How Deep the Father's Love For Us

According to the people who made this short video, the message is "Family is Forever." But I would encourage you to watch it under the heading of "How Deep the Father's Love for Us." Enjoy.

The Reality of the Resurrection

I came down the birth-canal and landed in church. In my entire 54 years on the planet I cannot remember a time when I was not being taught the Bible, enjoying the friendship of other believers, encouraged to "walk my talk", being prayed for and being prayed with. Although I have heard the message given in the poem (below) too many times to reckon, I am still not anywhere near tired of hearing the "I owed a debt I could not pay. Jesus paid a debt he did not owe" message of the Gospel. Can I get a witness? Enjoy.

Click here for full screen version.

Sanctification: Slow, Not Seismic

As we considered a few weeks ago in our study of Nehemiah 8 (Authority of the Bible, part 2), a much neglected aspect of getting the Word of God "into our bones" is the ritual reenactment of the core tenets of our faith. Here is a helpful post on the importance of "becoming the liturgy." Be sure and watch the video which is linked near the end of the post. I agree with Ian Morgan Cron's observation that despite our craving for what some have described as the "quiver in the liver", sanctification is most often "slow" rather than "seismic." Enjoy.

HT: Angela Marton

Worship in Spirit and in Truth

Pastor John Piper on true worship:

The fuel of worship is a true vision of the greatness of God;

  the fire that makes the fuel burn white hot is the quickening of the Holy Spirit;

    the furnace made alive and warm by the flame of truth is our renewed spirit;

     and the resulting heat of our affections is powerful worship, pushing its way out in confessions, longings, acclamations, tears, songs, shouts, bowed heads, lifted hands, and obedient lives.

Embrace the Chaos

Last Sunday, Trinity Church (Wenatchee) formally commissioned me (pastor Gene Helsel), three deacons and a handful of households from Trinity Church to plant a new CREC church here in Wenatchee. David Hatcher and Brett Baker are serving King's Cross Church as elders pro-tem and were present at the service. Pastor David Hatcher presented a powerful homily/charge to the saints of both congregations entitled, "The Hand of the Lord in Church Planting" which you can read here (and I strongly recommend that you do.) Straight talk, straight from the Lord, for any sending or being-sent church. Enjoy.

The Three Deadliest Words on the Planet: It's a Girl!

God loves women. Women share equally with men the privilege of bearing God's image to the rest of creation (Gen. 1:26) and share equally in redemptive glory (Gal. 3:28.) Given the social norms of first century Palestine, Jesus' associations with women were near scandalous. Christ's conversation with the Samaritan woman, his friendship with Mary and Martha, and the gender that he chose to bear the first witness to his resurrection all testify to God's intense devotion to the fairer sex. And Paul's Spirit-led, frequent acknowledgments and affirmations of the women he considered his partners in ministry were no less astounding, and likewise reveal God's love for his feminine creations.

In our day, "It's a girl" is the deadliest phrase on the planet. In the past year, in China and India alone more girls were eliminated than were born in the United States. And they were all murdered or abandoned simply for the "crime" of being girls. Lord have mercy on us...

For a larger screen viewing, you can watch the video here.

Practicing Affirmation

In Paul's second letter to the first century church in Corinth he reminds us that we are to wage war against every system of thought that disparages true knowledge of God. But the apostle quickly adds that we are not to do battle using the weapons that the world employs. But rather to wield weapons with divine power. Few would consider affirmation a suitable weapon in the warfare that God calls us to. But given that accusation is a favorite weapon of our Adversary, and that affirmation is a near opposite of accusation, it sort of makes sanctified sense to regard affirmation as a weapon of spiritual warfare.

If you doubt this, then read this wonderful excerpt from the book, Practicing Affirmation, by Sam Crabtree. And if you're convinced, then get out there and start "thrusting and parrying" with the sword of affirmation until every thought is taken captive and made obedient to the Lord Jesus Christ.