Progress To A Transformed Christian Life
I never thought of myself as a prayer warrior but then I started to count up all of the prayers I say that get me through the day. I realized that I consistently pray memorized prayers. For some of these, they surface without me even trying to pray them. I use the Jesus Prayer the most... Continue Reading →
Have you heard about the psychological study of the seminary students and the Story of the Good Samaritan? Researchers had seminary students prepare a talk/sermon on the parable of the Good Samaritan. The students were then asked to go to the next building and deliver their message. On the way to the other building, a... Continue Reading →
I don't trust myself for honest feedback, so I was skeptical at Gathering 2 of the Apprentice Experience when we were asked, in our small groups, to provide feedback to others in the group. We were asked to think about a person in our group and say one thing about them that has been a... Continue Reading →
For as long as I can remember I have wanted to do something great. I wanted to be known for my accomplishments, to be sought after for my significance, to be well known, even famous. There is no denying the pride, greed, envy, and jealousy that is inherent in such ambitious thoughts. And I am... Continue Reading →
I continue sharing some excerpts from Francis Spufford's book Apologetic. I hope this helps you see the sacrifice of Jesus in a fresh way so that Good Friday and Easter are profoundly inspiring to you. I would suggest that you read the words below as a meditation on Christ's work, his death, the reason for... Continue Reading →
I have spent so much time in the last few months reflecting on the teachings and miracles of Jesus that I felt like I was ill prepared for Easter week. I wanted to feel connected to the reality of Jesus' last days, his crucifixion, and resurrection. I immediately thought of a book I read several... Continue Reading →
I am the father of three girls, ages 17, 13, and 8. Parenting is hard enough but having kids at such distinct phases of growing up forces me to wear different hats each time I try to be a father figure. For my 17 year old, I am thinking about all the things I need... Continue Reading →
One area where I have struggled in my writing on this blog is properly explaining what a mature Christian looks like. I don't think I provide a very clear picture of the goal of wisdom and maturity. In one of our sessions in Wichita, Keith Matthews went through what he called The Super Seven. This... Continue Reading →
In Wichita, James Bryan Smith talked about reality. He said that reality is "what you can count on." He also referenced Dallas Willard's definition of reality as "what you find out when you find out that you are wrong." Are there things that we can count on that are constantly hiding behind our wrong assumptions?... Continue Reading →
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