Weekly Once-Over (01.08.2015)
Most Important Neglected Prayer: After years of familiarity with this prayer I realized that I wasn’t quite sure what I was saying. I began to wonder if I was doing what Jesus had just warned about: heaping up “empty phrases” in prayer (v. 7). What are we actually praying here? What does Jesus hold so highly as to instruct us to make it our first prayer?
The Power And Privilege Of God's Children: Whether you’re in need of a little self-evaluation, or learning as a beginner, I’d like to offer a few practical flash-points on private prayer. But let’s start with why private prayer, or “closet prayer,” is so important in the first place.
The Last Words You'll Ever Say: In that moment, I wished I’d had more time. I wished I had put more thought into my potential last words. Howard Hendricks used to say, “Last words are lasting words.” He was right. Our last words are words that those who love us want to remember and, chances are, will remember.
8 Gospel-Centered New Years Resolutions: Because Christ has already won the final victory, I will seek to live today in light of my future hope...
4 Things Every 20-Something Church Leader Should Know: If you want to seek peace and reconciliation in your city throughout the days, weeks and years to come – if you want Jesus to be glorified and his Bride to be magnified – you will want to keep these 4 things in mind.
To Love Our Neighbors, We Help Them Thrive: We invite others to get educated about what creates value, asking hard questions about the sustainability of wealth redistribution. While it is relatively easy to develop a heart for the poor, it is extremely challenging to develop a mind for the poor. To study poverty is to study the default condition of the world. Yet if we study and duplicate where economic flourishing has broken out, poverty dissipates and people start to thrive as economic, social, and spiritual images of God.
A Bible Reading Plan For Readers: You, like the non-readers mentioned above, love the Bible as God’s Word. And you think following Jesus is more than a passing fad. You love to read, and the Bible is a book. Here’s my advice: Read the Bible.
A New Model For Helping The Poor: Now, this raises a bigger question as well. And that question is: are there better ways of helping the poor in the medium to long term that go beyond giving things altogether? While giving is important, increasingly organizations are recognizing that the answer is yes.