advent v3 2016 ben sternke

Practicing Patient Tenacity During Advent

We’re in the season of Advent: the beginning of the Christian year and a time of waiting, longing, preparation, and expectation. In the midst of a culture that wants to rush toward the warm fuzzies of a sentimentalized Christmas season, how can we cultivate the kind of attitude Advent is meant to evoke in us? How can we honor what this …

The Cultural Web and the Neighborhood Church

After taking some time to use the cultural web to exegete the neighborhood within the city, the same cultural web can be helpful to discern how to be the church in your context. In Creating a Missional Culture, I mention that if we are going to have churches where the community more fully reflects the character and ministry of Christ, …