It only took 31 ½ years to make my first journey out of the country and my first missions trip outside of the boarders of these United States. I know many here have made trips before, and some even presently live in other countries as they serve the Lord. But the personal newness of the experience still compels me to write! I took a two-week trip to Zambia in southern Africa to work as a teacher at the International Bible College operated by Gospelink. We were able to go into some of the local villages and attempt to share the Gospel, but this was mostly missions in the vein of Acts … [Read more...] about Reflections on my first journey out of the states, and the return home…
The Centrality of the Lord’s Supper to Church Life
The Lord’s Supper serves as one of two symbols depicting for us the reality of the Gospel, baptism being the other. Whereas baptism tells the story of our union with Christ in death, burial, and resurrection to new life (Romans 6), the Lord’s Supper paints a picture of how Jesus accomplished such new life for us in the sacrifice of his body. In John 6, Jesus (rather graphically on the surface) told his followers, “Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink” (6:54-55). … [Read more...] about The Centrality of the Lord’s Supper to Church Life
Confessions of a Whippersnapper
Okay, so I was a bit inspired by Dave Miller’s post giving advice to the young whippersnapper types around. Now on the one hand they say, “You’re only as young as you feel!” If that’s true, then I think I must be nearing retirement. If 31 feels this different from 21, I hate to think what 41 or, gasp, 51 holds! But no matter how I feel, I still fit into that whippersnapper category. Later this year will mark the completion of my 8th year in pastoral ministry. While some would still consider that the infant stage, or maybe toddler, I tend to look at it more from the angle of, … [Read more...] about Confessions of a Whippersnapper
Do Not Make God a Priority for 2012
Okay…so we’re at the end of another year and getting ready to start the next. It is around New Year’s that people tend to think about their past year and evaluate what they did well and what they did poorly, so they can make resolutions for the year to come. Here’s a resolution I think all faithful Christians should commit to: in the upcoming year, and all the years left to come in our lives, we will do everything we can to not make God a priority. Now before I get ran off as some sort of heretic, consider a few things: “In the beginning, God.”—the first four words of most English … [Read more...] about Do Not Make God a Priority for 2012
If you rearrange the letters in Santa you get…
Poor ol’ Saint Nick—sometimes I feel he gets a bad rap. You want to talk about Christmas and wars, don’t forget the old Santa Clause. It reads something like this… Families, Sunday Schools, coffee table, it doesn’t matter. We evangelicals are quite opinionated with our opinions thinking that we hold the mystery of the key of David. What we open no one will shut and what we shut no one will open. After all if it is something we have an opinion on, we must be right! Hence you have those families who see Santa as a fun part of Christmas and family traditions—a jolly ol’ guy in a red … [Read more...] about If you rearrange the letters in Santa you get…
Discipleship Begins at Home
Deuteronomy 6:5-7, 20-25 5 You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. 6 And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. 7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise… 20 "When your son asks you in time to come, 'What is the meaning of the testimonies and the statutes and the rules that the LORD our God has commanded you?' 21 then you shall say to your son, 'We were Pharaoh's slaves in … [Read more...] about Discipleship Begins at Home
These things I am thankful for…
With thanksgiving coming, I thought it only appropriate that I share some things I am thankful for… 1. The changing of the seasons. One of my best friends, my old roommate from seminary, is from southern Georgia whereas I have spent the vast majority of my life in central Missouri. He always hated this time of year outside of the south—because 40 is just too cold, and everything dies (green going to brown and falling off, that is). But I will take cool weather, the smell of fire places, the changing leaves, the morning haze through the brown trees, the snow, and my 4 wheel drive any … [Read more...] about These things I am thankful for…
Christians and the Demonic—Another Take
In another post a day or two ago, Dave Miller related to us an experience he had a couple of years back concerning what seemed to be a demonic influence over a professing Christian. For most of us who have been in the ministry for any length of time, we have either experienced or know those who have experienced what can best be described as demonic influences over the lives of people that we truly believe are sincere, professing Christians. Yet as Dave indicated, and as I agree with: this creates a tension between experience and theology for some of us. So what do we do with the questions … [Read more...] about Christians and the Demonic—Another Take
What If We All Thought This Way?
On Wednesday nights, like a lot of “traditional” Southern Baptist Churches, we have a prayer meeting followed by a time of Bible study—basically like what we do on Sunday nights but without the music. We have spent the past 13 months quickly working through the entire Bible, doing a broad overview of all 66 books, one each week or sometimes one for a two week span. This past Wednesday we studied Philippians. The cool thing about short books is that in this study we actually get into more detail than we do with the longer ones like, say, Jeremiah. But I digress… Philippians is a book … [Read more...] about What If We All Thought This Way?
When God Seems Distant
I’ve had several people in my church come to me recently at different times but with the same issue: “I feel like I’m just going through the motions, and when I pray or read my Bible nothing is there. I’m not sure anymore if I’m even a Christian.” It’s those difficult moments where the God who has spoken and the God who is personal and near suddenly seems like the God who is so distant. We’ve likely all experienced those times—those spiritual valleys where we feel as if we’re alone, and no amount of prayer seems to break the depression. So, of course, it becomes easy to question and to … [Read more...] about When God Seems Distant