Pastors Conference 2022 Messages
I’m still recounting all of the ways God was good to us last week in Orlando. As I reflect on His goodness, my list of the ways He blessed us only continues to grow! May God receive all the glory for how He worked among us during our Council of Elders meeting, and during the […]
3rd Quarter Sovereign Grace Prayer Requests
In his book, “Brothers, We are Not Professionals” John Piper writes this compelling sentence: “Prayer is the splicing of our limp wire to the lightning bolt of heaven.” Our efforts to pastor our churches, and to advance the gospel together as a family of churches, can feel like that “limp wire” at times. We need God’s power […]
The Theology and Joy of Giving
Recently on the weekly podcast, Ben and I talked about the theology and joy of giving because Sovereign Grace is in the process of writing a biblical, theological approach to giving paper, meant to equip, inspire and stir giving for mission and ministry with the emphasis on experiencing joy. And it’s a joy to serve […]
State of the Union Address: Final Point & Recap
Each year, at SGC’s annual Pastors Conference, I meet with our Council of Elders and present what we call a “State of the Union” address. This is just a name for an overview of the last year and a vision of what I hope to help lead us through in the coming year. Below in […]
Sovereign Grace Journal: Our Shared Values
I am excited to let you know that the fourth edition of the Sovereign Grace Journal is here, devoted to our Seven Shared Values. These seven values shape who we are, helping to define how we do do life together in our local churches regardless of what nation our church is in. I am excited for you to read Jeff Purswell’s article about the importance of our […]
State of the Union Address: Point 5
After the Acts 15 Council meeting, we find Paul in Thessalonica in Acts 17 where he shares the gospel. “Explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead, and saying ‘This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you is the Christ.’” – Acts 17:3 Sharing the gospel […]
State of the Union Address: Point 4
With the number of opportunities that God is giving us outside of the U.S., we can be vulnerable to think that God is not at work here in the States. Given the trials we have faced in SG, that have uniquely impacted our churches in the States, we can be prone to think that our […]
State of the Union Address: Point 3
Building biblically faithful churches has inherit risks. First, building biblically faithful churches means we take the right risk of continuing preach and counsel our people with biblical truth. Given the rapid movement of the culture away from biblical truth, the faithful preaching of God’s Word will have more inherent risk of us being criticized. We […]
Second Quarter Prayer Requests
In his book, “A Call to Spiritual Reformation: Priorities from Paul and His Prayers,” D.A. Carson makes this observation about Paul’s prayers: “Paul’s prayer is the product of his passion for people. His unaffected fervency in prayer is not whipped-up emotionalism but the overflow of his love for brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus.” As […]
State of the Union Address: Point 2
The debate at the Jerusalem Council in Acts 15 was theological in nature. Good theology defined and shaped their unanimous decision as a Council. Last year, this Council unanimously approved our new Statement of Faith that contains the orthodox theology that defines and shapes our family of churches. This Statement of Faith clearly addresses many […]