Last Sunday, a proud father handed me these notes that his eight-year old daughter had taken during the sermon that morning:She caught all the highlights of the message. And not a few of the asides, the "oh by the ways," the throwaway lines that apparently...
A few years ago, United Methodist Communications adopted this slogan for our denomination:Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors . . . The People Of The United Methodist Church.As part of the marketing rollout, the church produced a series of television...
Ryan Gordon is our Director of Children's Ministries, and files this report from his Kids Core Discipleship class offered this past Saturday morning:"I am a new Christian, a follower of Jesus Christ…so now what?” “How do I have a living relationship with...
Some of us have had pet rocks.But not of us have had talking stones.We'll see what Jesus was talking about in Luke 19:40. And we'll also see that -- as is true of so much else in the bible -- context is everything. You can't understand this verse unless you know...
I know a preacher is in trouble whenever he or she says, "Webster's defines ___________ as __________________." Why is a dictionary reference a sure-fire sermon killer?Because in preaching you should never define a word with more words.You define a word...
I have lived through seasons of life where Jesus was an occupation.I read the bible only to search for sermon material. I prayed because that's what preachers are supposed to do. I served so that others in the church could see me serving. ...
Every so often, I come across a pair of rock songs that are really just twins separated at birth. To my untrained ear, characteristics in melody, chord changes, and vocalizations make certain pairs of songs sound eerily similar. Sometimes it...
As you can see by checking the "Books I Like" column to the right, I recently came across Paul David Tripp's Dangerous Calling: Confronting The Unique Challenges Of Pastoral Ministry.I had never heard of either the book or its author before a friend loanded...
Here's a look at our Journey Of Stones series:I like that piece.I'm also excited about the message I get to give on Sunday: Sticks & Stones.Sunday.8:30. 10. 11:30.
Every once in awhile, I'll have a conversation with someone who is either new to Good Shepherd or just checking it out.And usually the conversation includes the person or family saying something like, "we're looking for a church that's a good fit. We just want a...