“Enter His Gates” – Storytellers

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I wanted to share another story behind the song from one of the tracks off of our “Enter His Gates” album (You can get your copy of the album at the church or on iTunes).  The title song, “Enter His Gates,” was a song I wanted to write for a while.  Psalm 100 is such a rich portion of Scripture and such an enduring call to worship.

We have used this Scripture as teaching for much of what we do at North Side.  We are not called to enter into God’s presence and then start the thanksgiving and praise.  We are called to enter in already in the process!  Worship is a lifestyle, and so when we gather together with God’s people, which is a very special thing, we should continue to give thanks.

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The Father Who Prays

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Rick Via is an evangelist who has shared the gospel in over 40 foreign countries. Through his work in the United States and all over the world, he has seen many converts and equipped many saints for the work of ministry. While his ministry has been very active and busy for years, his greatest contribution to the Kingdom comes in a different arena.

Rick and his wife, Janet, have 5 grown children who are all “involved in ministry in one form or fashion.” They are also blessed to have an ever growing number of grandchildren through biological and adoptive means. While he has invested into countless lives around the world, he never stopped investing into his children.

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“Psalm 150” – Storytellers

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We are so excited to share that you can now get your copy of “Enter His Gates” on iTunes today!  This project developed into a focus on psalms and other scripture passages of worship.  It contains 16 tracks, 3 of them are instrumental selahs, 2 of them recorded live at our church, some of them new arrangements of old tunes, and the intro track was begging to be something special.

I had this idea months ago about a way to introduce the entire album, but I put it on the backburner to see if we could get everything else done.  With a day left before deadline, I couldn’t get away from the thought and so we went with it, and we had to go for it very quickly (so quickly that unfortunately, Jamie Strutton isn’t given trumpet credits on the album notes, because it wasn’t recorded before the artwork was done).

So, let me explain to you the story behind “Psalm 150.”

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Enter-ed His Gates

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What an incredible, busy, jam-packed, God-connected, worshipful, missional week last week was!  We had the privilege for our worship band to play out in the community.  Back in January, we prayed for opportunities to play outside the church walls, and God so happened to drop two in our laps at the time we were planning on releasing our 2nd album of the year.

Here’s a rundown of the week:

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I Go to Prepare a Place

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What a special day day of worship!  With a full week of events associated with our “Enter His Gates” release, it was great to be able to celebrate it one more time with our church family.  In addition to the new 16-track CD, we also had some new t-shirts and such.  I have already received from very special encouragement concerning the new tunes.  We are very grateful.

Today, we worshiped with songs from the new CD:

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Enter His Gates

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Enter His Gates is an in-house recording where we worked on a few different types of songs: 1) Psalms – Many of the songs are taken directly from the Psalms or other passages of Scripture, 2) Instrumentals – We have 3 instrumental tracks which are proving to be some of the people’s favorites as we took the psalmic idea of the instrumental selah pauses in …

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Godly Grief vs. Worldly Grief

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I have been in counseling situations lately that reminded me that I only had one seminary course in counseling.  I don’t believe I gave any bad advice, it was biblical for sure.  But I was maybe a bit bolder than what the average counselor has been instructed to be. As people have sat weeping in my office over their lives …

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8th Anniversary

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It’s with much joy and disbelief that I wake up this morning to the fact that I have been married for 8 years!  Had I had the privilege to be married to Amanda for 8 days, it would have been more than what I deserved, but the fact that God brought us together and given us 8 years is truly humbling.  I mean this quite literally – it calls me to worship when I think of how good God has been to me with the gift of my wife.

The other day, as the anniversary neared, Amanda marveled at the fact that we have been married 8 years.  I told her, “Just think, 8 years ago, you graduated college, you had a job on the way, and then you married me, and look at this you got!”

As I did my best Vanna White impersonation to display what was behind me, she laughed out loud.

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Updates from the Frontline

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Last night, I shared a quote in our community group from a book I’m reading entitled Total Church: A Radical Reshaping Around Gospel and Community by Tim Chester and Steve Timmis.  Interesting read about what these guys are doing with The Crowded House network of home churches in the UK.

