A Vision that Motivates
“By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. If what has been...
Read MoreFor the teachers out there
Mark Scandrette has challenged me recently from my reading of his book Soul Graffiti. Most specifically I have been challenged by his writings on teaching & leadership. He argues the most influential settings for Jesus’ teaching was not telling stories to large crowds (although there is obvious impact there), but with those that committed to follow Him and see how He lived His life. Scandrette says this on page 41: “The true value of a teacher can be measured by his example.†Paul speaks...
Read MorePraying Fixed Prayers
I have spent pretty much my entire life following (or at least trying to) Jesus. Until about two months ago however, I had never prayed a fixed or written prayer to God. I imagine most of you reading this post are similar to me in that you have not prayed fixed prayers either. I read a book recently entitled Praying With The Church by Scot McKnight that greatly assisted me in understanding what praying fixed prayers is all about. I want to recommend this book to you. I had many reasons why I believed praying...
Read MoreA beautiful morning
I began my day by baptizing a friend in the Minnesota River at 5:30 a.m. (yeah…if you were shocked by reading that, how do you think I felt when the alarm went off at 4:45). It was an amazing experience. Being involved in someone’s baptism, whether you are watching or baptizing, is such a worshipful experience anyway. But today was really captivating. I truly sensed the presence of God there. I sensed His presence as the sunlight crept through the trees and onto the river water, as we prayed for...
Read MoreJohn 10
One of the passages God used to open my heart and soul to the overflowing life Jesus came to provide is John, chapter 10. I love these wonderful words of Jesus. They are rich with beauty, inspiration, and challenge. Eric made me aware of a wonderful podcast by Erwin McManus on this chapter last week. I listened to it yesterday and was greatly moved. I highly recommend you listen to it. I promise it will encourage and inspire you to live life to the full with your shepherd Jesus leading you into the...
Read MoreAre we preparing ourselves to live?
This past week I had a few moments to kill so I found myself perusing through the Christianity section at Barnes & Noble. Honestly, I haven’t read too much in the past few months so I was looking for something that caught my eye. As I stumbled along I saw the name of an author I heard speak last summer, Mark Scandrette. I found his offering entitled Jesus Dojo very thought provoking and intriguing on what it truly means to be a genuine follower of Jesus here on earth. So I picked up the book entitled...
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