While jobs can bring stress, weariness, and drama, it can also provide Kingdom opportunities. Learn how to reinstate your work as a platform for worship and mission. Relearn Work isn’t a consequence of sin – frustration with work is (Gen. 3:17-19). God is a Creator, and He desires us to cultivate that Creation for good things. We should pray that …
I am so thankful to be able to celebrate another birthday today. While I know it is customary to receive gifts, I really wanted to give gifts on this day. I first read about the idea when Bilbo Baggins gave everyone gifts at his birthday party in The Fellowship of the Ring. Seems like a great idea! So my gift …
Every Christian has been endowed by the Spirit with gifts to edify the church. Learn how you can discover and deploy the spiritual gifts which you have been given. A spiritual gift is given by the Holy Spirit in order to serve the church. No one gift is better than the others. Your best type of service will always be …
My family had the incredible privilege of serving with Fuge Camps again this summer, and we got to serve once again at North Greenville University. It was a great honor to serve alongside an intentional and quality Fuge staff and be led in worship by They Came Running. I want to include some notes, resources, and updates from our time …
The story in 2 Chronicles 26 is chilling. Uzziah is King in Judah who originally “set himself to seek God” (2 Ch. 26:5). It says that “God helped him” (2 Ch. 26:7) in many amazing tasks as king. And as “long as he sought the LORD, God made him prosper” (2 Ch. 26:5). But there arose a problem. This next line …
All of us have been present at bad staff meetings. Many of us have led bad staff meetings! Instead of accepting it as the norm, have you ever considered changing some things up to improve the time spent together? Whether your meetings happen at a company or church, poorly organized meetings can waste time and deplete morale. Your stressful meetings …
Believers are called to find some way to assist orphans. Learn how your family could help through adoption, foster care, respite care, or financial assistance. Why is adoption important? God eagerly adopted us into His family. In love, He predestined us for adoption to Himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will (Eph. 1:5). To …
My family had the incredible privilege of serving with Fuge Camps again this summer, and we made our first trip up to Liberty University. It was a great honor to serve alongside an intentional and quality Fuge staff and be led in worship by Kellie and Kristen. I want to include some notes, resources, and updates from our time together. …
Depression is often an easy thing to spot, but it remains a very difficult thing to describe. What I mean is that there seems to me to be a scale of depression rather than a state of depression. While I do believe that people can be labeled as depressed, I do not believe it is a simple line that you …
“Amen” by Charity Gayle and Joshua Sherman is a powerful worship song. Hope you enjoy! AMEN Revelation 7:9-17 (VERSE 1) Behold, Jehovah, seated on the throne Abba, Father, the Well that overflows The God who was and is and shall be forevermore Holy is the Lord (CHORUS) Amen, Amen Blessing and honor and glory and power amen Amen, amen Blessing …
I’m a Southern Baptist. We have a large family cooperating as the largest Protestant denomination. With such an expansive group of churches, it means that we do have a few family crazies that we still invite to our reunions. You never know when Southern Baptists are going to make the news. For all the good we do, there are also …
While different churches and denominations vary on the process of ordination, the process is very important. Ordination is meant to have a church set apart a minister of the gospel. Ordination doesn’t make a pastor but it does affirm a calling. The job of an ordination council is to determine: has God truly called this aspiring pastor to the ministry? …
As Christians, we are called to speak the truth in love. Why is that so difficult? “Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head into Christ.” Ephesians 4:15 Our culture needs truth right now. It also needs love. What I have realized is that it is easy to …
A few years ago, our family was enduring through one of the most difficult times we had ever experienced. We were sure that God was calling our family to leave our home, our comforts, our hometown, and our church to serve in another context. When I say that, you might assume that we were unsure of our decision. No, without …
The Psalms teach us how to speak to one as glorious as God. As we study these ancient prayers and songs, we learn the right posture with which to approach God.
