Discipleship In The Teen Years: Some of them get it. Their little hearts embrace the truth and they ask Jesus to save them. We rejoice, knowing that their future is secure and that the Father holds them close. But our job doesn’t end there. What happens when that little heart grows into a bigger heart and questions the gospel he learned and believed as a kid? What happens when the joyful little girl who knew the love of Jesus begins to look shadowed and burdened, wondering if it all makes sense?

What Is Prayer? And Why Should We Pray?: What exactly is prayer and why should you do it anyways? Is it just for those people who don’t have any friends because they think they are too holy to interact with others, or is it for the rest of us as well? Prayer is simply talking with God. When God created us, he made us with the ability to do something amazing, by actually being able to talk personally with him.

Be Strong And Courageous - Literally: So Scripture may not mandate fitness, but we should regard bodily strength as normal, wise, and good. When professionals sit at desks all day, we can lose contact with our embodied nature. Exercise helps us recover our whole self, so we can heed the call to be strong and courageous.

Full Of Grace And Truth: But he didn’t come simply to give us an example of grace and truth.  He came to save us in grace and truth.  It’s only after we’ve been saved and made right with God, the God says, “Alright, now that I have saved through Jesus, you need to know that I have saved you to look like Jesus.”  The motivation to be full of grace and truth is not because we need to earn God’s favor, but because being a follower of Jesus Christ, means we look like the one we follow.

Ordinary People, Ordinary Mission: There is great appeal in pursuing exotic or “extraordinary” mission. But the Bible calls us to look a little closer as we live out Jesus’ mission: those in need and our neighbors.

Without This Your Missional Movement Will Fail: From all my experience leading my church and working with other churches, I’ve seen in us a tendency to play this either/or game with discipleship of our own and evangelism of the masses. We’ll either spend all our time developing our own, shutting off outsiders, or open our doors wide to the world and keep it shallow with our training. But what do the Scriptures say?

Be The Father You Want To Be: Most guys fail to parent their children well because they don’t know how to parent themselves. Men that don’t know how to handle their own immaturity and failings are at a loss when it comes to their children’s immaturity and failings. Men tend to go in one of two directions. They either fail to appropriately grieve their brokenness or they fail to acknowledge their brokenness.

Does God Care About Productivity: I would argue that the call to be productive (Genesis 1:28) also implies the need to learn how to be productive. Yet, this is a slightly different question from the first, because one could presumably say “Yes, God wants us to be productive, but he doesn’t want us to fiddle with things like workflow systems and productivity tips and tools.”

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Weekly Once-Over (12.5.2013)

5 Reasons To Open Your Blinds: There is a small, seemingly insignificant way we as the family of God can start to be missional in our own communities. It starts with opening our blinds.

5 Tips for Business Men On Mission: I’ve owned three businesses in the last few years. I’ve also held a high level executive positions that have had me on the road on a very regular basis. I know from experience that it can be harder to live on mission in everyday life when you are in a different city or country every week on business. Or when you have to run to Costco in the middle of your missional community gathering to grab milk for your coffee shop because they ran out. I’d like to share a few things with you that were helpful to me when I was on the road and/or very busy at work. Remember, these only apply if you are not working too much or neglecting your relationship with Jesus and your family.

5 Things to Teach Your Children This Christmas: Take advantage of this time of year to teach your children about the Christ-child. Spend time in the word, showing them the promised Messiah and how that promise was fulfilled in the baby born in Bethlehem. Help them see that Jesus is the greatest gift they could ever receive and the greatest gift they could share with others.

The Beauty of Motherhood: Matt Bieler, creator of a killer RG3 Adidas commercial (“What Light Can Do”), just released a short (2:38) film on stay-at-home motherhood. It’s not didactic. It’s aesthetic and expressive. It’s breathtaking. The video fits this season perfectly. In celebrating the Incarnation, we also give thanks to God for Mary, the mother of Christ. Short films like this remind us of beautiful, how godlike, motherhood is. Thank you, Lord, for devoted moms, who sacrifice themselves day in and day out for their children. They are not highly valued by modern society; they are highly, highly valued in your kingdom. 

The Ivey Adoption Story: Aaron and Jamie Ivey are united with their adopted son, Amos, after a devastating earthquake struck Haiti in 2010. Follow their journey as they get the news that their son can finally come home.

Advent, A Season of Joyful Longing

I know what your thinking. Thanksgiving hasn't even happened yet and there is already a blog post about Advent. Well Advent starts this year on December 1st and we wanted to give you some extra time to prepare something during Advent with your family or even if your single. These resources are truly helpful to get ready for the upcoming Christmas Season. Dads, these resources are especially for you, this time of year is about making memories with your family, taking the lead and planning out something like this and what a great opportunity to start during Advent.

