Bible Trumps Creativity

Craig Groeschel who is known for leading the way in many creative and innovative things within the church has some very wise words for those who may think creativity is priority.

From Craig's Blog:

Without question, we at LifeChurch.tv have worked hard to be creative and relevant. We’ve never shied away from having fun in church. But creativity, relevance, and fun should never be the top goals when planning the weekend worship experience.

• Jesus never said, “You will watch this funny video, and the funny video will set you free.”
• John the Baptist never said, “Creativity must increase and I must decrease.”
• Paul never proclaimed, “We should preach relevance and relevance crucified.”

Perhaps some pastors are unintentionally omitting the more important questions.

• Instead of asking, “What will bring glory to God?” some appear to be asking, “What will bring in a crowd?”
• Instead of asking, “How do we communicate Scripture accurately?” some are asking, “How can we be creative?”
• Instead of asking, “How can we truly disciple those in our church?” some are asking, “How can we get people back to church?”

While the second question in each bullet point is not wrong to ask, if we aren’t asking the first questions, we are drifting into dangerous territory.

Click Here To Check Out LifeChurch.tv

Productivity to The Glory of God

It seems like every week is a "busy week", with meetings, The Well, seminary, more meetings there just always seems to be more to do than time to do it in. C. J. Mahaney has put together a great little PDF on what Biblical Productivity looks like. I recommend you start your day off after time in the Word and Prayer in this handy little guide.

From C.J.'s Blog

Spanning more than four months on the blog, C.J.’s 17-part series on biblical productivity has finally concluded. Via email and in personal conversations many of you have requested that the series be provided as a single document to make it easier to print and read. And today we are making this entire series available as a single 36-page document. You can view and download the PDF by clicking here (0.6 MB):

For anyone interested in reading the series online, I’ve included a final series index of the original posts (see below).

Thanks for reading!

Biblical Productivity

1. Are You Busy?

2. Confessions of a Busy Procrastinator

3. The Procrastinator Within

4. Just Do It

5. In All Thy Ways

6. The Sluggard

7. Time. Redeemed.

8. Roles, Goals, Scheduling

9. Roles (Part 1)

10. Roles (Part 2)

11. Goals (Part 1)

12. Goals (Part 2)

13. Goals (Part 3)

14. Goals (Part 4)

15. Scheduling the Unexpected

16. The To-Do Lists Are Never Done

17. Self-Sufficient

For more form C.J. Mahaney check out his blog "A View From the Cheap Seats."

How To Be A Single Titus 2 Woman

Working with young adults means one thing for sure, relationships. Working on purity, working on a clear Biblical vision of what marriage is, and working on those struggling with singleness. One thing I have told many, is to not wait on the sidelines for that "special someone" but to live a godly life now, to live with reckless, passionate love for Jesus now.

Carolyn McCulley offers some great wisdom from her own personal experience being a single woman, on what it means to be a single Titus 2 woman. How do you be a woman in pursuit of honoring God, when so much of what the Bible talks about for women is linked to marriage and motherhood? Carolyn attempts to show that it can be done.

Here is an excerpt:

One area in where I have struggled is what femininity should look like for a single woman. Because the Lord made the woman to be a helper, the contours of biblical femininity are usually sculpted through relationships with others - as wife, mother, daughter, sister, aunt. Though I am definitely a daughter, sister, and aunt, I am not (yet) a wife or mother. But I know that God created me female in his own image, and that he has given me this gift of singleness in this season of my life. These are not mutually exclusive concepts, but sometimes I still wrestle with how to express them both to the glory of God.

In late 1998, I moved to take a job as part of a church-planting ministry and to serve in a local church pastored by the pastor I met in South Africa, C.J. Mahaney. A year later, I attended a series of seminars on Titus 2 taught by his wife, Carolyn Mahaney. Through her teaching, I realized that of the seven qualities Paul urges Titus to have older women teach to younger women, only two are explicitly directed at married women and one to mothers. That leaves at least four for all women, married or single. Despite my marital status, I was to be self-controlled, pure, busy at home, and kind. That is a tall order no matter how you look at it, but it does not mean I can ignore the other three qualities. There are implications for single women in the commands to love husbands and children as well as for wives to be subject to their husbands. Based upon this passage, the following are some ways in which God has given me the grace to apply the Titus 2 virtues in my life and genuinely enjoy my femininity as a single woman.

