Church Blog
Persevering Through Affliction
It isn’t coincidence that the topic of perseverance in the Christian faith through the many afflictions we face was put last. After all, the title of the book, Bright Hope for Tomorrow, gives the image of a light in a dark place. Usually, these dark places we live in as believers are filled with affliction. And the intent of the enemy through these afflictions is to force you to resign your commitment to Jesus. To make you feel like it isn’t possible to persevere, so you quit. However, God’s intent through these many afflictions brought on by the enemy is to use them to conform you increasingly into the image of Christ...
Doing the Master’s Work
When you serve vocationally in churches you end up being a part of and attending significantly more funerals than the average person would. Although funerals can be painful I’ve always been struck by how impactful it is to listen to people describe the life of another person. Eugene Peterson paraphrases Ecclesiastes 7:2 like this: “You learn more at a funeral than at a feast—after all that’s where we’ll end up. We might discover something from it.” …
Purifying Ourselves
I love reading books and watching movies. In my experience, a good story begins with an introduction of characters, engaging conflict, and building tension. If done well, the climax will hit hard and be satisfying for the reader/watcher. Chris Davis, the author of this book, does something similar as we come to this final section of the book…
Resting in Anticipation
Out of all the chapters in this section, I was most excited for rest. I thought to myself, I’ve got this in the bag! Naps have always been my jam. Rest is one of my strongest skills because I can nap anywhere at anytime…
The Day of The Lord
Imagine for a moment that you are walking down 99E here in Canby–avoiding the many cones and potholes all over the place– and a moment later you arrive at the Canby Area Transit bus stop. As you wait to get picked up, you see the green and white CAT bus coming down the highway at the usual 35-40 miles an hour. You are excited to see the bus because when it gets to the stop that means you can hop on and get that smooth ride over to Eco Park to play some disc golf (or whatever you’re into… I don’t know).
But just then. As the bus approaches, a person who is completely distracted as they stare at their phone, is about to walk out into 99E in front of the oncoming bus.