July 10, 2014

Put Your Feet Up: The Importance of Physical Rest In Our Sabbath

July 10, 2014/ Marshall Henderson

Recently my wife and I celebrated “Staycation 2014.” We shipped our two young boys off to their grandparents’ house. We celebrated an anniversary, enjoyed each other’s friendship, and explored our city like tourists. But the linchpin of the weekend was rest. Our sons have been notorious for how they have pushed the limits of our depravity through sleep depravity. Beyond that, we have been in a season of life that hasn’t lent itself well to good rest between work, family, and social responsibilities. We knew for our personal and family health, we needed a time in which rest had to be a top priority. For our sanity, we needed some sleep! Therefore we made a decision. We didn’t set an alarm. Even though we had many things we wanted to do, we chose physical rest first.

July 09, 2014

We Are Family

July 09, 2014/ Grace Hargrove

I’ve recently been reflecting on how thankful I am for the community surrounding our family. Robert and I have been so blessed to be able to sing and lead together for fifteen years now. I believe the Lord has given us this calling and gift together and I am so thankful. Even after having five kids, the Lord has continued to allow and make it possible for us to lead and serve together. Sometimes I think it would be easier to take some time, while our kids are young, and not serve in this way for a season. I have taken breaks here and there, especially right after having babies, but for the most part, we have continued steadily in this calling. Even in the breaks I knew that I would be back leading with him. It was never an option to me. I am in ministry with my husband and there is no doubt in my mind that i am doing what the Lord has called me to do.

July 08, 2014

TRAIN: An Introduction

July 08, 2014/ Dustin Turner

Discipline. For most of us that is the one word we don’t like. Discipline often implies one of two things. Either it refers to being corrected for something we’ve done wrong or it refers to training or improving ourselves in some way. Both of these experiences are often painful and not fun. Most of us are adults and therefore are not being corrected for our actions on a regular basis. But the other type of discipline still is very much a part of our lives. Each of us have daily routines. We need to be disciplined to get up on time, arrive at work on time, take care of our children, pay our bills on time. The list could go on and on. These are all things that we know we have to do.

July 04, 2014

Don’t Waste Your Fourth: An Introduction to Sabbath

July 04, 2014/ Vintage Church

"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.” Many of us are familiar with these words. They’re actually a part of the Ten Commandments and can be found both in Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5. But what do they mean? Is God simply telling his people to relax every once in a while and not do anything? On holidays like the Fourth of July that we’re celebrating today, does grilling out and getting a tan count as biblically practicing the discipline of Sabbath rest? Over the next few weeks, we will examine these questions and more as we discuss the importance and holistic necessity of rest in our otherwise extremely busy lives.

June 18, 2014

What is Contextualization?

June 18, 2014/ Vintage Church

From studying the Bible to thinking through what it looks like to be a Christian in your workplace, contextualization has become a central task in faithfully operating under a biblically holistic worldview. Yet, many in the Church today struggle with exactly what contextualization is and how they are to go about practicing it. Is there more to living contextually than just dressing like those who live in your neighborhood? Does living in light of your particular context mean that unbelievers will admire or even respect you?

March 05, 2014

How To Prepare for Easter?

March 05, 2014/ Dustin Turner

Each and every year Easter rolls around. Many of us know and anticipate this Sunday. This is the Sunday that Jesus Christ arose from the grave after being dead for three days. It is an incredible day, celebrating the resurrection of Jesus and the future resurrection that we who hope in Christ will one day experience. Many of us, however, never take advantage of the Lent season.

February 13, 2014

Fish II: What and When

February 13, 2014/ Rob Wilton

In my first blog, I shared about how Jesus has been challenging me to go fishing. Simply put, fishing is all about sharing Jesus. I wanted to write a follow up blog sharing some more details of what we have been called to share and when we should share the Gospel.

February 05, 2014

Not Another One: Why Parents Have to Trust Jesus

February 05, 2014/ Josh Cook

It has become something of a stereotype in our modern day: young Millennials across America, when asked about their faith, confess simply and unapologetically, “My parents were Christian, but…” The reason varies from person to person, from “I don’t really identify myself with a religious system” to “And then I went to college.” The cause of this epidemic is complex and varying, but it ultimately leads Christian parents to wonder how they can do better and how they can give their kids the greatest gift: a relationship with Jesus Christ. For the Christian, this is a burden much greater than setting up healthy eating habits or paying for college. This is contentment and purpose on earth and community with God in heaven. What greater things could a parent ask for?

November 26, 2013

Organizing Chaos: Do I Have Time to Rest?

November 26, 2013/ Dustin Turner

A few weeks ago many of you had the opportunity to be a part of our latest Equip training on “Organizing Chaos.” You can find the podcast, notes, and handouts from this event HERE. At this equip training we discussed how life is ridiculously busy and how we are all searching for some sort of semblance of “balance.” However, I shared that achieving balance in life is impossible. We then spent the rest of the evening discussing how to develop a “Rule of Life” to live by (For a great resource on developing your own rule of life check out Steve Macchia’s Crafting a Rule of Life). I shared Peter Scazzero’s definition of a rule of life from his book Emotionally Healthy Spirituality. He defines a rule of life as “an intentional, conscious plan to keep God at the center of everything we do.” We then discussed why a rule of life has everything to do with organizing the chaos in our life. As we closed out the evening we discussed how, when we can keep God at the center of everything we do, interestingly enough, life becomes a lot more organized.

November 19, 2013

Organizing Chaos: How Are You Doing?

November 19, 2013/ Dustin Turner

A couple weeks ago many of you had the opportunity to be a part of our latest Equip training on “Organizing Chaos.” You can find the podcast, notes, and handouts from this event HERE. At this equip training we discussed how life is ridiculously busy and how we are all searching for some sort of semblance of “balance.” However, I shared that achieving balance in life is impossible. We then spent the rest of the evening discussing how to develop a “Rule of Life” to live by (For a great resource on developing your own rule of life check out Steve Macchia’s Crafting a Rule of Life). I shared Peter Scazzero’s definition of a rule of life from his book Emotionally Healthy Spirituality. He defines a rule of life as “an intentional, conscious plan to keep God at the center of everything we do.” We then discussed why a rule of life has everything to do with organizing the chaos in our life. As we closed out the evening we discussed how, when we can keep God at the center of everything we do, interestingly enough, life becomes a lot more organized.

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