v3_2016_ whom_God_sends

Whom God Sends

Over the last several years, I (and many others) have spent a great deal of time pondering Luke 10:1-12. We have noted how Luke’s context is similar to our own. We have wrestled with how counterintuitive, how countercultural the instructions to the seventy-two “sent ones”—and us—are. The following prayerful ponderation has come out of such dwelling on this text—actually, on …

how_to_spot_an_immature_apostle_v3_2016

How to Spot an Immature Apostle and What To Do About It

This is the first in a series of articles on recognizing immaturity in fivefold ministry and what to do about it. If you have no idea what fivefold ministry is, check out Alan Hirsch’s brief descriptions here, or JR Woodward’s video introduction here. “Gather your top eight to ten leaders,” he said, “and start investing in them. Then they can begin …

encourage_one_another_2016

Let Us Encourage One Another

Murphy’s Law says, “If anything can go wrong it will.” If your doctor’s appointment is for 4:00pm and you have something else at 5:00pm, he or she will be an hour behind. If you’ve decided to go on a ski holiday, it will be the mildest, most snowless winter on record. This is just one reason why we all need …

creative_lent_2016_V3

Let’s Get Creative For Lent

Lent is the forty-day period before Easter that commemorates Jesus’ sojourn in the wilderness in preparation for the launch of his ministry. In the early church, Lent was a time to prepare for baptism. Today, it is usually regarded as a season of soul searching, privation, and repentance. It begins with Ash Wednesday and ends at sundown on Maundy Thursday. …