God doesn’t listen to them
‘On May 14th, Pope Francis joined with Muslims to encourage all people on earth who believe in God, to pray to their God to end the Coronavirus. I think that when we hear of things like this an obvious question comes up in our minds, does God listen to every type of prayer or does he only listen to a specific type of person?’
You are not that special
We rarely believe this, but the sooner we accept it, the better.
Race & the Evangelical Church (video)
Two FIEC pastors share their experiences of race and the church. It is a long video but vital and well worth the time.
5 things I am preaching to myself as I preach to a camera
‘When preaching to a camera, it can easily feel like I am preaching to God’s people without being among God’s people. And I miss preaching to them from the posture of being among them, of hearing them sing, of being able to look at them as they hear the Word, and from being able to hang out with people in between services. I long for those days again, but in the meantime, here are five things I am preaching to myself as I am preaching to a camera.’
4 ways the gospel enables conversations about race (and other awkward things)
‘I have found these truths to be healing and I hope you do too. I have applied them to the subject of race here, but in actuality these encouragements can season any conversation with grace and love. I’m all too aware there are many occasions when I have not lived up to these saving truths – praise God there is grace still then!’
That Christian you’re frustrated with? Imagine them resurrected
This is a helpful way of thinking about folk who annoy, irritate or frustrate us in some way.
From the archive: Don’t judge by numbers
‘The fact is that numbers tell us so very little about the life of the church. They don’t necessarily indicate healthy teaching nor finances. They cannot tell us how faithful the ministry of the church is nor does it tell us anything about the church’s efficacy in growing disciples. Size cannot tell us anything about the amount of evangelism going on nor the overall kingdom impact of an individual church. If numbers are such a poor measure of church vitality and tell us very little about a church, when are we going to stop placing any store by them?’