Discipleship is Easy Even When It’s Hard “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” (1 John 1:8) “The heart,” said the prophet Jeremiah “is desperately sick no one can comprehend it.” (Jer. 17:9) Which is why when a brother or sister confronts us with what … More Humans with the Heart of a Cockroach
Monday is for Discipleship Here’s my take on why the substitution of the term “spiritual formation” for “discipleship” is not an improvement and actually exacerbates a problem the Church in America already had with the term discipleship. If we were to survey most American Churches and ask what we mean by discipleship or spiritual formation, … More Why Spiritual Formation is a Bad Substitute for Discipleship
Thursday is for Discipleship “Discipleship is evangelistic before it is formative.” I’ve written about this before (see here). When we fail to understand this we truncate the process of real spiritual formation that is truly biblical and Christ-like. Even as I write that sentence I become aware of another aspect of the problem. Words have changed … More If We Aren’t Fishing for Men, We Aren’t Following Jesus
I’ve been away participating in a retreat up in Wisconsin for the weekend. It was a great time to get away and devote the moments to seeking intimacy with God. Made some new friends, but now I’m exhausted from having not slept very well for three days. Maybe I’ll post some weekend readings later. My … More Live a Christ Focused Life
Thursday is for Discipleship Back in March I wrote about Jesus’ method of discipleship and how different it was from ours (see: Discipleship: How Did Jesus Do It? ). I mentioned five principles. He lived with them. He conversed with them. He modeled for them. He gave them responsibility He left them. That fifth principle is a … More How Do We Give More than Slogan Status to “More and Better Disciples”
Thursday is for Discipleship Nothing feeds the soul like a sound meditation on the person and work of Christ. Towards that end, I am offering a free copy of my short devotional, Experience the Passion of Christ, to the first twenty-five people to sign up for a free subscription to Chosenrebel’s Blog. Just register for … More Free Book with a Free Subscription to the Blog
Friday is for Heart Songs The Joy of Slavery to God comes from knowing Jesus as the Messiah. (Cf. Phil. 1:1) “Paul and Timothy, bondservants of Christ Jesus, …” Paul and Timothy describe themselves as Slaves of Christ Jesus. The name “Christ Jesus” inverts the typical way of talking about Jesus. Instead of Jesus Christ, … More Most Christians Have a Warped and Unfulfilling View of God
Steph and I made a visit the Morton Arboretum in late April. Usually it is great exercise with great company, but this time we decided to make it a slow drive through both sides of the park to see all the flowering trees. This tree was past its prime obviously. But it had its own … More Putting Our Hope in an Unchanging Christ
Yesterday’s Summary: Thanks for your prayers. Yesterday was a very productive day. I overestimated the miles I would drive, 265 not 300, and underestimated the number of meetings I would have, 5 not 4, plus a couple of impromptu brief encounters with other leaders I was able to encourage. Finally, the class in Vernon Hills … More Conserving a Day’s Work
Here’s an excerpt from the revision of my 1994 book published by Broadman/Holman Publishers. The book is a devotional guide for those seeking work. The idea is to provide some real help for unemployed men and women while at the same time directing their hearts to where real hope is found. The new book has … More An Excerpt from My New Book
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