Fire Burning
Janelle writes a poem about the hidden hatred in all of us, and what the solution is. ...
Keep ReadingJanuary 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....
December 9, 2014 by | Category: Poetry | Tags: poetry, Redeemer Church, Lake Nona Church, lake Nona, Orlando Church, Lake Nona Churches, Sin, Racism, lee vista, lee vista church, redeemerchurch, redeemer, lakenonachurch, redeemer blog, social issues, cultural issues, Redeemer Church of Lake Nona, cultural engagement, race, racial reconciliation, Ferguson, Redeemer Lake Nona, prejudice, equality, Redeemer Church at Lake Nona, hate
Janelle writes a poem about the hidden hatred in all of us, and what the solution is. ...
Keep ReadingNovember 21, 2014 by | Category: Cultural Values | Tags: Redeemer Church, Lake Nona Church, blog, lake Nona, bible, Orlando Church, Lake Nona Churches, lee vista, lee vista church, abortion, cultural values, redeemerchurch, redeemer, lakenonachurch, redeemer blog, social issues, cultural issues, church blog, Redeemer Church of Lake Nona, cultural engagement, Redeemer Lake Nona, culture, social justice, Redeemer Church at Lake Nona
I watched a man die once. It was not an experience I’ve ever wanted to repeat again. He was a quiet, pleasant patient whom I had taken care of a few times since he had been placed within our unit. That day, my friend was his nurse. She called me in to come help her, stating he was having difficulty breathing. Sure enough, he was in his recliner gasping for breath. As she...
Keep ReadingNovember 3, 2014 | 1 Comments by | Category: Christian Living | Tags: modesty, self-control, Redeemer Church, Lake Nona Church, blog, lake Nona, humility, Lake Nona Churches, lee vista, The pursuit of holiness, lee vista church, cultural values, redeemerchurch, redeemer, lakenonachurch, redeemer blog, social issues, cultural issues, holiness, church blog, rape culture, Redeemer Church of Lake Nona, cultural engagement, heart issues, Redeemer Lake Nona, culture, Redeemer Church at Lake Nona
Modest dress is a worthy discussion (after all, the Bible does talk about it!) but modesty includes far more than what can be seen on the outside. In fact, the definition of modest is not “Women who dress culturally appropriate.” Rather, the definition is “the quality of being modest; freedom from vanity, boastfulness, etc.” I didn’t see “Modest is hottest” a...
Keep ReadingSeptember 12, 2014 | Category: Cultural Values | Tags: Redeemer Church, Lake Nona Church, lake Nona, bible, Orlando Church, Lake Nona Churches, Sin, lee vista, Fighting the battle of temptation, lee vista church, cultural values, redeemerchurch, redeemer, lakenonachurch, redeemer blog, social issues, cultural issues, church blog, sex, sexual ethics
“Oh, great,” said everyone. “Another church railing against promiscuity, homosexuality, and how society is going to hell in a handbasket. Just what I want to read today (this is not what I want to read today).” I know there is something archaic and cliché to read a blog post about sexual ethics from an evangelical church. Having admitted that, I hope you’ll bear...
Keep ReadingSeptember 9, 2014 | Category: Evangelism | Tags: Redeemer Church, Lake Nona Church, lake Nona, evangelism, gospel, Lake Nona Churches, Racism, cultural values, redeemerchurch, redeemer, lakenonachurch, the gospel, Muslim, redeemer blog, social issues, cultural issues, preaching the gospel, evangelize, church blog, duck dynasty, Islam, ISIS
There are reasons to respect Phil Robertson, the patriarch of the family at the center of AMC’s blockbuster hit Duck Dynasty. He was a good enough athlete to start over 4-time Super Bowl champion Terry Bradshaw while in college even though he didn’t think much about practice. He was, by his own admission, a borderline alcoholic and druggie until he was miraculously sav...
Keep ReadingSeptember 4, 2014 | Category: Friends of Redeemer | Tags: criminal law, extrospective understanding, introspective understanding, Redeemer Church, Lake Nona Church, lake Nona, bible, Lake Nona Churches, Sin, Christian Character, lee vista, lee vista church, cultural values, redeemerchurch, redeemer, lakenonachurch, the gospel, redeemer blog, social issues, Gospel-centeredness, cultural issues, church blog
When I decided to go to law school, I received many comments like “Are you going to be one of the ones who keeps the criminals off the street?” and “Nice. So you’re going to get the bad guys and make sure they pay.” At the time, I had no difficulty with these statements. Though I had no intention of pursuing a career in criminal law, I figured that if I did, it w...
Keep ReadingAugust 21, 2014 | 1 Comments by Ginny Jacobson | Category: Women's Issues | Tags: women's leadership, leadership, ladies, Redeemer Church, Lake Nona Church, blog, lake Nona, ministry, bible, Lake Nona Churches, lee vista, lee vista church, redeemerchurch, redeemer, lakenonachurch, the gospel, redeemer blog, social issues, church ministry
An automated spiritual gifts test once assumed I was a man. It was a generic test, so at the end, the tally of my results indicated (to the formula of the test results) that I should serve as a teaching pastor or lead men’s ministry. I cried, and the elder leading our class had no idea how to console me. In his mumbling, he said this, “God didn’t mess up and you aren...
Keep ReadingAugust 15, 2014 | 4 Comments by Joey and Jake Phillips | Category: Cultural Values | Tags: blog, cultural values, cultural issues, dating, courtship, straw men, Redeemer Church, Lake Nona Church, lake Nona, Orlando Church, Lake Nona Churches, middle school, lee vista, lee vista church, redeemerchurch, redeemer, lakenonachurch, redeemer blog, social issues
My cousin Doug Hodges (pretty much a big brother to the Phillips kids), pointed me to an article he had come across recently by a gentleman named Thomas Umstattd Jr. regarding why he felt like courtship, as opposed to traditional dating, was fundamentally flawed. Since the article was very thorough, if haphazard, and encapsulated a lot of the criticism I have heard of cour...
Keep ReadingAugust 7, 2014 | 2 Comments by | Category: Women's Issues | Tags: ladies, Redeemer Church, Lake Nona Church, blog, lake Nona, bible, gospel, Orlando Church, Lake Nona Churches, Hope, parenting, Idolatry, trayvon martin, Identity, lee vista, lee vista church, redeemerchurch, redeemer, lakenonachurch, redeemer blog, social issues, motherhood, women, kingdom of God, The church, image of God, cultural issues
Our culture gets it wrong when it comes to women and image. That is no surprise, and much has been said on the topic. Recently the Huffington Post did a piece on what tabloids would look like if they treated men the way they treated women. Westminster College has a well-researched article about beauty standards, women in the media, and how women internalize the “thin-bea...
Keep ReadingJuly 26, 2014 | Category: Cultural Values | Tags: Redeemer Church, Lake Nona Church, lake Nona, Lake Nona Churches, lee vista, lee vista church, cultural values, joey phillips, theology, redeemerchurch, redeemer, lakenonachurch, redeemer blog, immigration, social issues, racial raparations, the gospel coalition
In Part 1 of the #CulturalValues post about Immigration, Joey pointed out that fundamentally, Christians should think about this issue through the lens of Jesus’ teaching about the “least of these.” Our primary concern about this issue should be for people, not fences. It’s important to remember that neither of us are advocating for a specific policy position. Our ...
Keep Reading