If you don't know what Advent, it is a season of adoring Jesus. It is a season of preparation for that special day when we mark Immanuel’s arrival — the coming of our eternal God in frail, human flesh. Advent is a way of lengthening the joy of Christmas. This wonderful season expresses our joy of Jesus' arrival and our desire for him to one day come again. Advent starts this year on December 1st and ends on December 25th so we are giving you a few days to prepare.

Below are a few helpful resources and devotional's for anyone who wants help getting ready for Advent.

Blogs and Devotionals 

An Advent Story: So, here’s the thing, forget everything you thought you knew about Advent candles and the local live nativity play and reading Luke 2 at your kids… Wait. Rewind. Don’t forget that stuff, it’s actually important, too. But it’s equally important that we engage with what scripture is saying about the meaning of Christ’s expectation and appearance to us. If we simply focus on the history of Christmas, we are inviting the same host of problems that attended the Pharisees—myopically pouring over dusty scrolls, refusing to see the living God right there in front of them.

Free Gospel-Centered Advent eBook: Advent is the season where we prepare our hearts for worshiping on Christmas Day as we celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus. We have developed a printable ebook to help you lead your family in preparing for this special day.

How Will You Make This Advent Special?: We’re now only five days from Advent, which begins this Sunday, December 1. Just a few minutes of forethought today could go a long way in making this year special for your family, or spiritually significant for you personally.

Behold the Lamb of God: An Advent Narrative Book: Via Justin Taylor from The Gospel Coalition. "If you are looking for an Advent devotional this year, I would recommend Russ Ramsey’s new Behold the Lamb of God: An Advent Narrative (foreword by Andrew Peterson). Russ is a gifted writer and thinker, and he currently serves as a minister of preaching and pastoral care at Midtown Fellowship, a PCA church in downtown Nashville."

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Weekly Once-Over (11.21.2013):

5 Things Mistaken for Evangelism: In the matter of evangelism, I’m concerned about a number of things that people take to be evangelism that aren’t. And this case of mistaken identity can have consequences more serious than mere embarrassment. Let me mention five things mistaken for evangelism.

How To Live In A Secular Culture: How should Christians relate to a secular society that does not know Jesus? Paul’s letter to Titus sheds light on this scenario, showing us how God’s grace should motivate Christians to be good citizens and neighbors.

Intolerant Tolerance: Today morality is more like wine tasting than banking. In banking, there is a right and wrong answer. If you deposit a thousand dollars in a new bank account and a week later try to withdraw eighty dollars, you would not be willing to agree to disagree when the teller says your account is empty. But we don’t see morality like banking anymore. Instead, we see it more like wine tasting. In wine tasting, everyone has their favorite blends and no one is necessarily right or wrong—it all depends on individual palates. No one has the right to declare as an absolute truth that simply because they prefer a specific grape or vintage, it is superior to all other wines. The problem is, the God of the Bible sees morality like banking, not wine tasting. 

The Cure For Backsliding: All Christians are sinners, but not all Christians are currently backsliding. Backsliding is not the loss of one’s salvation (this is impossible), nor the loss of God’s love and care (his faithfulness endures forever). To say it simply, a backslidden Christian is one whose communion with Christ is waning and whose faith is weakening. I shared what some potential symptoms of a backslidden condition look like in a previous post on my site. Today, I would like to point us to the cure for a backslidden heart.

Why You Can't Push Your Kids Into The Kingdom: Children are a divine stewardship. They are not for us to own, but for us to love, carefully guide, and then release to God’s provident care. We cannot pressure, bully or force them into faith. We parent, not with anticipation of some promised outcome, but out of faithfulness to Jesus, leaving the outcome to him.

The Idol Of Hospitality: My husband and I host people in our home all the time. We are called to live in community with one another. We strive to live in community on a regular basis, but with that community comes hosting duties. As a hostess I provide food, entertainment, and above all make sure my house is clean. These three things can become an obsession for me, so much in fact that I find I never leave the kitchen. It’s unbelievably easy to get wrapped up in the details and not enjoy our company. We get so distracted with preparing that we leave little time for fellowship and gospel-intentionality.

This is Discipling: What would it look like if, as leaders, we focused less on the things that make our churches entertaining and more on making disciples? The video below gives a great simple look at what discipleship looks like.

