Amid all the gourds and ghouls, the spooky and kooky, the dark and macabre, Christians have differing responses to the annual traditions of this week. However your conscience and convictions lead you to interact (or not) with what has become of October 31, Christians ought to take Halloween most seriously.I have shared before how I have been helped in considering the missional opportunity the even...  Read More

Serving as a pastor is a sobering task. Our duty is the oversight of souls—a responsibility for which we will give an account (Hebrews 13:17). The primary means of carrying out this calling is through prayer and the ministry of the Word (Acts 6:4). This work most consistently, visibly, and intentionally takes place in our preparation for and gathering in public worship on Sundays. Yet it is not li...  Read More

As a kid, my family moved around a fair bit. By the time I was ten, I had moved nine times to eight different states. People often assume, upon learning this, that we were a military family. We weren’t, but these transitions would give rise to my dad singing, “Make new friends, but the keep old. One is silver and the other gold.” Leaving a relationship or a change in the context of a relationship ...  Read More

The first time I recall seeing Van Gogh’s “The Good Samaritan” was in a pastor-friend’s office. He cared deeply and practically for those around him. It was fitting that this print was hanging in his office. He had been gripped by Jesus’ compassion for the poor, helpless souls who were destitute, destined to die, apart from the intervention of an unanticipated Savior.When Jesus told that parable, ...  Read More

There is the old adage, “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” Sometimes, however, the cover—or more precisely the title—sums it up well. One such book is Colin Marshall and Tony Payne’s The Trellis and the Vine. The authors hold out a vision for church life that is not so heavily focused on structures and programs and activities and calendar events that the vine withers. All the energy goes into buil...  Read More

*Ding Dong* * Knock Knock Knock* {Well, that isn’t the neighbor kids. What kind of salesman is it now?} I open the door and unexpectedly greet a college-aged woman. She tells me, “I’m in the neighborhood today on behalf of your representative to ask how you feel about your representative and what hope you have at the federal level.” I was not anticipating that introduction. But the interaction bro...  Read More

Pride month is a tangible reminder to me of my baptism and my identity in Christ. During pride month, people declare their sexual and gender identities, connect with similar or supportive people and strive to experience a sense of freedom in being accepted just as they are. This movement has significant attraction among those who feel like outcasts, who desire to belong somewhere, who are tired of...  Read More

As we consider our pursuit of happiness this summer in our current sermon series, we are reflecting on how God holds out to us the promise of reward as a motive for faithfully following Christ. It is not by mere duty that we forego the enticements of sin but because God offers a surpassing pleasure. There is the same motive when it comes to giving of our resources. As we come in to the halfway mar...  Read More

We encourage and pursue a "regulated free market" approach to ministry. It's an approach that aims to equip the saints for the work of the ministry (Ephesians 4:12) rather than create ministries for the saints to come work. The goal is to deploy our members, gifted and empowered by the Holy Spirit, to all manner of opportunities where they live, work, and play. It's by pursuing that approach to mi...  Read More

Carrying out our calling as Christian parents requires a positive vision for the task. Correction plays a pivotal role, but we must have a broader, more expansive vision for our children. I think such a vision is consistent with reformed baptist convictions and is what Scripture would call us to. In short, this is what Paul is referencing when he exhorts fathers to bring up their children “in the ...  Read More

We have just completed our extended sermon series going through the letter of 1 Corinthians. In the last couple months, people have been asking about where we’re going next. I appreciate the inquiries and the eagerness to be looking forward to God’s Word. Let me lay out the course we’ve charted and a little bit on why we’re headed this direction. Our first destination will be an initial stop on a ...  Read More

One thing that strikes me in the conclusions of Paul’s letters, including 1 Corinthians, is the shuffling of fellow laborers and ministers. It’s almost like the apostle is functioning as the general manager of a professional sports franchise. He calls up ministry partners, sends others off to another team, warns of those who have been “let go.” There is this strategic deployment of personnel throu...  Read More