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I am excited to be attending Men's Encounter again Jan. 31-Feb. 2.  I will be going as a server to other men who are attending.  Please pray with me for all who will be in attendance.  It is looking like about 400 men will be gathering in Salina for this Men's Encounter.  I look forward to what God is going to do through this gathering of men seeking Him.

“ Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! ” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

Last year, I wrote a curriculum for our 2nd-4th grade classes at our mid-week program at church called Hide N Seek.  The curriculum focused on who God is. As part of that curriculum, my friend Brittni Rhodes, made images to convey the truth about who God is.  I would like to start sharing these images weekly as a reminder of the good, great, and awesome God we have.  

This is a regular feature now that replaced "Playing on the Radio." This week, I am sharing hymns that point me to Jesus. The gospel is good news.  It reminds us what Christ has DONE for us.  As I share, I hope it will be an encouragement to you today.  Song today is: And Can It Be That I Should Gain? by Samuel Wilson

Here are some of my favorite tweets from the last few weeks.  This is one of the blessings of social media where we can hear the gospel from people all over the world. If you like the tweet, go and follow the person on Twitter. Unfortunately we as the church have become guardians rather than gardeners...What we love is not the growth but Jesus. We are called to be deep & wide. (1 Corinthians 3:6) @gavalanched Would leadership be a less contentious issue if it was not about power, but about empowerment? @faithandlifeks More Settled Issues between Complentarain (C) and Egalitarian (E): male/female are equal image bearers, posses a sin nature, gifted by the spirit, sin impact gender relationships, Jesus affirmed women in countercoultural manner, both have equal access to salvation. @AaronWiens “We stand in a long line of men and women who throughout the centuries and around the globe have struggled to understand how to respond to God’s call on their lives and ...

We often forget.  We see throughout history the Israelites and the church forgetting. We need to be reminded often of who God is in Scripture, church history and in our lives and churches. The names of God are important because these names are not just what God does, it is who He is.  I hope this will encourage you as you are reminded of how good, great, and awesome our God is. Friend of Sinners Jesus was accused of being a friend of sinners.  It was intended as an insult.  The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ (Luke 7:34) What it reminds me?  Jesus came to seek and save the lost.  This includes you and me.  Jesus being a friend of sinners is not just good news for the unsaved but also for the saved.  I'm thankful Jesus who was fully God and fully man has chosen to be in relationship with us even though we sin.  Our sins have b...

Each year, my Christmas list includes lots of books.  So, at the start of each year, I like to share the new books that I received.  Here is one of my new books for 2019:

For the past several years, I have chosen a word for the year.  Some of those words have been: God's power, gospel, in Christ, and abide.  As I thought about 2019, the word that I am going to focus on will be Holy Spirit.  So, this is more than just a word, it is a person.  I look forward to growing in my understanding of who the Holy Spirit is and what He does from Genesis to Revelation.  Each week I will share a few verses that are connected to the person of the Holy Spirit. 13  When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. 14  He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. 15  All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you. (John 16:13-15)   22  And when he had said this, he breathed on th...

My Aunt Kay Jean suggested I start sharing a verse of the day.  I liked her suggestion but decided instead of a verse of the day, I would share a verse of the week.  Be reminded of who God is from His Word. Now when they drew near to Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples 2  and said to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately as you enter it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it. 3  If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord has need of it and will send it back here immediately.’” 4  And they went away and found a colt tied at a door outside in the street, and they untied it. 5  And some of those standing there said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” 6  And they told them what Jesus had said, and they let them go. 7  And they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it, and he sa...

Today, Scott Sauls' newest book releases called Irresistible Faith . I would definitely recommend the book.  The nine chapters are broken into three parts: Abiding in the Irresistible Christ, Belonging to an Irresistible Community and Becoming an Irresistible Christian. One of my favorite things about the book is the flow from abiding with Christ to community to world. Too often Christian books focus on one of those three and in the process we miss the connection and importance of all three. Also, one of the things that Scott Sauls does so well is show how a “conservative” understanding of Scripture leads to a “liberal” way of loving others. He did this in Jesus Outside the Lines and this book reinforces that again. In this day and age, we need more unity and I believe Scott’s book will help us experience it.  I plan to use this book in an adult class I teach at church.  Go and pick up the book today!

“ For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:10)

Last year, I wrote a curriculum for our 2nd-4th grade classes at our mid-week program at church called Hide N Seek.  The curriculum focused on who God is. As part of that curriculum, my friend Brittni Rhodes, made images to convey the truth about who God is.  I would like to start sharing these images weekly as a reminder of the good, great, and awesome God we have.  

This is a regular feature now that replaced "Playing on the Radio." This week, I am sharing hymns that point me to Jesus. The gospel is good news.  It reminds us what Christ has DONE for us.  As I share, I hope it will be an encouragement to you today.  Song today is: Holy, Holy, Holy by Audrey Assad

Here are some of my favorite tweets from the last few weeks.  This is one of the blessings of social media where we can hear the gospel from people all over the world. If you like the tweet, go and follow the person on Twitter. The Holy Spirit gives us power to do God’s work, and He changes us to be more like Jesus. #thegospelprojectkids The whole idea of atonement is that the righteousness of Christ has covered over, obliterated, our sin. (Jack Miller)   Not every Democrat or Republican, evangelical or non-believer, conservative or liberal, complementarian or egalitarian is as vile as our categorical generalizations imply. Let’s neither demonize nor deify anyone. @ScottyWardSmith When the dominant goal is to defend one’s position, it is extremely difficult to consider the possibility that answers may not lie exclusively on one side, to see the beneficial arguments on the other side, and to explore new areas. (Michelle Lee-Barnewall) #usmbstudyconf     ...

Each year, my Christmas list includes lots of books.  So, at the start of each year, I like to share the new books that I received.  Here is one of my new books for 2019:

We often forget.  We see throughout history the Israelites and the church forgetting. We need to be reminded often of who God is in Scripture, church history and in our lives and churches. The names of God are important because these names are not just what God does, it is who He is.  I hope this will encourage you as you are reminded of how good, great, and awesome our God is. Lord Lord means master or is a title of respect and reverence. 28  Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28)   23  For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23) What it reminds me?  God is God and I am not.  He is my master and He knows best.  Jesus came as one who served others and we have the privilege of being servants for and with Christ.  When we understand Christ as Lord, we realize He is in control even when life is spinning out of control. 

My Aunt Kay Jean suggested I start sharing a verse of the day.  I liked her suggestion but decided instead of a verse of the day, I would share a verse of the week.  Be reminded of who God is from His Word. 46  And they came to Jericho. And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. 47  And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 48  And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 49  And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart. Get up; he is calling you.” 50  And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. 51  And Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” And the blind man said to him, “Rabbi, let me recover my sight.” 52...

Perspectives from the Global Family International Community of Mennonite Brethren-survey Leadership positions in the Church are varied across the world Ordination of Women (Congo, Canada, India, Japan, Angola) National Conference Leadership (Paraguay, India, Thailand, Canada) Theological Education (Uruguay, Canada, Paraguay, India, Japan) Conference Discernment (various positions of restriction (Germany, Ukraine)  to no restriction (Congo, Angola, Thailand) & everything in between) Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches General MB Conference-Resolution (1999)-Current US official position Open Space Event-March 2001-Call and affirm women for leadership Donald Peters Open Letter-April 2001-“put the issue of women in leadership back on the table” Manitoba MB Conference Resolution (2003)-removed restriction of lead pastorate Multiple Provincial Symposiums-5 regional locations-(2004-2005)-Focused on 2 Texts-Galatians 3:28 & 1 Timothy 2 Canadian MB C...