Weekly Once-Over (11.14.2013):

3 Ways Christ Can Be Outside Your Church: "Yet here's the great irony: For all its fine reputation, Jesus was standing outside the door of this dazzling church, knocking (Rev. 3:20). To me, this is one of the most extraordinary pictures in the Bible. Christ outside his own church! Jesus knocking on his own people's door! I know this text is often used to invite unbelievers to open their hearts to Christ. And that's fine. But the first application is not to unbelievers, but to the church."

Did the Devil Make Me Do It?: "Sin isn't evidence of demonic strongholds in our lives; it is simply disobedience that is inconsistent with our salvation in Christ. We don't need an advanced degree in demonology in order to be obedient; we don't need exorcisms or deliverances."

A Mommy's To-Do List: "We live in a culture that celebrates productivity and efficiency. We like to see results. We like to get things done. We like when we accomplish something big. It makes us feel important. At least it does for me. But here is something I’ve learned in my first year as a mommy."

6 Actions For Younger Women: "Younger women are critically important in the church. Not only do they have much to contribute as they serve and lead as deacons and ministry volunteers, but those who are mothers help shape the next generation of children who we pray will love Jesus. Paul give Titus six characteristics of a godly younger woman."

5 Actions For Younger Men: "Everything here should be viewed through the lens of Jesus and his redemptive work in reconciling all things to himself. The principles of how to be a godly man can be lived out in a million different ways, but it must be in Christ."

4 Actions For Older Men: "For older men, the evidence of the gospel changing us from the inside out exhibits itself in these behaviors. Paul says in Galatians 5:13-15, the outcome of obeying Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit is summed up by how we love our neighbor. We know we're maturing in Christ if the gospel takes root in us and works itself out in our life and relationships."

Three Vital Questions to Consider Before You Decided to Get Married: "As I've thought about the issue while talking with friends, considering my own marriage, and searching through the Scriptures, I've concluded there isn't any quick, easy answer. Instead, I want to simply put forward three questions, and a couple of caveats, to help singles and couples navigate the dating and marriage decision."

How To Be A Man At Home: "Having been married for 19 years and being the father of four kids, I have learned a lot about what it means to be a man at home.  Here are five simple but effective things that I strive to live out every day."

Osteen Keeps Using God's Band-Width: "To the surprise of no one, Joel Osteen is on the cover of another magazine and the author of another book. The life-coach with a million dollar smile continues to be widely popular. To be clear: I am not against life-coaches or good smiles. I even have a personal soft-spot for a mullet and a well fitting suit. However, what I am against is a guy who continues to use Jesus’ bandwidth to broadcast his message."

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Weekly Once-Over (10.10.2013) 

The State of the Church in America: Hint: It's Not Dying:  The church is not dying. Yes, the church in the West—the United States included—is in transition right now. But transitioning is not the same as dying, particularly if you hold the belief that Christianity is represented by people who live for Christ, not check "Christian" on a survey form.

What If I Screw Up My Kids?:  When I became a parent I found myself frequently getting drawn into vicious thought cycles of pessimism concerning my son. It would usually start with a simple observation like, “My son doesn’t like naps” or “My son’s hair is thin.” That would lead to a series of fearful and often ridiculous what ifs...

Tim Keller Wants You to Suffer Well: Suffering. Is there a more perennially and painfully relevant topic? Countless books address the subject—and countless sufferers read them. Beneath the sometimes shiny veneer, after all, this world is a profoundly tragic place...Check out this blog post about Tim Keller's new book on suffering well.

How to Fight with Your Wife (or Husband):  For nearly 20 years I have been blessed to have a good marriage (which seems to be rare). Some of this can be attributed to the fact that my wife and I have learned to fight well. Having also performed marriage counseling for 20 years, I have seen the resulting carnage from marital fights. Learning to fight well is critical for marital success. I am writing this primarily to husbands. On Wednesday, my wife will be posting a follow-up post for wives.

Feeling Shame Is Not Repentance:  "What do you say to people who are dealing with shame from sexual sin?" a longtime friend asked me in a text message. That question deserves more than a text response, but I wrote, "It could only be the strategy of Satan to allow the shame of one sin to lead you into more sin. And so I would go to Psalm 51—this psalm shows how to deal with shame from sexual sin.  And the prayer for restored joy is a big key."

Thursday Humor: 

"What do you say to people who are dealing with shame from sexual sin?" a longtime friend asked me in a text message. That question deserves more than a text response, but I wrote, "It could only be the strategy of Satan to allow the shame of one sin to lead you into more sin. And so I would go to Psalm 51—this psalm shows how to deal with shame from sexual sin. And the prayer for restored joy is a big key."

photo credit: Shenghung Lin via photopin cc