Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category

May
11
2013

A Prayer for Moms on Mother’s Day

I wrote this prayer for the mothers in our church. I thought I would share it with you as you celebrate the moms in your life:

A Mother’s Day Prayer

Dear Father, we approach your throne on behalf of the mothers whom you have entrusted with the care of your most precious little ones. We thank you for creating each mom with a unique combination of gifts and talents. We thank you for the sacrifice of self each mom gives for her children. For the late nights spent rocking a colicky infant. For the hands calloused from washing, wiping, scrubbing, mixing, baking, stirring, hugging, patting, disciplining, holding, writing, erasing, painting, and pouring.

We thank you for the gift of time moms give for their kids, whether it’s stay-at-home moms, working moms, and moms who have some combination of the two. We thank you for the flexibility of moms, for their tirelessness, their perseverance, and their devotion.

We pray you give each mom strength. Help her to see in every mundane task the eternal, cosmic significance that you place on motherhood. Help her to understand that the most radical, world-changing events may be happening anonymously in her home. Help her to forgive those who undermine her significance.

We especially pray for single moms, who must lean solely on you for the fathering of their children. We thank you that you’re big arms surround children who may never know their earthly father. We also pray for mothers who never had the honor of bearing children, but whose nurturing extends to the many poor and needy who cross the threshold of their lives.

We ask you to be the daily bread of tired mothers. We ask you to be their living water. We ask you to be their source of spiritual and physical strength. We pray that the same grace that flowed from Father to Son to us in salvation will flow from mothers to their children. We pray that each mother rejects perfectionism and instead embraces the goodness of the gospel. We pray the rhythms of repentance and forgiveness shape every home.

Lord, give each mother a worshipful reverence of you, the Creator and Sustainer of life. Help each mother to rest in the knowledge that they are but stewards of your children and that only your Spirit can produce change into the hearts of each boy and girl. May each mother find rest in you.

Most of all, Lord, on this day in which we honor mothers, may we love and cherish the special women who have born us, who have nurtured us, and who have prayed for our well-being. May our hearts overflow with gratitude to you, who formed and knitted each of us in a mother’s womb.

Dec
28
2012

10 Most Popular Blog Posts

This was a great year for my blog, the best ever. I’m still fairly unknown compared to heavyweights like Tim Challies or Jon Acuff, but I’m proud of the fact that my number of visits nearly tripled as did my number of visitors, while my pageviews more than doubled. I also added quite a few Twitter followers and email subscribers. All in all a very good year.

Here are the top ten blogs posts in 2012:

1) Ten Things Nobody Tells You About Being a Dad

This is a half-serious/half-humorous post about the unknowns of fathering. What’s funny about this post is that I wrote it late one Sunday night after an evening church service. I had a bit of inspiration rolling around in my head. I had no idea that it would “go viral” as the cool kids say. It was linked to by quite a few popular blogs.

2) The Sin About Which No One Will Speak

This post addressed the sin of envy, a sin which we seem to cultivate in America as something good. My post makes the argument that we talk quite a bit about the sin of greed, but too little about the sin of envy.

3) What You Don’t Like About Your Church (And Why That’s Good)

Here I discuss the importance of finding a church that doesn’t perfectly suit your preferences. It’s important that Christians die to their preferences for the good of the body and for their own growth.

4) Three Pitfalls for Young, Evangelical Leaders

As a young evangelical leader, I see a lot of hope in my generation. But I also see some potential pitfalls for our leadership. this post generated quite a bit of good discussion on Twitter and elsewhere.

5) Five Reasons Why Pastors Should Apologize

One of the most potent words a pastor or any leader can say is, “I’m sorry; I was wrong.” Rather than weakening his leadership, it empowers it.

6) 5 Ways You Can Help Your Church

This post generated a lot of reaction and I have had several who requested permission to print it for church newsletters or bulletins. Essentially I give some practical ways in which Christians can be good church members.

7) 5 Resolutions for a Christian Communicator

“To communicate the truth of the good news of the gospel, in any form, is a high privilege and a sober calling.” I drafted five resolutions that might guide anyone privileged to communicate the gospel in way.

8) 5 Ways to Pray for Your Church

We complain a lot about the Church and about our own churches. But how often do we pray? This is a simple prayer guide to help folks pray for the local body of believers to which they are called.

9) Bible-reading plans for 2012

I challenged our church to read through the Bible in a year and listed a variety of resources and plans. These are “evergreen” so this post might be helpful if you’re planning on doing it in 2013. (BTW, I’m almost finished with my plan for 2012).

