Writing to Help You Find and Share the Hope of Jesus
[E]quip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ.”Ephesians 4:12 If you ask my two pre-teen daughters what my most frequent “Dadism” is, they’d probably tell you it’s, “You need to learn to cut your own pancakes.” This is my go-to line whenever they expect mom or dad to … Continue reading “Learn To Cut Your Own Pancakes”: The Forgotten Priority of Equipping
Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kindsJames 1:2 There are many ways Jesus has called his followers to live differently than the rest of the world. Just a few examples include: Live holy lives as our Father in heaven is holy (Matt. 5:48, 1 Peter 1:15), Live for God’s … Continue reading From Facts in Our Heads to Treasure in Our Hearts: God’s Joy-Producing Work In Our Trials
The Lord detests the sacrifice of the wicked, but the prayer of the upright pleases him.Proverbs 15:8 Ephesians 5:10 has an important command for those who are following Jesus. It calls us to "discern what is pleasing to the Lord," with the point being that we would then do what pleases him. One thing God … Continue reading “He Likes To Be Asked”: God Is Pleased By Your Prayer
As the school year ends, my daughter Kayla is finishing up her first year of playing clarinet in her school band. Playing clarinet quickly became one of her favorite things this year. She learned and improved so fast over the year, which we were very thankful for given some of those first practices at home … Continue reading Learning in Layers: What School Band Teaches Us About Growing As Disciples
“Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.”Matthew 7:14 (KJV) My family and I recently returned from a vacation to visit family in western North Carolina. Coming from west central Minnesota where our roads are wide and straight, the narrow, winding mountain … Continue reading Straight Methods, Narrow Message
In a previous career, I worked with historic property owners who were looking to restore and maintain their historic buildings. This meant I got a lot of behind-the-scenes tours in many cool, unique old buildings. Occasionally, I’d visit a building that looked fine at distance from the outside. But once I got up close and … Continue reading Self-Sought Holiness Always Crumbles
And may the Lord make your love for one another and for all people grow and overflow, just as our love for you overflows.1 Thessalonians 3:12 At our ATLAS Mentor Workshops, we spend a fair amount of time talking about what motivates us to make disciples through mentoring relationships. If we’re firmly rooted in the … Continue reading Mentoring: Harnessing God’s Overflowing Love
“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!”Revelation 5:12 John the Baptist says to the priests and Levites in John 1:26-27, “[A]mong you stands one you do not know, even he who comes after me, the strap of whose sandal I … Continue reading The Worthiness Of Jesus Lived Out For The Unworthy
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”Acts 1:8 Pastor Jason Meyer, pastor at Bethlehem Baptist Church in downtown Minneapolis, said recently in talking about the church’s identity as … Continue reading A Divided Witness is No Witness
"As you sent me into the world, So I have sent them into the world."John 17:18 John 13-17 provides us with an intimate look at Jesus’ final meeting with his disciples before his crucifixion. It’s telling that as Jesus prepared the disciples for his departure, he made one thing very clear to them: trials, tribulation, … Continue reading Mission Readiness for Woefully Weak Witnesses: How Jesus Prepares Us To Be Sent
