For a few years now I have been wanting to write an essay on the value of rural churches and the need to appreciate them- for pastors to see them as valuable and not simply stepping stones to something really important. So I was delighted to see Tim Keller’s recent post on this very topic …
Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress is truly a treasure trove of practical and pastoral wisdom for the Christian life. I am reading it again to my boys, this time in the new edition edited by C. J. Lovik. Tonight we read the following portion which is really a good reminder: “But as for footmen like you and …
Christianaudio is having an amazing sale that lasts through December 4. Most of their digital downloads are on sale for $7.49 including works from Charles Dickens, Wendell Berry, Eugene Peterson, John Piper (a number of Piper’s are free), and others. This is a great opportunity to get some good audio books at great prices. I …
The Bible clearly speaks to the pain of this life and encourages us to be honest about it as well. This point is often lost on prosperity preachers and the “happy-clappy” approach to worship. At times, though, I see the error in the opposite direction- the idea that those who are serious about their faith …
“Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!” (Psalm 100:1) “What the singers undertake has to do with the world, and should their horizon be at all foreshortened, the happening would immediately decay into something else. Against all practicality or human expectation of being heard, they summon mankind … nor do they measure …
One danger for preachers who understand the value of doctrine, is that we can lose touch with the practical focus of preaching. We do not want to be like many whose preaching is shallow and lacking in any biblical substance. This desire is correct, but it can then be easy to fall off the other …
As I mentioned previously, I am participating in a blog tour for the book, Holy Ground: Walking with Jesus as a Former Catholic, written by Chris Castaldo, one of the pastors at College Church in Wheaton, IL.Chris is well prepared to write such a book since he grew up Catholic but is now an evangelical.(Some …
I continue to enjoy greatly Rowland Prothero’s book, The Psalms In Human Life, where he the use of the psalms through the history of the church. Here are a couple of quotes: “From the treasure-house of the Psalter, whether in the ancient Latin version, or in vernacular prose, or in rough rhyme wedded to simple …
“Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing!” ( Psalm 100:1-2) “This doxology needs to be understood not only as a literary assertion of trustful simplicity (which it is) but also as an action which reorients life. When the community praises, it …
Last week our denominational state paper ran an artilce of mine by this title. Here is the article: I am a hugger and come from a line of established huggers. My dad was open with his affection to me and the rest of my family. He was practically an official “hugger” at our church, and …