10) What Pastoring Taught Me About Spiritual Growth

Pastoring has taught me a lot about spiritual growth, especially how to disciple different people in different ways.

 

Nov
22
2012

Celebrating 10 Great Years

Ten years ago, today, I held hands and looked into the eyes of a beautiful girl from Texas named Angela Sullivan.  I didn’t know much, but I knew I was in love with this girl. I fell in love with her beauty, her vivacious, sweet spirit, her love for the Lord and her zest for life. I thought I knew what marriages would be like, but I didn’t have a clue, really.

It’s been ten years, ten of the best, richest, most satisfying years of my life. This girl I married, Angela, has enriched my life in so many ways. She’s taught me how to be a good husband. She’s pushed me to be a good father. She’s given me four beautiful children.

We’ve been through some gut-wrenching trials together. We’ve endured the loss of loved ones. We’ve been betrayed by close and trusted friends. We’ve hurt so deeply we didn’t know if we could go on.We’ve endured excruciating health crises.

We’ve seen the Lord work in incredible ways. We’ve grown together. We’ve witnessed miracles.

We’ve wept together. We’ve laughed together. We’ve created many memories together.

The Bible describes marriage as a mystery. And it truly is. Two vastly different people, hearts knit together in love. I honestly say that today I’m more in love with Angela than I was the day we said our vows and became man and wife. These years have been rich, they’ve been wonderful. I thank God for the gift of my wife. I’m a better man for the ten years I’ve spent with Angela.

My prayer is for another ten years with her. And then another ten and another ten and another ten until we are both so old we can’t hardly move and our teeth are gone. When she is not present in the room, I feel like a part of me is missing. Her faith, her courage, her giftedness was exactly what God knew I needed.

In 2002, we spent our first Thanksgiving in clueless bliss at an Italian restaurant in a lighthouse in Aruba. Ten years later, we’ll spend it with a houseful of children. Who knows what the next ten years will bring. By God’s grace, it will be with Angela by my side. Thank you God, for this beautiful gift I don’t deserve.

Jul
23
2012

Off to Europe

Today I’m headed for a ten-day trip to Europe to attend the wedding of my brother, Tim and his wife, Aneta, whose family lives in Krakow, Poland. I will be flying from Chicago, stopping in Helsinki, Finland, then flying to Budapest. Then I will get on another plane and fly from Budapest to Warsaw to Krakow.

After spending a few days in Krakow, I will fly back to Budapest (via Vienna) and then drive into Slovakia where I will spend time with Jason and Adele Rice, our missionaries to Slovakia. Jason and Adele are close friends. Jason pastored at Gages Lake prior to my tenture and our family has come to love and appreciate the Rices. I’m excited to see what God is doing through them in this part of the world.

So, I will be mostly “off the grid” during this trip. Since data transmission is so expensive for an American iPhone plan, I will only be checking email at wifi places. I will have limited ability to text and call (but please, don’t call or text me, because it costs $$). I will regularly check email on my laptop in the hotel where I’ll be staying.

As for blogging, I have posts scheduled to run while I’m gone. In my absence, my associate, Jay Lovelace will preach. He’s a terrific preacher and will bless our church greatly.

Jul
03
2012

5 Reasons Why I’m Going to Seminary

Over the past year I have prayed long and hard about going back to school to pursue my Master’s of Divinity. I’ve sought the counsel of perhaps a dozen pastors and Christian leaders. I’ve researched schools, financial options, and everything related to seminary. I have come away feeling moved of God to pursue a Master’s of Divinity degree. The school that I ended up choosing, based on a variety of factors, is Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, IL. Choosing the school was the hard part, with several other schools very closely “in the running” if you will. I’m excited and a bit nervous. I haven’t been in school for about ten years. There is a significant financial obligation. And, I’m a busy man already with my role as senior pastor at Gages Lake Bible Church, and author, and a husband of one and a father of four.

So why attend seminary? Well, in true blog fashion, here are five reasons:

1) If it is my lifelong duty to teach, preach, and write about the Bible, I must continually pursue knowledge of the Bible. It’s true that you can become a good communicator of the Word without going to school. D.L. Moody and others come to mind. But generally these men were outliers, not the norm. And, given the opportunity to attend school, they surely would have. You can gain knowledge by doing personal, self study. But nothing disciplines the mind like formal, thorough, systematic education. Seminary doesn’t cure all ills and can’t guarantee a fruitful ministry, but it’s a tool I pray God will use for that end.