Click to read the rest

Star Trek Fans Angry About New Movie

Happy Mother's Day :)

Imagine

To be run during American Idol finale.

Props: Z

Preaching Irrelevant, Silly Myths

Matt Chandler lead pastor at The Village Church speaking at Desiring God's Pastor's Conference this past year.

Ed Stetzer Interacts with 9Marks Journal on Multi-Site Churches

Ed is the man, uber-smart and very thoughtful with his interactions with the most recent 9Marks journal that deals with multi-site churches. Good stuff to think about for sure.

From EdStetzer.com:

Everyone's talking about multi-site churches these days. There are books, seminars, and today we have several thousand multi-site churches in North America. Some of you read my series of posts on the subject last year. Well, last week 9 Marks released it's May/June eJournal.

It's good to see 9 Marks putting out an eJournal that doesn't just criticize mulit-site churches, but also includes a defense of them from men like J.D. Grear, Matt Chandler and Gregg Allison. The whole journal can be downloaded here, and I encourage you to check it out. I won't break down everything said in every article, but I will point out a few of the things that caught my attention.

Click here for the rest of this insightful response.

Death By Love: Jesus our Warrior King

I cannot recommend Mark Driscoll’s book “Death By Love” enough. In it Driscoll shares various ways that the atonement of Christ on the cross speaks into various situations. Below is a couple of quotes from Chapter 1 dealing with Christ’s victory over Satan and Demonic influences.

This quote reminds me so much of Ephesians 2 and how our allegiance has now changed:

“Ashamed of your many years at the Dragon’s side, you stood off to the side alone, gazing at the ground until Jesus came to you. Taking your chin in his hand, Jesus lifted your face, looked you in the eye, and told you that your sins were forgiven, your Enemy conquered, and your life liberated from captivity, and that God is now your Father, new life is your gift, and heaven is your home. As tears streamed down your face, Jesus asked you always to remember to see yourself as he does, not in light of what you have done or what has been done to you, but rather solely by what he has done for you as your victorious Warrior King.” (pg. 46)

Conviction or Condemnation, there is a difference:

“God convicts you of specific sins so that, with his compassionate help, you can repent and move on to freedom and joy. Satan, however, will seek to defeat and discourage you through guilt that is so general that you never know exactly what to repent of and are thereby left in paralyzing bondage and despair.” (pg. 50)

Click Here to order “Death By Love”

To Those Who Are Overwhelmed with Finals, Work, and Life

Something to remember, ;)

Shaq vs Lesner

Ok not really, but I thought the fact that Shaq is training in MMA is pretty interesting.

From ESPN:

Mark Driscoll on Humility

Pastor Mark from Mars Hill Church takes a lot of shots and bullets when it comes to who he is. Whether it is his language, or a perceived arrogance the fact is the man has snipers all over the blog universe that are ready to take him out at the first instance of any imperfection.

This video shows though that he is a man, that yes is imperfect, and yes still sins, but is seeking humility and willing to own up to his mistakes. That is the mark of humility!

From the Resurgence:

This week at Mars Hill Church, Mark Driscoll preached on Humble Pastors. In this clip he explains how to find out if you're a humble pastor.

God's Mercy

Props: Ray Ortlund

The Gospel For ABQ-UNM

From Church Planting Novice:

I was recently asked to write up an explanation of the “good news” for a newspaper as a part of JR Woodward’s Good News Series. I wrote up a contextualized expression of the gospel for Austin, the gospel for my city. I’ve also submitted it to our local paper. This is a good exercise for all church planters. Thanks to JR for stimulating this good line of thinking. I hope you’ll do something similar for your local newspaper.

Jonathan Dodson gives us something very important to think through. How does the Gospel speak to our city? How would you explain it to a student at UNM, CNM or a young adult at Starbucks?

The Day Is Not Yours

From The Gospel Driven Church:

The truth is, the day does not belong to us. It is not our day to do with as we please. We serve a sovereign God. He created the end from the beginning, knows our future exhaustively, and is firmly in control. He made our days and they belong to him.

As such, isn't it a wee bit arrogant to begin with the idea that each day is ours and then worry about fitting God in? Instead, we should work at the humble awe of knowing all of our moments, each millisecond, waking or sleeping, are perfectly accounted for within his economy. It is a wonder then, that God makes time for us.

He then goes on to show 2 ways the understanding that the day belongs to a sovereign God changes our outlook.

