Follow Jesus. Lead the church. Change the world.
The area I’ve worked on the hardest in the past year is sermon preparation. It’s always a struggle to make time to prepare sermons because it’s hard work and there are plenty of other things to do! As I wrote in my post, Preaching Requires Investment, Bill Hybels has been quoted to say … Preaching … Read more
The Church needs patience and persistence! I invite you to pray with me for the Church as I continue my way through a series of prayer posts. See links to previous prayers below. The Church needs patience because it usually takes time to experience transformation. It takes time to lead transformation and to shape (or … Read more
Over the last few weeks, I’ve been reading some books by Jon Gordon. I’ve enjoyed them all, but I think my favorite so far is Training Camp. I read it awhile back, but it’s especially appropriate now as NFL teams begin training camps this week! Training Camp is an inspirational fable that follows the story … Read more
The Church needs to stay humble and hungry! I’m in the midst of a long series, posting prayers for the Church (see links to previous prayers below). I’m not sure when this series will end, but in the meantime, I invite you to pray with me for the Church! A couple of months ago, Mark … Read more
Seedbed posted an interview of Michael Quicke, who teaches at Northern Seminary. The interview is broken into three parts: one, two, and three. Quicke has written a couple of books on preaching that are actually still on my reading pile: 360-Degree Preaching: Hearing, Speaking, and Living the Word (paperback) and 360-Degree Leadership: Preaching to Transform … Read more
Recently, I was preparing a sermon about Ananias and Barnabas, those unsung heroes who played a major role in the Apostle Paul’s life (he was Saul, at the time). I was particularly struck by Jesus’ description of Paul’s call to ministry. God sent Ananias to search for Saul, the persecutor of the Church, who was … Read more
The Church needs provision for the vision! I’m nearing the end of a series of posts, offering prayers for the Church on different topics (see links below). I invite you to pray with me for the Church for the sake of the world God loves so much! God has given the Church its mission–to make … Read more
Laura Vanderkam, author of 168 Hours, has written a series of short books focusing on “what the most successful people do.” This week, I’ve written about the first book (What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast) and the second book (What the Most Successful People Do on the Weekend). The final book in the … Read more
Laura Vanderkam has written a series of short books focusing on “what the most successful people do.” Yesterday, I wrote about the first book in the series (“What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast”). The second book focuses on non-workdays: What the Most Successful People Do on the Weekend. Now, weekends in our home … Read more
Laura Vanderkam has written a series of short books focusing on “what the most successful people do.” The first book in the series is What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast. Mornings have always been important to me. So, right after I read this book a few months ago, I wrote What The Most … Read more