God's Man

“Now the word of the Lord came to me, saying, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” Then I said, “Ah, Lord God! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth.” But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am only a youth’; for to all to whom I send you, you shall go, and whatever I command you, you shall speak. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, declares the Lord.” Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth. And the Lord said to me, “Behold, I have put my words in your mouth. See, I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to break down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.”” - Jeremiah‬ ‭1:4–10‬ ‭ESV God has created you, built you with a purpose and wants you to achieve that purpose. On top of that He comes along with you, is near to you, making sure you are never alone on the journey. When the ...

Ready or Not “Let me sing for my beloved my love song concerning his vineyard: My beloved had a vineyard on a very fertile hill. He dug it and cleared it of stones, and planted it with choice vines; he built a watchtower in the midst of it, and hewed out a wine vat in it; and he looked for it to yield grapes, but it yielded wild grapes. And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah, judge between me and my vineyard. What more was there to do for my vineyard, that I have not done in it? When I looked for it to yield grapes, why did it yield wild grapes? And now I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard. I will remove its hedge, and it shall be devoured; I will break down its wall, and it shall be trampled down. I will make it a waste; it shall not be pruned or hoed, and briers and thorns shall grow up; I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it. For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah are his pleasant planti...

Tension Point  Psalm 139:1–24 Good Morning, When I was being trained in preaching one of the things that my Pastor told me to try to avoid was reading long passages of Scripture. So I am going to start today by breaking that rule and reading all of  Psalm 139 . There is a reason for this that I will share afterward. 139 TO THE CHOIRMASTER. A PSALM OF DAVID. O LORD, you have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O LORD, you know it altogether. You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it. Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in th...

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When you come across an important word or phrase in your reading, stop to search for other uses of that same word or phrase. Look first within the book you’re reading, then within the same author, then in the rest of the Bible. In this lab, John Piper briefly looks at six different verses to better understand the Book of Life. For study questions visit http://bit.ly/1BhLAg1

Can twenty years of ever-sharpening focus, ten thousand resources, and the heart of Christian Hedonism be summed up in three minutes? With the help of gifted artists, we try in this video. It’s a celebration. It’s a thank you. It’s an explanation. It’s an invitation. I never thought of myself as a great narrator. But I do have great news. I hope you enjoy this overflow of joy from Desiring God. Gifts can be made at http://bit.ly/1yVPjAI. Voice: John Piper Written by: David Mathis, Marshall Segal and John Piper Production: Stefan Green Concept & Direction: Jorge R. Canedo Estrada Design: James Graves Animation: Phil Borst, Jorge R. Canedo Estrada & Seth Eckert Music: John Poon

My bride and I were talking tonight about all the moving parts in our life right now and how we are really not fine.  We actually laughed at that realization.  As one thing piles onto the next it has actually become comical. One thing we do know is that it is ok not to be fine.  We resolved that issue together years ago because we know that ultimately it is not in our hands anyway.  God has been so very faithful to us that even in our pain we can laugh because our God is bigger than all of it.  We also recognized our own privilege and that our issues are not nearly as large as the loom. So I am praying for you dear reader.  That you would know the faithfulness of God even in your pain.  That you would seek Him first. Why are you cast down, O my soul,     and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him,     my salvation and my God. - Psalm 42:11 God's Man

Sometimes it just have to get done.  Whether you FEEL like it or not. Life is only lived in One Direction. God's Man

This is the opening salvo from one of my favorite books for pastors. We pastors are being killed by the professionalizing of the pastoral ministry. The mentality of the professional is not the mentality of the prophet. It is not the mentality of the slave of Christ. Professionalism has nothing to do with the essence and heart of the Christian ministry. The more professional we long to be, the more spiritual death we will leave in our wake. For there is no professional childlikeness (Matt. 18: 3); there is no professional tenderheartedness (Eph. 4: 32); there is no professional panting after God (Ps. 42: 1)

My music collection is quite the eclectic mix. My darling wife teases me because I can just as easily enjoy a night of Celtic worship as a I can a Christian hip hop concert. One of the ways that God touches people is through music. Music, in whatever style or genre, has a way of speaking to us. The only restriction that I put onto my musical choices is that they point is to God in some way and don't disparage our relationship with him. Here are videos of music that we have been bouncing to here in our household. Entitlement by Beautiful Eulogy Excellent by Propaganda Goodbye by Json Tell the World by Lacrae

One leads to the other and both should lead back to God. Knowing Him causes us to praise Him which makes us want to know him even more which... We are looking forward to another installment of Lyrical Theology from Shai Linne.

I remember as a child I was often filled with wonder. Do you know what that is? That feeling of smallness. That there is some much going on around you that you couldn't possibly understand it all. Even though I am a gigantic nerd I grew up in what used to be considered the country. Homes had yards. There were still farms. There was history all around us. Old homes that had been abandoned where nature had reclaimed what was built. Where trees provided shade and the grass was the only blanket you needed. When I talk to my daughter I don't detect the same level of wonder as she interact with the world. Maybe it is the difference between boys and girls. I remember sweeping adventures that went from one end of one neighborhood to the far end of another. We had tales about the old homes in our neighborhood. From the story of old man Barry who had killed his brother to assume his familes property to the old boarded up house that was packed full of boxes of money. Then th...

Am I being completely honest with myself? What story do I want to tell? Is there a tension that needs my attention? What would be most honoring to God? Posted with Blogsy

There comes a moment in a child's life when they encounter it. The dark. The unknown. FEAR . Tonight Princess Mini came in saying that she was afraid of the dark. She wanted to know if she could sleep with us. It is at these moments that we as parents shape them. Being a parent is a awesome responsibility. I don't mean that in Dude, that is AWESOME kind of way. I mean it inspires awe. It shakes you to your core. It should... I think that this is why so many run from it, but that is another topic. We don't do a lot of co-sleeping in our house. That is not exactly true. We don't let them sleep in our bed. But we have spent many a night in their rooms. When they are sick, or scared, or lonely we go to them. I think God works with us in much the same way. When we are gripped by fear, concerned about the unknown, or just lonely, he comes in and sits next to our bed. Maybe He puts His head on the pillow or drapes His arm over you but He makes his presen...

Why Cain Was Rejected and Abel Accepted - Kevin W. Posted with Blogsy

It looks like my #endWintersTryanny campaign has been a success.  In celebration we are participation in a time honored tradition in our family. Cooking crabs.  The princesses took these shots of me preparing some crabs. 

Base Image Credit: The Province . Editing by Me. As we are ensconced in a biblically inspired movie cycle with the likes of Noah, and Son of God as well as more "Christian" themed stuff like God's not Dead and the upcoming Heaven is for Real I am having to put my God on film idea to the test. The challenge that I have with movies/TV series/media that claim biblical inspiration or themes is that instead of letting the story stand on it focuses on minor details and ignores the major story.  Much like what we do when we focus on secondary issues and make them primary. There is also the fact that some narrative elements are completely made up or wrong in light of the actual text.  I know that studying the scriptures is not as "exciting" as watching Russell Crowe as Maximus Noah and the Nephilim but don't let this be the only time you think about the text. We are called to meditate on God's Word day and night.  It really does inform the decisions ...

Where there is no guidance, a people falls, but in an abundance of counselors there is safety. - Proverbs 11:14 MP3: http://bit.ly/1g92dn2