1. It makes us more conscious of how we use our day.

2. It makes us more conscious of him within our day.

We need these reminders every morning, at least I know I do!

Click Here To Read Full Post

Human Creativity That Points To The Maker's

In case you are one of the few who have not seen this, it is pretty sweet!

Tim Keller at Google

The Well's community groups went through "The Reason for God" by Tim Keller this past semester. We chose this book in order to better equip our students for their engagements with the culture they are in here in Albuquerque, NM.

We actually look forward to some exciting things coming next year, which we will be announcing over the summer in relation to this book!

During the book tour that Dr. Keller went on, he gave many lectures at places like Cal Berkeley, Stanford, Penn and Google. Below I have embedded his talk he gave to Google. It is a great lecture and engagement and I recommend taking a hour out to watch.

Click here for more Tim Keller Resources.

Understanding People Before Culture

Mark Lauterbach in this month's NEXT Webzine gives some great words of wisdom when it comes to how we as Christians should engage the world around us. We so often (myself for sure included) get caught up with thinking more about culture than anything else. Sometimes we do so out of our own self-justification, so we can watch South Park or listen to this or that. We engage in "cultural studies" without ever actually engaging the culture we study with the gospel of Jesus Christ! That is wrong, that is sin and we must heed this wisdom from Lauterbach.

Here is an excerpt:

In light of this, there’s a big question many Christians are asking today: How should a Christian relate to their culture?

Should we insulate ourselves in Christian ghettos? Or are we to study the culture–stay in touch with the best of TV and cinema, keep up with the bestsellers, and know some of the new music?

Personally, I am not sure I know exactly how to answer all these questions or where to draw all the lines. I know we should ask these questions, carefully and biblically. And I know we will all answer them, in good conscience, in different ways.

But I want to suggest that this question–“How should a Christian relate to culture?”–may be the wrong question. This may be the wrong place for us, as Christians in the middle of culture, to start. Here’s why: I am not sure how I am to relate to the culture, but I am sure I am to relate to people outside of Christ for the sake of their salvation. Before we ask how we as Christians should relate to our culture we must ask how and why Christ came into culture. Christ and his mission should define the questions we ask about culture.

Click here for the rest of the article.

The Driscolls on How Not To Marry a Coward

Mark and Grace Driscoll offer some great wisdom for ladies in trying to avoid marrying a coward.

Ladies, this is something I cannot plead with you enough on, what you may find cute right now will be painful in 5 years.

Men, you are to be the spiritual leader, you are to take the bullets, you are to protect, lead, guide and sacrifice. There are too many boys today, that are lazy, video game players, sports fanatics, gym rats who don't read their Bible, don't know how to sacrifice, neglect prayer and act like whiney little wimps. I am not even talking about physical strength, that's easy.

I am talking about the crap that I have seen, where men do not respect women, they do not see their calling to lead and serve, they actually expect to be led and served. It is disgusting. And God will eventually deal with you, either by breaking you in front of the Cross with repentance and grace. OR by judging you guilty, and unleashing His full wrath upon you for eternity.

In short: Men be Men. Ladies seek Men, not boys, no matter how "hot" they are!!

Coldplay Thanks Fans With Free Live CD

It is no wonder this band has such loyal fans!

From Rolling Stone:

Starting with their May 15th show in West Palm Beach, Florida, Coldplay will give all fans that attend a gig on their North American Viva la Vida summer tour a free live album, the band revealed on its Website. Fans who aren’t holding tickets to any of those performances can get the nine-song collection,LeftRightLeftRightLeft, as a free download on the band’s official Website starting May 15th. Physical copies of the album will only be available at Coldplay’s concerts, however. The live album culls performances from several cities during the band’s last year of touring and will be available only during its summer tour, which runs until August 9th.

Click Here For Rest of Article

I Want The Whole Gospel

From James MacDonald:

I Want the Whole Gospel

Every single ounce of truth; give it to me straight just like it is in the Bible.

I want the whole gospel:
Don’t dilute the living water—it might not quench my thirsty soul.

I want the whole gospel:
Turn on the light of Jesus Christ and don’t shield my view—I need every beam of His radiant glory to dispel the darkness in me.

I want the whole gospel:
Don’t block the door, or I might not get through.

I want the whole gospel:
I need an accurate map to the narrow road, because only a few are finding it.

