All it takes is one pass through airport security to know that flying is for the birds. I left Friday evening after work on an undesired, impromptu trip to MS and the last thing I wanted to endure was airport security. Mazes ensured that everybody entered the security sinkhole in single-file. Security lady #1 barked "ID and boarding pass!" and thus it began. I had no idea airport security was so self-service oriented. There are three people behind this big machine, one sitting, two standing. The… Continue

I'm in the New Orleans airport waiting for my flight and I just heard a baby cut loose with cry/scream combo - Wow! Everyone in the room immediately swiveled their heads to see what was the matter. As I thought about that I can hardly keep from openly crying to think how much more our cries grab the attention of our Father in Heaven. We have His heart - of course we have his ear! "Ask and it shall be given unto you". Matt 7:7

Please watch the video of Matt Chandler before his surgery if you haven't! It is inspiring and exciting to see someone who is living out God being everything to him.

1 John 3:1
See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are.

In this passage, John tells us to look at "how great" a love the Father has given us. We are commanded to think about His love, especially on the type of love. We must consider how great the love of God for His children really is. When the Spirit of God opens the eyes of the sinner's heart to see this love, pure and unadulterated, then the sinner's heart is captured by… Continue

John Piper has a wonderful sermon on this topic and he does a good job of answering this question. Should the church today seek signs and wonders? The Apostles did and we, if anything, have more of a need of the Holy Spirit's presence and gifts than they did. So, the short answer is, "yes" we should seek signs and wonders for the proper reasons and in the right manner.

I hope that you are blessed by Piper's sermon:… Continue

Should Christians participate in Halloween? This is a good question. We have a sermon on this very topic. You can get to it by going to the info tab above, clicking on the older sermons link. Then, the title of the sermon to search for is "Exposing the Deeds of Darkness" from Ephesians 5:6-14. The passage from Ephesians tells us not to participate in the deeds of darkness, but rather to expose them.

Here is a link to the full sermon in audio and pdf formats. [… Continue

I think there is a great deal of confusion regarding these terms being used together. Also, both terms carry some baggage that we do not like, but the terms apply to us, nevertheless. I will try to explain the basic tenets of Sovereign Grace Church.

Reformed
By reformed, we mean that we hold to the basic doctrine that God is sovereign over all things, including those who will come to Jesus and be saved. This is commonly called Calvinism (although we do not hold to everything that John Ca… Continue

Matt Chandler, pastor of The Village church in Highland Park, TX gave an answer that I can say AMEN to when he gave an interview. He was saying that when people come to him and say that The Village church could do this or that, here is how he responds:

"Some people think it would be cool if we had a coffee shop. But I don't want people getting their lattes here. I want them getting their lattes at the four Starbucks in our area so they can get to know the baristas and invite them into our body.… Continue

It is wonderful how God grips people at times and says "You will be different. Your soul will cling to Me and you will serve me well."

John Piper had a wonderful blurb about when God called Him to pastor. He describes God speaking to him and saying,

I will not simply be analyzed; I will be adored.
I will not simply be pondered; I will be proclaimed.
My sovereignty is not simply to be scrutinized; it is to be heralded.
It is not grist for the mill of controversy; it is gospel for sinners who know that their only hope is the
sovereign triumph of God’s grace over their rebellious will.

This is wonderful! Thank God for John Piper… Continue