Tim Keller

This is a video I ran across today by Tim Keller on the Missional Church. I thought it was really good, so have a lo...

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Day of Silence

Today is what is being dubbed as the "Day of Silence". It's a nationwide (maybe worldwide?) push to bring awareness to the harassment, violence, and name calling that homosexual students face. It's of course sponsored and promoted by many groups. It's also of course opposed by many groups. Students in school are going to be silent for the day as a way to bring awareness to the issue and show support for those who are gay. As a youth pastor, I get lots of email and things in the mail from Christian organizations all the time. Many have focused on this day and warned of the slippery slope that a day like this can be. They have talked about the "homosexual agenda" and the "indoctrination" of our students. Many of these organizations have encouraged active opposition to our schools, including...

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Durham

We've spent the last week in North Carolina doing several different things. We flew out last week and stayed a day or so with Kimi's family in Raleigh. Then we borrowed a car and headed to Charlotte for the First Steps conference with the Baptist General Conference (now Converge USA). The conference was really helpful. It took us through all of the first things we need to be doing and thinking about as we begin to plant a church and all the way up through launch. I guess there's another seminar series called "Next Steps" that will take us through the first few years of the church. Kimi and I learned a lot, and got a lot of great ideas. It was also a bit overwhelming as I begin to realize how much work I need to be doing.After the conference we headed back to Raleigh to spend a few days in...

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For Sale

Today we signed the paperwork to put our house up for sale. It's been an insane couple of days of cleaning, fixing, and grooming. We leave tomorrow for a conference in North Carolina, so the goal was to get it on the market before we left. There are still a few things to do, but I think we're going to make it. I just don't know whether or not it's going to sell for what we would like to get out of it. It's already listing for way less than I had hoped, and the realtors seem to be preparing us for the worst. But, God is good - and He has called us to move and I know that He will provide for us and take care of all the details. The house is actually in the best shape it's ever been in. It looks really good right now - so I hope that someone jumps at it. It would be weird if it sold immediately...

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Following Jesus

I recently finished this book by N.T. Wright. In case you don't know, N.T. Wright is a theologian and an expert in New Testament theology. This particular book is amazing. In it, he paints a picture of authentic discipleship as it is shown to us in the New Testament. The first half of the book there are chapters detailing specific books of the NT and their particular take on who Jesus is. The second half of the book seems to deal more specifically with what it looks like to follow this Jesus in true discipleship.I don't know that I have the time or space here to talk about the book fully, but I will highlight a few things that really stood out to me. At one point Wright points out that the most common command in Scripture is 'Don't be afraid, Fear not.' He says that until we learn to live...

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