter

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0Nc-98-2lA