Revitalized Churches Embrace Spiritual Parenting
When my son was young, I hadn’t yet learned to be the father I wanted to be. I was wrapped up in all of “my” things, and my tunnel vision didn’t allow me to always see other things that should have been important. I was focused on growing a student ministry, growing as a leader, […]
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 […]
‘Make Every Effort’: Intentional Relationships in a Culture of Laziness
If given the choice, many people would opt for living in a do-less, get-more world. With the emergence of generative artificial intelligence, it can be tempting for a student to want to submit a single sentence to a chatbot—and let AI create the essay. Ever since COVID, it’s been tempting for some to want to […]
David and Bathsheba and Affairs in Your Church
I recently preached through the story of David and Bathsheba from 2 Samuel 11:1-27 on a Sunday morning. There are several important learnings from within this story, as well as from the related research on sexual immorality and affairs, that are worth applying in our churches today. Many of us can be intimidated when it […]
Leaving a Legacy of Faith
History is complicated. If you ever trace your family history, you’re going to find a few skeletons in the closet. And everybody in your family is going to have a different theory about how they got there. I’m not asking anyone to jump into the genealogy deep end. You might wake up in a daze […]
Doctrinal Misalignment: A Relational Approach
*Editor’s Note: This article is a helpful illustration of how two people can confront doctrinal misalignment in a relational way. The specific scenario deals with the miraculous gifts of the Holy Spirit. Please note that within RENEW.org there is a spectrum of views regarding the miraculous gifts, and there is not an official RENEW.org position. […]
A Cooperative Church
Have you ever seen a gospel lesson mirrored in everyday life? I had one of those moments hit on New Year’s. I grew up in a family that loved to play games when we gathered. At the end of the day, the game itself didn’t really matter. We could drum up competitive spirit for just […]
Revitalized Churches Rediscover Family
The church began in 1885. The early years were poorly documented but assumed to have been fruitful. After all, they began with 37 people meeting in a borrowed space before building their first sanctuary in 1901. By 1970, the church had grown enough to need a new building, so ground was broken on some donated […]