I want the whole gospel:
Because I am wholly lost, God’s verdict is wholly just, and my damnation is wholly certain.
My heart is wholly depraved and my sin is wholly mine.
My efforts are wholly futile and my escapes are wholly hopeless.
I need a whole Savior, whose whole suffering, wholly satisfies a holy God.

Please, please don’t cut the corners. It’s appointed unto man once to die and I have to be sure I get it right.

I have to have the whole gospel—give it to me straight. Nothing else will do!

Yes…God help us, let’s give the whole gospel.

Big News From City On A Hill

City on a Hill today announced some rather big news. City on a Hill's Lead Pastor Dave Bruskas is a dear friend, and I am really excited for them. In the coming school year The Well looks forward to teaming up with City on a Hill which will be a Mars Hill campus to reach UNM and CNM in new and exciting ways.

Greater things are yet to be done...

From Mars Hills Blog:

At today’s services, Pastor Mark is making a few significant announcements, including news of multiple Mars Hill pastors preparing to start new churches, and multiple new Mars Hill campuses in the works. The latter includes our first out-of-state campus in New Mexico.

This summer, City on a Hill Church in Albuquerque will become a Mars Hill campus. We will partner together in an effort to reach as many people as possible with the gospel of Jesus. Over the past three months, the Executive Elders of Mars Hill and the pastors of City on a Hill have spent many hours in discussion, prayer, and study in order to reach this unanimous decision.

Dave Bruskas is the lead pastor at City on a Hill, which has been a part of the Acts 29 Networksince 2007. He is a proven, seasoned pastor and a gifted teacher. He is a loving husband, and a devoted father to his four daughters. Dave will be the Albuquerque campus pastor and serve as a regional director for both Acts 29 and Mars Hill, starting new campuses, starting new churches, and continuing to lead the local congregation.

The transition from City on a Hill to Mars Hill Church will be official in the next few months, and the new campus will celebrate its grand opening this fall. In the meantime, the local leadership will help shepherd the congregation through the transition, and Mars Hill pastors will spend some time onsite to provide training and fellowship as we get better acquainted with this new extension of our church family (for example, Tim Smith, our lead worship pastor, will visit next weekend, and Pastor Mark will preach live at City on a Hill on May 24).

Please pray for our brothers and sisters in Albuquerque, and the work God has called them to lead in their city and region. We are encouraged by their faithfulness to the local mission, and it is an honor to come alongside them in the cause of the gospel.

As we follow Jesus across state lines, none of us know quite what to expect. But we trust him, we love him, and we want people to know him. We are incredibly excited to see him bring unity and fruit within the body of Christ, and salvation and new life throughout the world.

Visit MarsHillGlobal.com and subscribe to the newsletter for more updates related to new campuses, training opportunities, and resources to serve the greater church

Click here to learn more about Mars Hill Church.

Sam Storms Talk 1 @ Clarus 09

Sam Storms’s 1st talk at Clarus 09 was basically a brief summary of Jonathan Edwards Religious Affections.

Storms who is a Edwards scholar and admitted that few if any of us have seen a revival like the one that Edwards went through. He said this is good and bad. Bad cause we do long to experience this. Good because of the theological messiness that this type of revial comes with.

Storms then asked, What is true Religion, what is essential to the Christian life?

The answer is found in 1 Peter 1:8

“Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory,”

An inexpressible joy, devoted to Christ is the quintessential thing to mark true Christianity. One of the best determining factors of the presence of such religion is when suffering is present. Suffering like nothing else truly exposes the state of our soul. It is hard to be a hypocrite when you are in pain.

When faith passes through the furnace of suffering what is left?

True faith that Peter talks about in vs. 8 has three characteristics:

1. Loving Jesus
2. Trusting Jesus
3. Enjoying Jesus

You cannot have one of these without the others. This is an all for nothing deal.

Storms then shared that what Peter ultimately invisions is a joy that human words cannot do justice or find the capacity to articulate.

This is more than just emotions that can be awakened by everything and anything. This is affections that are tied directly to the heart and one’s response to Biblical Truth.

Storms then asked a great question.

Does the reality of the intensity of these affections frighten us? If so, how do we think about heaven then?

Finally Storms pointed to the most passionate and affectionate person, Jesus. His affections were intense and full of fire and passion.

This is why we sing, “singing Truth ignites a forest fire of love, of hatred of sin, of affection for truth, of acknowledgement of power and mercy”

And every bit of it all is revolving around, Jesus!

