Here’s the artwork for my new worship series I began this weekend from the Book of 1 John. Stayed tuned this week for details.
Month: June 2013
The Length of Time it Takes to Prepare a Sermon
Thom Rainer posted the results of an unscientific twitter survey he conducted on the amount of time pastors spend in sermon preparation. Rainer is Southern Baptist, so I would assume the vast majority of respondents are from his tribe. Nonetheless, the results are interesting, including his interpretation of the data. You can find the post…
How Americans Spend Their Time
Reflections on Father’s Day
The older I get the more I appreciate Father’s Day. I turned 50 this year, and still have my father. I sent him and card and gave him a call, realizing that even at age 90 he’s still parenting. He’s always affirmed and encouraged me and still does so today. As we got ready to…
Worshiping Nehushtan
Last week I was reading about King Hezekiah’s religious reforms in 2 Kings and came across this interesting verse. “(Hezekiah) removed the sacred pillars, and cut down the Asherah poles. He broke up the bronze serpent that Moses had made because the people of Israel had been offering sacrifices to it. The bronze serpent was…
Jesus’ Two Tests of Worship
Jesus replied, “Believe me, dear woman, the time is coming when it will no longer matter whether you worship the Father on this mountain or in Jerusalem. You Samaritans know very little about the one you worship, while we Jews know all about him, for salvation comes through the Jews. But the time is coming—indeed…
Worshiping in Spirit and in Truth
The larger picture of John 4 details the dialogue Jesus had with “the woman at the well.” As you read through the story, you come to a twist in the conversation where Jesus confronted the woman with her personal morality. Rather than respond to Jesus’ insight, she changed the subject to religion. “Sir,” the woman…
Worshiping in Spirit and in Truth
I grew up in a small Baptist church in a time where music was simple and uniform across denominational lines. My “home church” worshipped faithfully, led by volunteers who gave their time and talent to lead the people of God in the enthusiastic singing of hymns. No one thought anything about it because that was…
What Americans are Reading
Barna Research has released a new report on the reading habits of Americans. You can find the research HERE. The research takes into special consideration books that have been made into movies. It is worth noting that fiction outsells non fiction and that Bible reading remains popular across political and religious divides.
Worshiping on Tough Days and in Hard Times
2 Chronicles 26 tells the story of King Uzziah. He took the throne of Israel at the tender age of 16 and ruled for nearly four decades. By and large, Uzziah was a good king. He led the nation to return to the monotheistic worship of God, and as a result the nation was greatly…
