In the heat of suffering, some find refuge in the sovereign decrees of God. Yet, for others in similar fires, the knowledge of the sovereign decrees of God add sorrow upon sorrow. These brothers and sisters can't bear to hear about secret decrees. Offer them the sovereign God who sees. "The cross is like a diamond." You have heard that right? ... Continue Reading
The Cult Leader and The Theological Conservative
Is there a difference between "Scripture vs Scripture" and "Scripture Interpreting Scripture?" I think so. The shape of the "Scripture vs Scripture" model. Step one is to make the Bible say or not say whatever you want it to say or not say by using the Bible. You just have to put one verse against another verse to discover which verse can be ... Continue Reading
5 Easy Steps To Becoming a Bad Pastor/Leader
Exodus 32:1-2 "When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered themselves together to Aaron and said to him, "Up, make us gods who shall go before us. As for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him." So Aaron said to them, "Take off the rings of ... Continue Reading
Unlikely Saint
Luke 18:9-14 "He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, ... Continue Reading
Silence
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Confessionalism and Continuationism
Is it possible to be confessional and a continuationist? I think so. My objective in this short post is to show you why I am both. I also want to appeal to charismatic folks to learn what it means to hold to a confession and for historic confessional folks to open up to continuationism. What does it mean to be confessional? As I understand it, ... Continue Reading
My Grey Haired Sage
Proverbs 20:29 "The glory of young men is their strength, but the splendor of old men is their gray hair." "Experts impress. A sage draws you to God." John Eldredge It was 1996. I was in 8th grade. One of my teachers was named Mr. Caldwell, and he was one of the good ones. I had a way of turning good teachers into crazy teachers due to my ... Continue Reading
My Mentor Gregg
Last week I wrote about my friend Jeff. Today I want to tell you about Gregg. He has been a mentor of mind for about 5 years now. I used to be a campus pastor of a multi-site church and Gregg was the Executive Pastor. Here are a few things I have learned from my sage. Retirement does not mean retirement. Gregg retired from formal ministry ... Continue Reading
My 4 Paul’s
I have 4 Paul's in my life. Not men named Paul, but men who are to me what Paul was to Timothy. Not to beat to death an already dead dead dead horse, but who is your Paul? I want to tell you about mine. Over the last 4 years, God has allowed me to learn from some great men. The watching world may see Jeff, Matt, Gregg, and Curt as ordinary. They ... Continue Reading
Anticipating Joy>Anticipating Sorrow
We may need an anticipation correction. I know I do. Pastor, when you gather with the people of God do you anticipate their sorrow or their joy? Life is hard and Christians are "Real" after all. We can be honest. We mostly expect our people to be tired and busy. The majority of you are not pastors, so let me let you in on a little secret about ... Continue Reading