Ray Ortlund Jr. Talk 1 @ Clarus 09

The first talk of Clarus 09 was given by Ray Ortlund Jr.. Ortlund went over Psalm 1 and helped to identify what makes up True Spirituality.

Ortlund started off asking the questions: Delighting in Truth, is it Biblical? Does it matter?

Ortlund then proceeded to go on to tell how indeed it does matter. How delighting in God cannot be separated from the gospel. By going through Psalm 1 Ortlund showed that the righteous man was the one who delighted in the law of the Lord. He emphasized 3 keywords in the Psalm.

1. Blessed. This is a congratulatory view, it is a Biblical High Five. This man in Psalm 1 has had his spiritual vision purified. Even in the face of scoffers and sinners he stands firm and delights in God and nothing else. This man is saying no to a lot, so he can say yes to God. That is why the Psalm calls him Blessed.
2. Delight. This raises the bar and lowers it. I raises it by showing there is no such thing as half-hearted Christianity. God wants our full delight, our full devotion, not just a moderate acknowledgement. God made the Bible clear on this point. God made the Bible in simple language so we would delight in Him as He has revealed Himself to us.
3. Therefore. Before the word “therefore” in vs. 5 the psalmist is speaking in present tense. Following “therefore” the psalmist now looks toward eternity future. This is where the Psalm turns to show where the wicked and righteous will end up. Delight determines destiny. What we enjoy, matters now, it will matter forever. What we enjoy reveals the deepest reality in us that has been wrought in us by the Holy Spirit and will matter forever. When dark things about God enter our mind we need to talk about them.

Ortlund then asked us. Can we identify with this righteous man and his delight. His delight not in the law, but in the law of the Lord. In other words is there an aliveness in us that will never die. Will we desire this taste of delight, that in reality, ultimate reality is just a foretaste of heaven?

C.J. Mahaney: Biblical Manhood and Womanhood

From CBMW:

Our motivation for biblical manhood and womanhood in marriage is the gospel.

I am convinced that the complementarian position will strengthen the church in her God given-role to proclaim and protect the gospel. And the most effective apologetic for the complementarian position (apart from Scripture) is marriages, families, and singles who radiate the beauty and wisdom of God's plan for men and women.

Biblical manhood and womanhood is the life-transforming effect of the gospel on full display. When a church teaches, practices, and honors gender distinctions determined by our good and wise God, the gospel will advance. But this will only happen where there are humble and courageous pastors who lead every member and ministry of the church by personal example and with strategic pastoring.

Yet here's my concern: It is all too easy for us as pastors to affirm biblical manhood and womanhood and to contend humbly for the complementarian position, and yet still fail to intentionally and consistently apply this body of teaching to our lives and to our churches. Pastors must not only proclaim truth but practice truth.

Read the rest of this great post here.

The Meaning of Life According to Jonathan Edwards

During the DSC Clarus luncheon Ray Ortlund Jr. shared this quote from George Mardsen’s biography of Jonathan Edwards aptly titled “Jonathan Edwards: A Life” as one that has stuck with him in profound ways.

“In the Edwardses’ world, the meaning of life was found in intense loves, including earthly loves.” (pg. 497)

The next line says:

“Yet as overwhelming as earthly affections might be, they were supposed to have their true value only when subordinated to heavenly and eternal loves.” (pg. 497)

You mean old, dead theologians understood emotion and love, in intense ways??

Who would’ve thought?

For more on this, check out Clarus' other speaker Sam Storm's book "Signs of the Spirit: An Interpretation of Jonathan Edwards's 'Religious Affections'"

My Christian Blogs

Here is a great link to find a good library of links to some really good and well worth your time Christian blogs.

I would bookmark this page for quick references and good info. from around the blog-sphere!

My Christian Blogs.

Ray Ortlund Jr and Sam Storms on Missional Living on the Campus

I got the privilege along with the rest of Desert Springs’ staff and other pastors from local churches in Albuquerque to have lunch with Ray Ortlund Jr. and Sam Storms. today.

During this time we had a Q and A session in which we could ask them a question. So below I posted my question along with the answers from these 2 awesome men!

Q: Being a director of a college ministry I interact with many young adult christians who go to UNM and CNM. These campuses are not very friendly to Christianity and those that would share the gospel. How can I encourage those that come to The Well in how they engage the campuses?