Here’s the quote that woke me up concerning missions:

“If someone was being sent as a missionary to a hostile context overseas, our attitude would be something like this: We would expect to pray often for them.  We would expect progress in building relationships and sharing the gospel to be slow.  We would be excited by small steps – a gospel conversation here, an opportunity to get to know someone there.  We would thrive on regular updates from the front line.  But the truth is that the lives of many Christians in work, and play, are just like the life of that far-flung missionary!  They are lived out in tough environments where progress is often slow and many factors make evangelism extremely difficult.  The challenge is to make news from the staff canteen as valued as news from the overseas mission field.”  –Total Church, p. 36

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Betraying One Another

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What a powerful day!  Love, love what is happening in our church right now!

Loved having Lee commission our students to Charleston missions this week.  The message on Judas’ predicted betrayal was unbelievable.  I loved Jeff’s honesty and faithfulness to the biblical text.  As believers, we are called to be faithful to one another, and yes, betrayal among God’s people happens and it is painful.  What an incredible call!

Today, we worshiped to:

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The Centrality of the Home (Unbelievable Message)

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On February 7, 2006, a group of more than 1,000 pastors and church leaders gathered for the Southern Baptists of Texas State Evangelism Conference in the Dallas Metroplex. During the second night of the conference Voddie Baucham, who had preached at the previous year’s conference, was called upon to stand in for Dr. Tim LaHaye who had become ill a …

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Authority Issues

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In addition to training your children to submit to your authority, you are also responsible to teach them to submit and to honor all of the authorities in their lives. The Resolution, a great read, provides some questions to ask what type of example you are setting with your own life:

Answer the following questions honestly:

  • When you’re at home, how do you talk about your leaders at work and church?
  • What do your children hear you saying about the government or elected representatives? Even if you disagree with them, is your attitude respectful?
  • Do they see you praying for your authorities (1 Timothy 2:1-4)?
  • How do they see you respond to speed limits and state troopers?
  • Does this match your talk about how God places authorities in our lives for our benefit?

Take a minute to read Romans 13:1-7 and discover how God expects us to behave towards our authority.

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“Enter His Gates” Track Listing

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We are thrilled to finally be able to let you worship alongside something our team has been working ever so diligently on – our latest worship album, “Enter His Gates.”  This project consists of 16 original worship music from our North Side Worship family.

A few neat features about this recording: 1) Pslams – Many of the songs are taken directly from the Psalms or other passages of Scripture, 2) Instrumentals – We have 3 instrumental tracks which are proving to be some of the people’s favorites as we took the psalmic idea of the instrumental selah pauses in worship and put them to practice here, 3) Remixes –  Some of these songs are remixes or complete re-workings of an old worship song from a previous North Side or solo recording, 4) Live Tracks – The last two tracks feature none other than our North Side congregation singing along at some services months ago – hearing the worshipers has been breathtaking to me, and 5) New Songs – Some of these brand new songs have been some of the most quickly accepted and sung at our church that we have ever done.  So exciting!

Here’s the “Enter His Gates” track listing:

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Ministerial Exhaustion

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Years ago, our pastoral staff took a retreat.  I can remember we really didn’t talk a bunch on the van ride up.  We were all very tired, and honestly, we were very drained with our jobs.

I remember spending a long time on our face before God.  These weren’t bold prayers concerning the health of our church.  These were pastors who were exhausted and tired and pleading to God for help.

What we talked about those few days was how we were overwhelmed with the pace of ministry.  The programs and events of the church were booming, yet we were exhausted and unsure if our efforts were actually assisting any real life change.  From that week, a lot of things at the church changed for the better.  Our entire staff got fired and rehired.  We changed jobs and really started focusing on people over programs.

Two weeks ago, our pastoral staff took another retreat.  We were all very tired yet again, yet this time we were overwhelmed for another reason.

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Foot Washing

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The only problem with today’s services is I could have done that a few more times.  Incredible time with Jesus today.  Absolutely incredible.

The above picture was taken during soundcheck today by one of our vocalists from her phone.  The boys normally go to soundcheck with me.  Today, amazingly enough, both of them had to go poo-poo during it and yelled it out really loud after we had finished a song during soundcheck.  I love being a dad.

After everyone was out of the bathroom, it was a very special day indeed.  Jeff’s message was powerful.  He explained that Jesus’ example of washing the disciples’ feet was an expression of unity, acceptance, and service.  What if every church, every home was full of people who applied this example?  Still processing.

We had a great ensemble do a dramatic reading of the foot washing to setup the message.  It was incredible.  Every time that Laurie started saying, “You can’t wash my feet, I should be kissing your feet,” I couldn’t help but get weepy.  Strutton did a great job of making a Last Supper table that will stay with us during these weeks of Jesus’ teaching through John 13-17.  Amazing what he can do with stuff he got from Big Lots and the Dollar Tree.  Love creativity on a budget!