2) Seminary forces me to read and study books I wouldn’t naturally discipline myself to read. It’s romantic to think I’d just naturally peruse the deep books on theology you find in seminary. But let’s be honest. I won’t do that. Seminary forces me to wrestle with the depth and breadth of theological studies in a way you just can’t do on your own. I look forward to gaining much knowledge, for instance, in the areas of church history, Puritan thought, and studies of men like Jonathan Edwards.

3) Seminary will give added credibility to my ministry. I wouldn’t go to school simply to have the Mdiv after my name. At the end of the day, those hurting souls don’t care how many degrees you have on the wall. But having a degree from a reputable school such as TEDs does bring a measure of stature, of credibility. This isn’t ultimate, but it’s not unimportant. When I open the Word on Sundays, I would like people to be confident that I had devoted my life to serious study of the Word. Mdiv, Trinity goes a long way to securing that.

4) I want to learn how to be a better pastor. There is so much I have to learn about being a pastor, about leadership, about life. I look forward to serious reflection and study on this during my time at TEDS, not only in the classroom, but also in the friendships and mentoring opportunities available to me. I’m fired up about being part of a new tribe of men committed to serious ministry. I’m excited about learning how to serve my church well, to build up the local body of Christ, and to sharpen my ability to share Jesus with those who don’t know Him.

5) There a lot of things I don’t know that I dont’ know. Serving as a pastor these last four years has reinforced something I suspected before: there’s a lot I don’t know about the Word that I don’t even know I don’t know. I want to be a lifelong learner of the Word of God. I want to plunge into the depths. I want to know theology, not so I can win a Bible quiz or so people can shake their head and marvel at my keen insights. I want to know the Word because it tells me about the God who loves me, it draws me closer to Him.

Bottom Line: I’m going to seminary. Pray for me and my family during these years of study.

Jul
02
2012

The Value of Good Friends

I just got back into town from a week of travel. It was good to arrive at my home Thursday night, to kiss my beautiful wife and hug my four wonderful children. Travel is often necessary and can be fruitful times of ministry, but home is best.

I’m reflecting today on the joy of good and faithful ministry friends. It’s so very vital, especially for a young pastor like me. Last week I attended the IFCA convention–this is the fellowship of church’s Gages Lake is a part of. I’m not sure why, but this year I especially appreciated the long and fruitful conversations I had with godly men, ministry veterans with wisdom and grace. I asked questions, I laughed, I shared struggles and triumphs. Mostly we talked about ministry, both practical and theological. The messages and workshops were especially sharpening, but I think it’s the informal conversations that teach me the most.

There is a tendency among some conservative pastors to be isolated, to avoid making friendships. This is a mistake. Guys, we need rich ministry friendships, not simply within our own theological village or denomination or ministry paradigm, but friends in a variety of places.

And I might add that we need, we must have, friendships cross-generationally. I see many pastors my age shun guys with white hair. But we need men who are older than us who can deposit wisdom into our lives. I might challenge older men to recognize the value of their advancing years. You have a golden opportunity to pour your life into a young, green, pastor. We need you.

All in all, glad to be home, but grateful for the richness of Christian fellowship.

Jun
20
2012

Speaking Engagements This Week

This weekend I’m headed out of town for a week of speaking in Kentucky and Michigan:

  • On Friday and Saturday, I’ll be in Elizabethtown, KY speaking at the Kentucky Christian Writer’s Conference. I’ll be speaking on two topics: “Blogging the Good News” and “Cheap and Free Ways to Market Your Book.”
  • I’ll be the guest preacher on Sunday morning at Byron Center Bible Church in Byron Center, Michigan (Grand Rapids area). My good friend, Dr. Rich McCarrell is the Senior Pastor

May
23
2012

Go to Exponential for Free

If you’re a church leader chances are you are inundated with opportunities to go to conferences. The problem is that there are so many outstanding opportunities, but not enough time or resources. So thankfully, these conferences post their audio, either free or for a small fee.

Well today I’m giving you the opportunity to attend the Exponential Conference online, from home, for free. This is an annual conference held in Orlando and regularly features outstanding preachers of the gospel. These are some of the most influential church planting leaders in the country, and I want to give away a free simulcast registration to two readers of this blog! Although the conference happened on April 24th, thanks to technology and these free registrations, you will be able to pull it up and access it on your own time.

If you would like to register for the giveaway, please enter your information below. Please note that only one registration per person is possible. Registration for the giveaway will end sometime Monday morning, after which I will use a random number generator to assign the two winners.