(Answers)

1. (Ray Ortlund Jr.) Be prepared to suffer. It is like a quote from “Braveheart” where it is before a battle and someone asks William Wallace “Where are you going?” and he replies “I’m going to pick a fight.” We must have the same mindset. We will suffer. Darkness hates light. We cannot be afraid to pierce the darkness, even in the face of persecution and rejection. Christ was crucified and told us that we should not expect any different treatment, the servant is no greater than the master. Suffering is what brings about revival, not comfort, not safety, suffering!

1. (Sam Storms) Have a good understanding of the sovereignty of God. Understanding that doctrine will not mean that suffering will not happen, but makes it bearable. Knowing that God will grow the seed, that God changes hearts and that nothing, not even persecution is out of His hands will change how we approach it all. It should free us up to evangelize and suffer well.

Teaching Toddlers God's Word

Having a 3 year old, 1 year old, and one on the way, this is timely advice on how to teach small children God's Word.

From Desiring God Blog.

1. Have an open Bible on your lap during story time. This reinforces where the story comes from—God's word.

2. Use short sentences and few words. Too many words overwhelm young minds.

3. Be animated in your facial expressions and tone of voice. This will help keep children engaged.

3. Incorporate movement into the story and singing. Children this age need to move their bodies. Movement helps them learn and remember what you're teaching them.

4. Create routines during the story/circle times by using songs, finger plays, etc.

5. Use repetition to cement biblical concepts in children's hearts and minds.

6. Keep it short and sweet. A story time of 5-10 minutes is the maximum children this age can attend to and sit for.

Clarus 09 Starts Today

My church, Desert Springs' conference called "Clarus" kicks off today. The topic this year is the convergence of doctrine and delight in the christian life.

If you are in the Albuquerque area I encourage you to come on by. If you are a young adult student, the tickets for the entire weekend is only $5! Wolverine will be there Sunday night, don't miss this chance to hear from these great speakers.

The featured speakers are Ray Ortlund Jr. and Sam Storms.

Click Here to go to the Official Clarus Website for schedule of events, and ticket information.

We Need More of This

Stories of the transforming power of the Gospel like this one are beautiful, and needed!

This is from a baptism service at Covenant Life Church.

Props: Josh Harris

He Sings Over Me!

“The Lord your God is in your midst,

a mighty one who will save;

he will rejoice over you with gladness;

he will quiet you by his love;

he will exult over you with loud singing”

Zeph. 3:17

Have you ever had a verse that the Spirit just kept putting in front of you? This verse is just that for me. A couple weeks ago I watched an amazing video featuring Louie Giglio where he read the lyrics from the song “Mighty to Save”. This song seems to be inspired from, or at the very least quotes this verse. I could not stop singing, listening and dwelling on the truth found in this song. Follow that up with a few people, including a speaker from last weeks’ conference quoting this verse over the past couple of weeks. Then upon reading Sam Storms book “Convergence” he also speaks of this verse.

Needless to say today I quieted my heart, got on my knees and asked God to reveal what is going on. Why this verse?

Honestly I think it was God’s way to reassure me that He is here with me. That His purposes will not be thwarted. This has been an extremely heavy week at our church. With the excitement and busyness of our upcoming Clarus conference there have been a few funerals as well as tough situations involving marriages, relationships and put simply, sin.

I think this verse was put in front of me to show me, that God is bigger. God is mighty, He is Great, and Greater than I know or can fathom. That He is saving and renewing even in these valleys. And that in the chaos of everything I need to look upon the cross and be quieted by His Amazing Love! I need to learn to seek His face and sit at His feet.

When I do that He does not just smile or nod. He actually rejoices. More than that He sings over me, He sings loudly! Wow, God, the creator sings over me! Me, a rebel, a sinner, a loser who stresses out over such little things, God sings over me!

He sings because of His Son Jesus. Because His Son’s righteousness covers me. Because His Son took my punishment on the cross, and conquered death by His resurrection! I am a son of God, I am His child. Not “like a son”, but an actual son. I have been adopted into His family, and when I go to Dad, when I sit and love and enjoy Dad, He sings over me!

Awesome, Refreshing, Awakening!!!!

Be Ready For The Super-Natural

Do we get that last line from Sam Storms? Are we doing that?