Today, we worshiped to:

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What’s “Worse” Than an Unbeliever?

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“Blessed are the breadwinners. As men, we should consider it an honor to embrace our role as the primary providers of our families. This is part of our manhood and calling as representatives of God the Father — the One who established work as part of His creation and is still ‘working‘ (John 5:17) as an example for us to follow, continually providing for our daily needs” (From The Resolution, page 157).

Whether you love your job or hate your job, God desires that you embrace the blessed opportunity to provide for your family through your vocation. Unfortunately, many men find themselves unemployed and unable to provide for their families. Many different reasons exist for unemployment. Some men are unemployed for no wrongdoing on their part, but economic times have caused their jobs to be discarded. Some men are unemployed due to their bad attitude or lazy work ethic. Other men are unemployed because they quit because they thought they deserved more than their current job.

Your reasoning for unemployment will determine your method for finding a job.

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Rewriting Wedding Vows

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I can still remember driving away from the church with my new bride.  As I tried to navigate through the barrage of tissue paper and groomsmen’s underwear, so much was on my mind.  I had just committed to my bride and in front of many close people that I would love her.  Forever.  We vowed it.

Do you remember your wedding vows? Sure you do! They were those words you repeated guided by a preacher where you almost passed out in front of the congregation. The traditional vows from The Book of Common Prayer are:

I ______, take thee, _______, to my lawful wedded Wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part, according to God’s holy ordinance.

If the average spouse were to rewrite these vows based upon marital reality, how would they change?  Think about it.

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“Enter His Gates” Release Details

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As you can see, Eli has been hard at work recording and mixing the newest North Side Worship album.  You will be impressed with his legit skills.  We are just weeks away from “Enter His Gates” being released and we couldn’t be more excited about how it came together!

When we set out to record 4 albums this year, I intentionally made each project get a little bit more difficult.  The sermon remix mainly needed keyboard instruments then we added some more. Enter His Gates added more live instrumentation and live vocals.  The Jesus album and Bluegrass Christmas is gonna be full scale in many ways.

With that being said, we have learned a lot on this project.  A lot.

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The Message of Jesus

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The Peak band did a wonderful job leading worship at North Side today.  When our high school students lead, it’s not a novel gesture, they are really great worship leaders and we are honored to be led by them.  Amanda and I were talking after services about how genuine, musical, and thoughtful they were with their leadership.  So proud of each one of you!

Today, we worshiped to:

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Learning Contentment

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As a parent, you know the frustration associated with Christmas morning. Your children tear open one gift to behold something they have desperately asked for, and before the wrapping has time to fall to the floor, they are already reaching for the next shiny package.

There’s something in all of us like that. We do acknowledge the blessings we have. We might even give God thanks for them, but somewhere along the way, we become discontented. Read 1 Timothy 6:6-10 to hear Paul’s instruction to his son in the faith, Timothy.

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Turning From Sin

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While our sin is against God (Ps. 51:4), no matter what the sin is, our sin still has a way to negatively affect others. We must address the sin in our own lives.

Read Psalm 32:3-4 and discover the weight sin can bring upon you:

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The Trouble With Following Christ

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What a very special day of worship at North Side!  In addition to recognizing our graduates, we also commissioned six college students who will be spending their summer in West Africa as North Side missionaries.  God orchestrated a very appropriate and powerful service to send them off.

Jeff’s message from John 12 was specifically directed towards ministers.  For all those who minister the Word of God to others, there are times when our souls become troubled.  Jesus showed us how to speak the Word with grace and truth.  For this message to fall in this week with these ladies being commissioned was a powerfully God-ordained moment.

Today, we worshiped to:

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Watering Down Missions

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Over the years, I’ve had the privilege of going on many mission trips and leading many mission teams.  Whenever I have prepared a team for a mission trip, I have constantly reminded them of an important fact: Christian sightseeing is not missions! Let me explain.  I think over the years, we have watered down missions so much that we classify doing …

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What Need Grabs Your Heart the Most?

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There are many needs in the world. You can’t do something about all of them, but you can do something about some of them. You can spend your life focused on confronting evil, pursuing justice, and loving mercy. Your life can potentially change the lives of others.

