#RuralMinistry and More.
So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth. Now he who plants and he who waters are one; but each will receive his own reward according to his own labor. – 1 Corinthians 3:7-8 ESV I was part […]
Matthew 7:15-20 15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. 16 You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. 18 A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor […]
In 2 Corinthians 4:16 Paul encourages the Corinthian believers to hold fast to sharing their faith with others and growing in their relationship with Christ. He points out that what we do here on earth as believers is preparing us for an eternity with God. One worshiping Him forever. So […]
In response to request from some ministry friends, I am going back and publishing audio and PDF notes from messages I’ve given at rural churches in Illinois and Indiana. Pulpit supply has been a sizable part of my ministry lately. I have been able to serve Pastors and churches in […]
Apparently, Rob Bell is back to some old tricks. Bell, the former pastor of Mars Hill Bible Church and now a host of a show on Oprah’s television network, recently appeared on a show hosted by Oprah Winfrey herself. In his appearance to promote his new book on love, Bell, […]
In the last post in this series, we looked at what it means to be a healthy youth leader. The first element of youth leader health is a willingness to learn. I am not necessarily talking about college or seminary. There are some great programs and resources out there that […]
“Be still and know that I am God – Psalm 46:10” In our society we have a hard time slowing down, to relax , to wait. We want it our way and right now. STOP IT. Just sit here and rest in the next sentence. God is. That’s it. Not […]
For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake, engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have. Philipians 1:29-30 One of the biggest questions […]
One of the largest challenges in youth ministry is keeping students growing in their faith. One of the tools we have available to help in this area are daily devotions to help students think through having a daily time focused on prayer and God’s word. Here are some great resources […]
If you are just starting out in ministry, you have a few great advantages that those before you have not enjoyed. One of those advantages is the Bible study tools available to you. When I started in Youth Ministry 14 years ago, we were just starting to drift out of […]
We live in a world where context is vital to our understanding. One of the reasons our society struggles with parts of the Bible is that it is set in an agrarian context. Jesus and Paul used that backdrop and crafted wonderful illustrations. Let’s look at a few and “recast […]
In a Rural Ministry, budgets can be tight. You may think you do not have the resources to use small group curriculum in your ministry. Here is a resource that is available for free to your church or ministry from David Platt and Francis Chan called Multiply. Multiply is a […]
