How to Listen to Sermons

"So what is the right way to listen to a sermon? With a soul that is prepared, a mind that is alert, a Bible that is open, a heart that is receptive, and a life that is ready to spring into action." (Phillip Ryken, President of Wheaton College)

You can read the full explanation here. Enjoy.

The Mandate for Mission

The Concise Oxford Dictionary defines "mandate" as "an official order or commission to do something." What we now call "The Great Commission" at the end of Matthew's Gospel is a mandate, not merely a friendly suggestion. While it is true that worship is our central duty, it is impossible to worship God as He deserves without a wholehearted commitment to outreach ministry. Here are a few quotes to help you understand the necessity of including evangelism in the Church's mission to glorify God in everything:

“Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn't.”  (John Piper)

"Before he left them, he gave them that great commission which is still binding upon all his followers, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.”  (Charles Spurgeon)

"The Great Commission is not an option to be considered; it is a command to be obeyed" (Hudson Taylor)

"Any church that is not seriously involved in helping fulfill the Great Commission has forfeited its biblical right to exist." (Oswald J. Smith)

How to Pray in the Trinity

Here is a four minute sermon clip with some very helpful reminders of how it is we are to approach and commune with God in prayer. To the Father, through the Son, by the Holy Spirit. Enjoy.

Self Protecting Redefinitions

As Jeremiah noted and then queried, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?" One of the very subtle ways that the prophet is proved true is the way that we redefine words like "hate" in order to feel a little less guilty and a whole lot better about ourselves. Here is a link to a brief post by Kevin DeYoung that exposes our silly attempts to deform God's Word.


So very glad for God's delight to forgive sins for Jesus' sake. That, and only that, is this hater's only hope. Can I get a witness?

How to Speak Truth to Power

In his address at the 2012 National Prayer Breakfast, Eric Metaxas has given us a near-perfect example of how to speak truth to power. To take full advantage of his winsome example I would highly recommend the following: 1) Listen to Metaxas' address here (fast-forward to 34:00 minutes). 2) Listen to President Obama's comments following Metaxas' talk (starting at about 1:05:00). 3) Then read The National Review's commentary on both speeches here. Enjoy.

P.S. Here is an edifying epilogue from the man God used to lead Metaxas to Christ.

Desiring God 2012 Messages Link

I encourage you to check out this webpage and to listen to the addresses given at Desiring God 2012 conference. I have my favorites, but they were all very good. A few suggestions: Audio is fine for all the addresses except for Ramez Attalah's. You'll miss some very important elements unless you watch the video of this talk. Audio will work okay for the panel discussions, but would be better if viewed in order to catch facial expressions as the panelists banter back and forth.

Making the Most With the "Least of These"

I was privileged to attend the 2012 Desiring God conference last week with my good friend and fellow minister David Hatcher. The plenary speakers were John Piper, Douglas Wilson, Darrin Patrick, Crawford Loritts and Ramez Atallah. I knew and was therefore very excited to hear from all of the speakers except for Ramez Attalah (of whom I knew nothing.) Mr. Atallah was slotted as the very last plenary speaker, and I have to admit when this smallish man with big glasses, a neatly trimmed mustache and wearing a black suit took the podium I was less than hopeful regarding how riveting/useful his presentation would be. And boy-oh-boy was I wrong. The Desiring God folk had indeed "saved the best for last." His assigned topic was "courage and creativity in ministry" but the power of his message really has more to do with God's ability to accomplish amazing things with extremely humble means. You can watch the video here, but you might have to download it in order to view it. I'd love to hear your comments. Enjoy.