January 31, 2012
"The gospel, applied to our hearts every day, frees us to be brutally honest with ourselves and with God. The assurance of His total forgiveness of our sins through the blood of Christ means we don't have to play defensive games anymore. We don't have to rationalize and excuse our sins. We can say we told a lie instead of saying we exaggerated a bit. We can admit an unforgiving spirit instead of continuing to blame our parents for our emotional distress. We can call sin exactly what it is, regardless of how ugly and shameful it may be, because we know that Jesus bore that sin in His body on the cross. With the assurance of total forgiveness through Christ, we have no reason to hide from our sins anymore."...
January 6, 2012
I'm at a season of life where it seems like it's time to slow down. Nothing is working quite right anymore. I need glasses for aging eyes and anti-inflammtories for aging joints. I forget names and what commonly used household gadgets are called. Solitude invites me to steal away (which I enjoy doing at times!) while a growing family and new church lovingly require me to get even busier than ever. The commercials say Benny and I should be anticipating retirement after all the years of being in the throes of parenting and pastoring. Sometimes I envy those who can....
August 19, 2014 | Category: Church Values | Tags: Redeemer Church, Lake Nona Church, blog, lake Nona, ministry, bible, Lake Nona Churches, lee vista, lee vista church, redeemerchurch, redeemer, lakenonachurch, redeemer blog, Gospel-centeredness, church ministry, church identity, counseling, gospel-centered counseling
So far this series, we’ve discussed how the gospel is more than a reference point for ministry, and we have seen how that shapes our approach to preaching. This week, we discuss how that affects our approach to counseling....
Keep ReadingAugust 5, 2014 | Category: Church Values | Tags: Gospel-centeredness, Redeemer Church, Lake Nona Church, lake Nona, ministry, bible, gospel, church life, Lake Nona Churches, Identity, lee vista, lee vista church, redeemerchurch, redeemer, lakenonachurch, redeemer blog, The church, church ministry, church identity
If you've been around the church world long enough, you've probably heard someone somewhere talk about being "gospel-centered" - gospel-centered preaching, gospel-centered worship, gospel-centered counseling, gospel-centered everything. And you've probably had one of a number of reactions to these pretentious-sounding assertions of unique commitment to the gospel reactions...
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