What’s Next: 3 Major Stages of Discipleship

A Church must continually evaluate where it has come from, what places it has gone off track, and where it currently stands in regards to Jesus central call to “Go and make disciples.”  I take that as Jesus’ mission statement to the Church quite literally.  The Book of Acts shows us the earliest picture of [...]

Tents to Castles

My daughter got a “Dora the Explorer” tent for her birthday a few weeks ago.  It’s not any more than about 3 feet by 3 feet, w/a couple of openings on either side to crawl into.  This past week, she was playing with the tent, and in the course of her play she called the [...]

Links: Revival Prayers

I read Trevin Wax’s blog semi-regularly, and this post on prayers for revival was a timely one for me.  In a rural church, Revival is associated with an annual or bi-annual time to bring in a guest preacher with the hopes of firing the congregation up, and possibly winning the lost to Jesus.  I’ve stately [...]

Thanksgiving Day Thoughts

The family just left.  I just ate way more food than I needed to.  The kids are asleep.  The Detroit game is a blowout.  So I had about an hour before my Cowboys come on and I get to watch a game I really care about. So that gave me a few minutes to think [...]

Roused From Sleeping and Dreaming

It’s easy enough to be the Pharisee, haughty and proud in the temple, thanking God and all around that “I’m not like that poor fellow over there.”  That one over there is beating his breast, crying loudly, saying things like “God have mercy on me a sinner!”  What a scene that fellow is making.  Right? [...]

Sea and Dirt – The Natural Man

On Page 4 of Richard Foster’s “Celebration of Discipline,” he offers some wise insight into the inner workings of engrained sin our lives.  That it is just natural.  That left to or own, we will stir and kick up dirt and mire, and expunge it out into the world.  Why?  Because those are the kinds [...]

In those days…

We’re 3 chapters short of finishing our series on the book of Judges.  We finally read what really sums the book up quite well (though it’s certainly debated).  That is that, “In those days there was no king in Israel, and every one did what was right in his own eyes.”  The statement is a [...]

An Empty House

It’s quiet here.  Too quiet.  There’s no baby crying.  There’s no diaper to change.  There’s no little icon of my wife asking for popsicles before bed.  There’s no one beside me at 11:21 PM in our room.  The baby monitor is off.  The night light my wife refuses to turn off, is off.  There’s nothing [...]

The Rural Church Killers

My friend Mike over at Rural Route Church, is a Rural Church advocate.  His zeal for God’s glory displayed in our often ignored, smaller, rural churches that work in the fringes of a society that is increasingly suburban and urban.  His passion is on display regularly at his blog, and it seems obvious that God [...]

Get Outside of Yourself

I’m introspective by nature.  A navel gazer.  Self reflective.  Most times far too analytical.  I’m sure there are benefits to this, but I’m too lazy to think of what they are right now.  Very often, someone who is very introspective becomes the person who is often depressed.  In other words, too much time spent in [...]