Posts by toowoombacrc (Page 22)
No Longer Talking
“We dehumanise as we distance ourselves from each other, depriving them and us of voice. Is it any wonder people are lonelier than ever? As Christians we must be different. We must be people who honour those made in the image of God, by speaking, listening and giving full attention just as our God does to us. If even having the phone on the table gives the wrong signal, let’s leave them aside. If having it buzz leaves us itching…
Praying for a Train Wreck
“Evangelism requires all kinds of boldness, but maybe part of what we need is the boldness to realise that, when we pray for someone’s conversion, what we’re really praying is that their life will become a train wreck—maybe before they’re converted, maybe after, or maybe both. A relationship may have to end. A job may have to be lost. An illness may have to be confronted. An idol may have to be shattered.” Read more…
The Beauty of Normal Boring Liturgy
“The sheer ordinary routine of gospel liturgy is a thing of beauty and strength in an increasingly ugly and weakened Western culture. Let’s never be the church of which someone might say when they visit another church when it opens the Bible to proclaim the excellencies of Jesus; “We don’t normally do that.” Read more…
Lady Jane Grey in 200 words
A profile of a significant woman Reformer: “Lady Jane Grey’s legacy is seen in the fact that after Bloody Mary’s death, England would never again be a Catholic nation. English history was forever changed by the gospel-fuelled martyrdom of a teenage queen.” Read more…
Teflon Slogans Versus Velcro Stories
“Stories are Velcro. They grip and hang on tight, refusing our desire to shake them off; paying no attention to our 21st century affectedness, our urban sophistication in which we assume we are above unconscious desire, and are instead well-researched, highly aware choosers and consumers of our own destinies. Faced with a reality in which the self-conscious self is a product that we now sell back to companies and organisations, with all of our social media sloganeering behind us, the…
An Open Letter to those Apathetic about their Sanctification
“Dear friend, How can I light a fire and get you engaged and active in wanting to grow when you don’t really seem that interested? You’re “eh,” “meh,” and “whatever.” What could shake you out of apathy and indifference? What could shake you out of plodding along through life, going through the motions in your Christianity? There’s no magic answer of course. But let me share a couple of things that I’ve found that have affected my own lethargy and…
10 Family Worship Ideas for Busy Families
“Family worship was nearly non-existent for the first several years of my marriage, but I realized something. My trepidation revealed a misgiving in my own heart. I confessed with my mouth that the gospel had changed my life. I confessed that it had the power to change others’ lives. But in my shepherding responsibilities as a husband and father I acted like it wasn’t enough and that my family needed something more than the ordinary means of grace. Have you…
An Open Letter to those Frustrated by their Progress in Sanctification
“We all love it when life leaps into forward gear and we make all kinds of progress. Problems just seem to fall away. Perhaps in your life you’ve had a season like that, a season when your life seemed to shine and flourish. Maybe it was when you first became a believer or during some period when you were very well nurtured by good community and wise input. Then there are those seasons where things go very slowly. You wonder,…
12 Ways To Preserve Christian Unity
“Satan hates God and therefore he hates God’s people, the church. His great plan for the church is to cause Christians–true believers who ought to be together in the gospel–to find ways of disagreeing among themselves, to divide, to be bitter and jealous, and ultimately to “bite and devour one another” (Gal. 5:15). Here are twelve ways that you can repulse Satan’s attacks.” Read more…
Ten Principles for Personal Productivity
“We recently talked about the book you just wrote Pastor John, back on Thursday of last week. . . . In light of that, Brandon in Charlotte, NC writes in: “Pastor John, thank you for your Christ-centred precision and for the tremendous volume of your ministry output. I’m curious how you produce so much content. What time do you wake up, or find time to read and write, or eat your cereal? You mention your aversion to TV in Don’t…