Worship That Walks: a Restoration Reading of Acts 3
It’s a small detail, easily missed, but it shows the power of worship to energize discipleship. Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour (Acts 3:1). We are now living in the aftermath of the resurrection. The Spirit has descended. The church has been born. And […]
The Purpose of Lent? An Invitation of Decrease and Increase
I never quite understood Ash Wednesday when I was younger. My home church never emphasized anything about Lent, or even Good Friday for that matter. In my experience growing up in church, winter was over, spring started springing, then it was time for Easter Sunday! That meant getting up before the crack of dawn, putting […]
Practicing the Presence: Being Present with God and People in a Busy World
“I’m busy!” Those words are uttered so frequently that we do not even notice them anymore. Our culture wears those words like a badge of honor. “I’m busy” unfortunately doesn’t just describe our calendars. It can also describe our hearts. This is as true for ministers as it is for anyone. As I mentioned in […]
Sing to the Lord a New Song? Reflections on Psalm 98
Four times we are told in Scripture to “sing to the LORD a new song” (Psalm 96:1; 98:1; 149:1; Isaiah 42:10). Every song ever sung was new at some point. How many millions of songs of worship have been written in the span of human history? From those that have been published in hymnals, those […]
6 Words for Your “What If” Moments
“What if…” are two words that can have paralyzing ramifications. It wasn’t too many years ago that I lived what could fairly be called a paralyzed life. I don’t mean that I physically was unable to use my limbs; rather, spiritually, I was unable to move in directions I needed and wanted to go. The […]
What Is the Lord’s Supper? Exploring Unity, Renewal, and Remembrance
What is the Lord’s Supper? On a Thursday night, Jesus was celebrating a Passover meal with his disciples when he shocked them by explaining how the wine and unleavened bread of Passover were actually pointing to his own sacrificial death, which would take place the next day. Jesus told them to continue remembering him through […]
