Digging in Deeper: John 21:17

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“He said to him the third time, ‘Simon, son of John, do you love me?’  Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, ‘Do you love me?’ and he said to him, ‘Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.’  Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my sheep.'”  (ESV – Read the chapter)

Have you ever told someone you love them?  I suspect you have.  I suspect you’ve even meant it.  But, how deeply did you mean it?  Were they merely sincere words, or was there more behind them?  Were they primarily emotional words, or was there a conviction that ran deeper?  Saying, “I love you,” is easy.  Loving someone is entirely more difficult. Read the rest…

Morning Musings: Acts 26:19

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“Therefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision.”  (ESV – Read the chapter)

Do you have a vision from God?  Have you received one?  How are you doing with this?  God gives us a vision of the work He has for us to do as we seek Him in the routine, day-to-day of our lives.  This vision will likely be a function of our passions, interests, abilities, and experiences.  It will involve God placing us at the intersection of the world’s need and our passion.  He will call us through this vision to the advancement of His kingdom. Read the rest…

Telling Our Story

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Yesterday was Resurrection Sunday!  We celebrated our risen Lord together by telling the incredible story of which we can be a part if we will receive Him as our Lord.  We celebrated our part in this great story as individuals, but also as a whole community as we finally put together the three key pieces of our identity into one clear and compelling idea: First Baptist is a place where people can connect to grow in Christ and reach out for His kingdom.  Keep reading to see how this all unfolded.

 

Telling Our Story

Three weeks ago, we started a journey together.  It was a journey that came out of a conversation about who we are as a church; what our God-given identity is.  The idea here is that while each individual person has a unique, God-designed identity, so do whole churches.  The church is the body of Christ and we are individually members of it.  That means we each have a specific role to play in the body, but one local church does not by itself comprise the whole body of Christ.  That means that each individual local church is itself part of the larger body of Christ and thus has a specific role to play as a community in that larger body. Read the rest…

Morning Musings: John 6:67

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“So Jesus said to the twelve, ‘Do you want to go away as well?'”  (ESV – Read the chapter)

Jesus had just blown their minds almost beyond the point of recovery.  He had introduced some ideas to them using a metaphor–one that He would later make explicit when He inaugurated the Lord’s Supper–that, frankly, grossed out most of the crowd.  So they left.  And as the crowds were departing, Jesus turned to the twelve and asked if they wanted to leave too. Read the rest…

Digging in Deeper: Matthew 6:25

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“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on.  Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?”  (ESV – Read the chapter)

Jesus tells us not to worry and instead to trust in Him.  He presents worrying about even basic life necessities such as food, shelter, and clothing as a sinful mistrust in the Lord.  I remember still the first time I read these words and truly understood them.  They had a profound impact on me.  With only a few exceptions, I have largely purged worry from my own life because of them.  Sometimes, though, I have let this intention to not worry drift too far in the other direction which is laziness.  This prompts and interesting (at least to me!) question in my mind: What does it look like to live free from worry in such a way that honors Christ? Read the rest…