In March 2019, LifeWay Christian Resources executives made the announcement that their stores would all be closed within the year. While the publishing side of the company is doing well, the brick and mortar stores have struggled to stay afloat. Like many other chain and local book stores, LifeWay was losing money and had to make an adjustment. While the …
For the summer of 2019, our sermon series will be Psalms [Vol. 1]. Here are some of the reasons we are doing a series on the psalms during the summer: The psalms teach us how to speak to God. The psalms cover every range of human emotions. This huge section of Scripture is often overlooked in preaching and teaching. Since …
At Rocky Creek, we are almost halfway through the calendar year. So, why share a list of remaining 2019 sermon series? Since the Gospel of Mark took us an entire year to get through, I haven’t shared where we are going as a church after its conclusion on Easter. I want you to pray and prepare where we are going …
We all want change, but few of us were willing to do the work with one another to see that change happen. Discipleship happens within the context of intentional relationships. If you have gotten tired of spiritual stagnation, it’s time to go the 2nd mile with your small group. 6 Helpful Tips Listen to podcast below or subscribe to your …
A Gospel Group connects disciples together who are committed to growing in the gospel and going with the gospel. Psalm 1 Acts 17:10-12 If we aren’t careful, certain practices or allowances can take place to run the dynamics of a group. Here are 6 group killers: Subjective Content If the Bible isn’t your textbook, you might find temporary encouragement but …
Worship is a weekly time when God’s people gather together to celebrate Jesus. I look forward to these pivotal times of worship every week. Oftentimes, people debate as to whether worship should be geared towards members or guests. In reality, the main audience in worship should be none other than Jesus. We gather to honor Him – not expect Him …
Christians live in a time when we are comfortable talking about trivial matters and uncomfortable discussing gospel opportunities. If someone brings up your favorite sports team, you passionately defend their chances. If someone brings up movie you’ve seen, you sound like a professional cinema critic. If there is an awkward pause in a conversation, you know just how to start …
“You have enemies? Good. That means you’ve stood up for something, sometime in your life.” Winston Churchill You don’t have to live that long to figure out that people will tell you their opinions even if you don’t ask for them. Your lifestyle, your decisions, and your faith are all open to speculation for those near enough to observe. From …
My family and I were still learning our way around the church campus. It had been a few weeks into our new assignment, and we were heading back to the other side of the building to get in the truck and drive home. Somewhere along the way, I started quickening my pace to see if my kids could keep up. …
Churches with an effective mission strategy have pastors who not only cast vision but who are personally involved in the activities of the mission of the church. In this session, we will not share a specific model but rather biblical principles that any pastor of any church of any size can adapt to their context. Audio from Impact Conference 2019 …
You can learn so much by studying someone’s Bible. In it, they leave clues regarding personal practices. When possible, I love to use someone’s personal Bible when preaching his or her funeral. It is a special connection. That proved to be true yet again while holding Stoney’s Bible. Stoney Huggins passed away at 88. I had the privilege of ministering …
Someone recently asked me to describe my pastoral political values. What role do I think a pastor should have regarding political issues? Here is my incomplete and imperfect list to consider. Don’t speak on extra-biblical issues as if you had biblical authority. Many people equate the words of a preacher with the words of God. That is a dangerous line …
It’s a rarity when the task of visiting churches proves to be an exciting experience. The reason I say that is because normally when you look for another church, it implies that a significant change is taking place. Sometimes people move due to hurt feelings, disagreeing directions, or frustrating experiences with a previous church. Some people are visiting churches because …
As fans of Clemson Tigers, my family really enjoyed the National Championship game after a great season. Finishing 15-0, ACC champions, CFP Champions, beating Notre Dame (30-3) in the semifinal, and then beating Alabama (44-16) in the final game was an incredible list of accomplishments. The mid-season had its fair share of uncertainties. Dabo chose freshman Trevor Lawrence to start …
The methodology regarding church buildings used to be simple – once you get bigger, build bigger. There were a few options of how to design the space and pay it off as quickly as you can. Not anymore. So much change is happening around us and the thought process around church buildings is also changing. In recent years, I …
We all have more goals that we talk about than we actually accomplish. Have you ever wondered why? In the book Your Best Year Ever, Michael Hyatt teaches how to make SMARTER goals that you can actually accomplish. Here are 7 reasons why some people don’t meet their goals: The goal isn’t Specific. Too many people are too vague …
imposter – a person who pretends to be someone else in order to deceive others, especially for fraudulent gain This post isn’t what you think it is. I’m not describing an imposter church as those who teach subpar doctrine or use worldly practices or practice unwise methods. In fact, I’m not talking about anything that calls itself a “church.” I’m writing …
Many college students treat their spiritual life like a compartmentalized doggie box. You know those types of boxes that have different compartments for the different types of food? Due to a fear of the food touching, it keeps these different items separate from one another. Many students I know do that with the different sections of their lives. You have …
As we climbed the 204-steps required to make it to the top of the African Renaissance Monument, the wind began to pick up. At that high of an altitude and with the ocean breeze hitting us, I was attempting to maintain my footing so that I wouldn’t take the quick way back down the stairs into the belly of Dakar, …
After working for a few days in Senegal, I asked our translator if he wanted to go to his church on Sunday. The villages we were working in had no local church (yet), and I wanted our translator to have the opportunity to see his physical and spiritual family, while at the same time, I wanted our team to be …
A. W. Tozer was a pastor, theologian, and author that defied typical categories. His example is one to be studied for all those desirous to pursuing God.
What standards should worship leaders hold regarding personal dress and physical appearance? While I am sure there is no shortage of opinions on this topic, I wanted to wade into such an important topic. We each possess a certain amount of preferences on the issue, but is there anything we can agree upon? I hope so. For starters, we should …
The tide is growing for family ministry in churches all over America. People see the need for a biblical approach to discipling all ages, but many are unsure of a path and fearful of initiating a change. Maybe you feel like the building blocks are there, but you don’t have the diagram to tell you where to start. As you …
Over the last few weeks, the United States of America hasn’t seemed so united. After President Trump’s nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to serve on the Supreme Court, numerous opponents have risen to the challenge to find a kink in his armor. With what started as an anonymous accusation, Dr. Christine Blasey Ford was eventually encouraged to come forward to accuse …
You must be logged in to post a comment.