5 Ways Pastors Can Encourage Working Men and Women
Yesterday America celebrated Labor Day, the holiday reserved as a tribute to American workers. This is a good time to discuss ways pastors and vocational ministry leaders can encourage working men and women in their congregations. This is an oft-neglected, but essential part of ministry, because most Christians who attend church on Sunday don’t draw […]
What We Should Wake Up Every Morning Saying:
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power […]
Asking the Wrong Question in Salvation
“So you mean I can do whatever I want and still be a Christian?” I’ve been asked that question numerous times when sharing the gospel. It’s a hard question to answer and mostly, up until recently, I would answer with a “Yes, but.” sort of vague statement. Yes, technically, grace covers all of your sins, […]
Five Resolutions for a Christian Communicator
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the calling of a Christian communicator. This could be your duties as a writer, wither blogs or books or articles. Or it could be your task as a preacher or teacher, whither in small group, pulpit ministry, or classroom. To communicate the truth of the good news of […]
Preaching is Not Mere Communication
As a preacher I am solicited, more often than not, for services that will help me preach better. As a young, green pastor I’m grateful for many of these ministries. I increasingly want to be sharpened in my ability to deliver God’s Word to God’s people. However, there are some that seem, perhaps unintentionally, to […]
Go to Exponential for Free
If you’re a church leader chances are you are inundated with opportunities to go to conferences. The problem is that there are so many outstanding opportunities, but not enough time or resources. So thankfully, these conferences post their audio, either free or for a small fee. Well today I’m giving you the opportunity to attend […]
Friday Five Interview – Russell Moore
Today I’d like to repost an interview I did in 2010 with one of my favorite contemporary Christian leaders, Dr. Russell Moore. Russell D. Moore is the Senior Vice President for Academic Administration and Dean of the School of Theology at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. The grandson of a Mississippi Baptist […]
Converting Sermons into Books
Phil Johnson, proprietor of the Team Pyro blog and the executive editor of Grace to You Ministries (John McArthur) has a terrific post on converting sermon series into books. I have experience doing this. For nearly a decade I worked for a Christian ministry as an editor and writer and it was my job to […]
Great message on Melchizidek
At Gages Lake, we are in the midst of a study of Abraham. This coming Sunday we encounter a man named Melchizidek. One of the best sermons I’ve ever heard on this mysterious man in the Bible was preached by Don Carson at the 2011 Gospel Coalition Conference. I’ve posted the video below: Getting […]
A Better Way to Discern
I come from a very conservative theological background and I maintain many of those same convictions. But one thing that has changed in my heart over the years is my attitude toward people from different ministry contexts and denominations. I used to think that if their bullet points didn’t line up with mine, then I […]
Ed Stetzer – How Should We Talk About Sex?
I wanted to write a post about this, but couldn’t find the words. Thankfully Ed Stetzer, a wiser man than me by far, wrote what I consider a terrific and wise post on how evangelicals might approach the delicate, but necessary subject of sex. I especially liked this paragraph: Third, when talking about sex, hype […]
Why Your Pastor Shouldn’t Be Your Podcast
Trevin Wax recently wrote a widely distributed post entitled, “Why Your Podcast Shouldn’t Be Your Pastor.” He raised some important points about the proliferation of content over the Internet. Its easy today to consume the best of contemporary evangelical pastors simply by downloading them through iTunes or listening online. While this is a wonderful blessing […]