Sermon Leftovers

Black Lives Matter! NO! All Lives Matter! Blue Lives Matter! You don’t understand! No, You don’t understand! When we fight over which lives matter, aren’t we behaving just like Jesus’ disciples who constantly argued over who was the greatest or who would sit next to Jesus in the kingdom? This doesn’t need to be so complicated. If someone suggests to you that their life matters, regardless of how their sentiment is phrased, why can’t you just agree with them? If, as some say, “all lives matter”; then black lives matter. Why does that need to be a point of contention? ---------------------------------------------------- *I'm choosing not to make all the disclaimers I think I need to make because I'm trusting that we can all be adults and recognize that this is not a comprehensive treatment of the issue and general truths always need to be applied with wisdom and flexibility, right?

“if Christ is in you... your spirit is alive” Cause and Effect Causality is one of the simplest scientific principles to understand. Everyday, all the time we see the idea of “cause and effect” at work. We exercise (cause) to get into better shape (effect). We discipline our children (cause) to help them grow into better adults (effect). We avoid sharp objects (cause) because we know they will cut us (effect). Even our spiritual lives are subject to "cause and effect" The law of cause and effect holds true in our spiritual lives as well. If, through faith in Jesus, you have become a new person (cause); your life will look different (effect). Often people misunderstand this concept and mistakenly believe the effect comes before the cause. They believe if they start living a different life, then they will become a new person. This is no more effective than painting stripes on a horse is effective in changing the horse into a zebra. Only Jesus can make your life

We all need encouragement from time to time, especially when it comes to spiritual growth. What if you partnered with some of your friends to engage in a spiritual quest over the next couple months? We all need a good quest now and then, why not pursue a closer relationship with God? Below is a slide presentation outlining what "Quest Discipleship" might look like (this is an older presentation, so the contact info at the end is no longer valid!) . Quest Book from David Rudd

The three core components of leadership (especially “Christian” leadership) are character, courage and competence. Courage and competence are important, but without character neither matters. In my estimation, we face a presidential election in which neither of the two leading candidates exhibit much more than a shred of character. Perhaps that is overly harsh, which is why I prefaced it with “in my estimation.” This is neither the time nor the place to go into great details as to why I believe this. Should you wish to research it for yourself, simply listen to each candidate speak about their opponent. You’ll learn everything you need to know about either of them. Check Google, Snopes, or the Washington Post Pinocchio report to figure out exactly what is and is not true. YOU NEED TO VOTE I am not writing this to discourage you from voting. In fact, it is the exact opposite. I am writing to encourage you to vote, to advocate, and to get involved in the process. Now

Have you ever been driving down the road enjoying the view when you suddenly realize the car ahead of you is stopped… and you might not have enough time to stop? You probably slammed on your brakes, considered swerving into another lane or the ditch, and breathed a big sigh of relief when you stopped inches short of the other car’s rear bumper. Then you probably swore an oath to not allow yourself to get distracted while driving again. Distractions abound for drivers. Ringing cell phones, changing radio stations, people on the sidewalk acting strangely, animals along the side of the road, and many other things all provide opportunities lose focus on the road. I don’t know how many auto accidents are caused by distracted drivers. I would guess that most of them are. I would also guess that for every accident caused by a distraction, there are many more distracted drivers who narrowly miss accidents. A distraction is something that seems very important right now, but when seen w

My friend Kevin recently shared some of his thoughts on the several tragic deaths we've all witnessed in the past week.  You can read it here. More than anyone else I know, Kevin has  earned the right  to speak into these difficult days. He has poured his life into the ministry of racial reconciliation and he demonstrates Christ's love in difficult situations better than anyone I know. He converses truthfully and graciously even when he disagrees. He is an elder in his church and his organization, Pursue Scholars, is doing amazing things to provide opportunities for young people (I support this organization and highly recommend it.  Click here to learn how you can give ) Kevin is spot on when he writes: Stop believing the narrative that says if you are against one thing that you also can’t be against something else... Stop letting people tell you that you can’t be both. Stop being boxed into what Fox News or MSNBC or Franklin Graham or Jesse Jackson tells you is the