As you go through life, you probably resonate with certain needs more than others. We are each wired differently — that’s the beauty of the Body of Christ!  It’s best for each of us to specifically get involved in a need we are passionate about.

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Men: Step Up in Your Church

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Hopefully, you are connected with a local church. None of us should be left alone in this Christian walk by ourselves.  Your church is a wonderful expression of God’s grace, and while it is not perfect, it is God’s vehicle to make disciples.

You need your church, and your church needs you! Read Romans 12:3-8 to see your role concerning your church.

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Grain of Wheat

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Special day at North Side!  We had some info on promotion Sunday (June 3rd), family dedication with 9 families, great time of worship, great interview video on “who was Jesus,” and a wonderful message!  Jeff’s teaching on John 12 was so good.  So much to take in considering how we are to lay our lives down just as Christ was anticipating his sacrifice for us.

Today, we worshiped to:

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The Commission of the Christ

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As we finish up our Christology, we must take a good look at the commission of the Christ.

Matthew 28:16 Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them.17 And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted.18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them int the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

After Jesus rose from the dead, he appeared to hundreds of followers during a span of 40 days.  At the end of this time, the disciples saw him ascending into heaven.  His final words were words of sending the disciples out.  Matthew’s account is what is usually quoted.  Let’s look at some of the key things to note:

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Overwhelmed Mothers

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I wanted to write a post for all of you overwhelmed mothers out there.  I was blown away by the correspondence I received when I urged mothers to let mothers mother.  Let’s face it: moms have a unique burden placed upon them. Many of you are overwhelmed with your wonderful calling because it is a difficult one.  You can easily …

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How “Low” Would You Go for a Job?

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My friend Jonathan never pictured himself unemployed. Obtaining a bachelor’s and masters degree in his field, he was a great candidate for many jobs. Working during his time at school, upon graduation, he was able to receive a great job with a good salary with benefits.

After a few years in this job, he took a stand for something he was right and it cost him. Unwilling to back down from his convictions, he was forced out of his job in a hard economic time. He sent out resumes all over town. Due to family situations, he was unable to look for unemployment outside of the city. For all of his job hunting, he came up empty.

The only place that was hiring was a job that was way below his education or his prior pay scale. It would also be a job where he would be visible and a reminder of his previous job termination.

He had a choice: humbly provide for his family or worry about his reputation?

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The Anointing of Jesus

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What a great morning.  The boys normally go to soundcheck with me, but birthday boy Obadiah was extra rowdy on the drums this morning.

It was such a powerful time of worship today at North Side.  I can’t begin to tell you how much the Holy Spirit united the service today.  There are times when we plan elements together and it’s great to watch them fall, and then, today, I listened to Jeff preach his sermon and use words that were verbatim of the last song we were going to do after his message on Mary anointing the feet of Jesus.

I figured he had looked at the flowsheet and studied the lyrics, but something also told me that maybe this was a God orchestrated thing.  Turns out he didn’t know what the lyrics of the last song were, but as he preached in his message about “focusing on the gift instead of the Giver…Giver of every perfect gift…being satisfied in only Jesus…”  It was wild.

Today, we worshiped to:

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The Resurrection of the Christ

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In our Christology, we have reached a pretty pivotal section: the resurrection of the Christ.  Jesus is risen!  He is risen indeed!

Few people deny the fact that a man named Jesus lived on this earth, gathered a large following, seemed to be a pretty decent guy, and then was killed.  The point of debate has always been: did a dead man rise from the grave?

As we think about this section, here are some things to remember:

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The Danger of Hypocrisy

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Hypocrisy. It’s when hands lifted in praise have been earlier used for sin. It’s when lips proclaiming praise had hours earlier been used for insults. It’s when one’s reputation and one’s character are vastly different. The Pharisees were condemned for their hypocrisy. We read the stories of their encounters with Jesus and shake our heads at how far off they were from the truth without realizing that that is why they were condemned in the first place.

Today, we need to evaluate and see if our lifestyle is different than that of the hypocritical Pharisees. Are we living lives of integrity? Read Jesus’ words in Matthew 15:1-9.

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Remodeling (The People in) Your Home

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Since we moved a few months ago, I’ve been working at remodeling our home.  I’ve had some pretty fantastic help.  While Eli obeys orders well, he also watches an example and learns quickly.  There have been many times he has taken his toy screw driver and hammer and pulled up flooring or shoe molding that was not intended to come up.  It’s hard to get frustrated with such a cute kid (that’s not to say I never did ;)).

