A grace-filled church is filled with people who (1) are gratefully astounded by God’s undeserved goodness to them; (2) are outrageously good to others even to those who deserve the opposite; (3) are passionately involved in telling the story of God’s outrageous grace to those who have not yet experienced it. In Jesus’ story of the Prodigal Sons (Luke 15), the father (representing God) is outrageously gracious and good to a son who was lost in his sin and to…..
Chad and Trina Tolbert and their teenage son Zach lived in a rather ordinary Mid-Western town. Many of their friends envied their loving marriage as well as how close they were to Zach. Last winter their neighbor, Meg, came over to tell them that her 17-year old nephew, Jordon, had gotten in some trouble and was going to come to live with her for a while to see if she could get him straightened out. Chad and Trina…..
What does it mean to be a “grace-filled” church? That was my assignment to preach at Calvary Church today as part of a series on the church’s DNA. I hope to post some things about being “grace-filled” over the next day or two. One of my assertions was that “a grace-filled church is filled with people who are outrageously good to others, especially those who don’t deserve it.” As I prepared the sermon, one challenge I didn’t have time to…..
Change bosses. That’s right, recognize Jesus as your higher boss and do your work for Him. Jesus’ orders come through your job’s boss, but carry out the assignments “as if you were serving the Lord” (Ephesians 6:7, 8). Remember your mission. Your vocation (job) is important though temporary. Your mission is all-important and permanent. Your mission is to make God famous by what you do and how you do it (1 Corinthians 10:31) and to represent Jesus in your…..
“Take this cup from Me.” That was Jesus’ prayer to His Father in the Garden minutes before His betrayal. Then He prayed, “Yet not my will but Yours be done.” He viewed the “cup” of His suffering as coming from His Father’s hand even though the horrific suffering was delivered by wicked people. The intersection of God’s sovereignty and human responsibility in a world where God allows evil to thrive is frustratingly mysterious beyond my ability to fully comprehend……
Unfortunately, Daniel of lion’s den fame isn’t running for office this year but perhaps the example of this Biblical politician could help us think about what we should look for in those we vote for rather than simply voting for a personality, party, platform, or promises as to what he/she will do for us or our cause. Historically, Christians have always said that “character matters” and have cast their votes on that basis. Do we still hold to that…..
Do you ever borrow a prayer? Jesus did. On the cross He “borrowed” a prayer of David (Psalm 22) and used it as His own. He taught us to borrow a prayer He gave us to use every day (“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your Name . . . , Matthew 6). I keep The Book of Common Prayer by my bed and sometimes borrow a prayer and make it my own. Here was one from last night: “Holy…..
For Jesus’ followers, living in the intersection of vocation and mission is an essential mindset and commitment. Think of vocation as our jobs. Think of mission as living to bring glory to God (1 Cor. 10:31) — that is doing everything so as to show how great and good God is. Christ-followers do not have the deceptive luxury of merely living for vocation. Our God-assigned mission must inform, permeate, and flow through everything we do. Soli duo gloria.
My friend, Jeff Cook, shared these thoughts on his FB page. They are thought-provoking with their implications for how we understand the Scriptures, and how we see the world and our own government and political landscape. All the kingdoms of this world are “Babylon” (including the USA). That’s why we pray, “let Your Kingdom come.” You can read the full post on Jeffs’ FB page: “Are we reading the same Bible? Close your eyes, point to any chapter in the…..
Last month I bought a rock tumbler to polish stones—a new hobby. I gathered a variety of small stones, dumped them into the tumbler, and turned it on. Actually, I completely forgot about my new hobby and left the tumbler going 24/7 for about 30 days. To my astonishment, when I dumped the tumbler on my kitchen table, more than a dozen little stone figurines spilled across the tablecloth (see picture). The intricate detail and variety were stunning! I could…..
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