“We must always preach the Word of God. We must always cultivate the fruit of the Spirit. We must always proclaim the gospel to the lost. But we must also always be available for the miraculous work of the Spirit, whose power resides within each of us who know and love the Lord Jesus Christ.” (pg. 77, Convergence, Sam Storms)

Fear of Association

"The fear of guilt by association has a far greater, more subtle, and more insidious influence on what we believe than most are willing to admit" (Sam Storms, Convergence, pg. 32)

John Piper Autobiographical Sketch

Last week while I was in Chicago I got to attend some lectures put on by the Carl F. H. Henry Theological Foundation. The presenters were John Piper and D.A. Carson. The topic was "The Pastor as Scholar and Scholar as Pastor".

Piper stated that he did not feel quite like a scholar, so instead of some deep academic lecture, he gave us a glimpse of his own journey to where he has come from.

This was very insightful and well worth your time to watch and listen to. Especially for many of you who here me talk or quote John Piper at The Well. Take a few minutes out to listen in to Dr. Piper's very personal story and testimony.

Click here to Watch the Video

or

Here to listen to the Audio

A Good Study Tip

From Cloud of Witnesses:

Here’s an interesting snippet of news from The Chronicle of Higher Education.

The best way to study for an exam? Don’t just reread chapters and review notes — put everything away and then try to write down, or describe out loud, what you know. That’s the conclusion of two papers recently published in psychology journals. “After you’ve read something once, you’ve gotten what you’re going to get out of it,” one professor says, “and then you need to go out and start applying the information.”

The link to the article is here, but it’s only accessible with a subscription.

John Piper: We Need Valiant Men

Convicting and Encouraging, that sums this video clip up:

Costly Grace- Dietrich Bonhoeffer

"Costly grace is the treasure hidden in the field; for the sake of it a man’ will gladly go and self all that he has. It is the pearl of great price to buy which the merchant will sell all his goods. It is the kingly rule of Christ, for whose sake a man will pluck out the eye which causes him to stumble, it is the call of Jesus Christ at which the disciple leaves his nets and follows him.

Costly grace is the gospel which must be sought again and again and again, the gift which must be asked for, the door at which a man must knock. Such grace is costly because it calls us to follow, and it is grace because it calls us to follow Jesus Christ. It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life. It is costly because it condemns sin, and grace because it justifies the sinner. Above all, it is costly because it cost God the life of his Son: “ye were bought at a price,” and what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us. Above all, it is grace because God did not reckon his Son too dear a price to pay for our life, but delivered him up for us. Costly grace is the Incarnation of God.

Costly grace is the sanctuary of God; it has to be protected from the world, and not thrown to the dogs. It is therefore the living word, the Word of God, which he speaks as it pleases him. Costly grace confronts us as a gracious call to follow Jesus. It comes as a word of forgiveness to the broken spirit and the contrite heart. Grace is costly because it compels a man to submit to the yoke of Christ and follow him; it is grace because Jesus says: “My yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (pg. 45, The Cost of Discipleship, Dietrich Bonhoeffer)

Some Questions As You Start The Week

Working with young adults I hear the phrase “I’m so busy!” more times than I can count. So for all young adults and really everybody, let me ask you this question as we begin our week.

What will you do, who will you speak to, where will you spend your time that in 100 billion years will matter?

In other words what will you do this week that will make an eternal difference?

Who will you talk to about Jesus that may transform someone’s eternity?

What petty, superficial things will you get caught up in that will rust and be consumed by moth?

What prayers will you pray with the Kingdom of God in view?

What will you worry about that in the span of eternity will not matter?

When you look back on this week, will you have treasures laid up in heaven, or embarrassment as it all burns away?

What will you be "busy" with this week?

Just Askin’...

Do I Smell Another Matthew McConaughey Movie??

This looks like a future movie, you know the kind "based on a true story".

From CNN:

EASTON, Pennsylvania (CNN) -- It's been dubbed the No. 1 high school rivalry in the United States. But last decade, Phillipsburg High School and Easton Area High School left the football field without a clear winner: a 7-7 tie

Back then, there was no overtime in high school games, and it's stung ever since. In gridiron parlance, it's known as "kissing your sister."

"I didn't know how to feel, stopping the end of my high school career being on a tie," said Bruce Lebitz, an inside linebacker for the 1993 Phillipsburg team.

That's about to change. The gridiron grudge match will be played this weekend. There will be no ties this time around. They're even breaking a century-old Turkey Day tradition, all in the name of who gets the bragging rights from that night so many years ago.

The players are now grown men in their early 30s. Hair is starting to turn gray, and waistlines have expanded. Some are family men, and most have full-time jobs. They had eight weeks to get back in game shape, and most jumped at the chance.

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