If you were remodeling a house, the best bet would be to have a systematic approach to your work. You would determine which room needed the most desperate attention. You would organize the needed tools to find the job. You would seek help for the jobs that you felt unqualified for.

You may not be remodeling a house, but you are called to disciple your children which is actually more work and requires more dedication than any other house project you could imagine. Have you ever thought about what your goal is in your home.  Get honest about your approach. I put together a list below that could serve as a template for your approach.  Copy and paste the section below and then fill it in for each child in your home.  Fill in the sections below honestly and prayerfully.

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Substitutionary Atonement

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John 11:49 But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all. 50 Nor do you understand that it is better for you that one man should die for the people, not that the whole nation should perish.” 51 He did not say this of his own accord, but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the nation, 52 and not for the nation only, but also to gather into one the children of God who are scattered abroad.

What a wonderful text that led our worship time today!  We focused on Jesus’ selfless sacrifice today and that is always time well-spent!  Jeff’s message was plain ridiculous.  The thought that we could possess a faith not to “offend Rome” really challenged some introspective time in my own life.  Powerful!

Today, we worshiped to:

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The Crucifixion of the Christ

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At this point in our Christology, we have arrived at the point where wrath and grace became forever entwined.  The crucifixion of the Christ changed everything.

All 4 of the gospels report this event and yet each one has unique details.  When put together, the 4 combine to provide many details about what happened when Love laid down his life willingly.

Here are some things to note:

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Bad Church Sign: Stolen AC

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This week’s bad church sign says: “WHOEVER STOLE OUR AC UNITES KEEP ONE IT IS HOT WHERE YOURE GOING.” Let’s just say that you were the person who stole that unit.  You went to that church intentionally because you know you could easily acquire them.  You either needed the money or you wanted the cool relief in your home.  You …

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“I Got All These Trees”

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Our little family is growing.  Not only in number or size, but we are slowly getting things.  Our minds are growing.  One of my prayers for my children have been, “God, give them a mind to comprehend your nature and help them develop a big heart with which to love you.”

We use different types of teaching plans or Bibles with the children during family worship.  I have contended for a while that the best way to bring my kids up in the Lord is not the best church programs, but what we do in the home.  Lately, I have been retelling the Old Testament narrative over and over to the boys.  I have them repeat different elements to me, and we keep stacking more of the story each time.  They know the days of Creation, the 10 Commandments, and the big picture with the main characters involved.

Sometimes, you wonder if they are getting it, and then, you have a moment like I did last week and you remind yourself that you might be on to something.

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2 Deaths, 2 Different Legacies

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I lost 2 of my heroes in the recent week.  It’s rare that 2 leading evangelicals over significant ministries would pass in one week, but it’s true.  One of those leaders was Chuck Colson.  The headlines have read “Nixon’s Hatchet Man Dies” or “Watergate’s Culprit Passes Away.”  Chuck Colson was deep in the scandal of President Nixon’s scandal years ago.  Before being sentenced to prison, Colson claimed he was converted to Christianity.

While many saw this as an attempt to lower his sentence, his time in jail, and his time after jail displayed remarkable fruit and he never backed down from his Christian commitment.  He started an international prison ministry that has impacted countless men and women for Christ.  He has written some amazing books filled with great intellect concerning a Christian worldview and a humble disposition concerning his previous way of life.  While he started very poorly, he finished strong.

The other man won’t make as many headlines, but he was still a strong ambassador in the Kingdom, but his death is more tragic.

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The Resurrection of Lazarus

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Powerful.  I’ve been looking forward to this Sunday for a while now.  For one, I haven’t led worship at North Side in 2 weeks, and I’ve missed it!  Two, we had some really powerful moments in today’s services.

In addition to an incredible message from Jeff concerning the resurrection of Lazarus, we were also blessed to have a good buddy of mine, Cole, a Lander student, do a monologue sketch from Lazarus’ perspective.  As he was concluding this unbelievable scene (with grand awesomeness), we went into “I will rise when He calls my name, no more sorrow, no more pain.”  Pretty neat.

Today, we worshiped to:

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The Dedication of the Christ

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In this week’s Christology study, we are focusing on Jesus’ dedication to the will of God.  Shown throughout his entire time on earth, it is visible very clearly at the Garden of Gethsemene.  Leaving the Last Supper, Jesus brought along the inner 3 to one of his favorite places to pray.

Here are some things to note from this section:

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