May 11, 2012
Personal Bible study, prayer and community part II.
Posted by Evan Whitman in Church Practices - Community | Comments (0)
If you would, please go back and examine the photo. Give it another glance. It's chaos! This is your life! ;) I wrote the first part of this blog nearly two years ago. How time flies! Since writing that blog I have learned many things. I have matured, reflected, grown in the love of Christ and realized my sin nature even more. I look back at that original blog and reminisce about the person I was when I wrote it and recognize the transformation that Christ has done in my life since then. I hope to look back inRead More...
Mar 13, 2012
Religious Repetition & Other Things You Need Desperately
Posted by Michael Howarth in Church Practices - Community | Comments (0)
Each week at Sacred Journey we come together on what the early church called “the Lord’s Day” to worship God, hear His truth and be together. Why do we do this? Have you ever asked yourself this question? Is it because we think we should? Because we’re used to it? Because we feel guilty if we don’t? All of these aren’t necessarily bad reasons, but there are better ones. Every church has a liturgy, even the ones who proudly proclaim that they don’t. Liturgy done well isRead More...
Feb 28, 2012
Manual Labor, Toddler Chasing and Holiness
Posted by Michael Howarth in Church Practices - Mission | Comments (0)
One of the clearest signs of a mature Christian is their service to others. Service is a fundamental element in the Kingdom of God, and one of the basic mechanisms by which the Kingdom operates. Serving others is often menial, laborious, boring and time consuming: think setting up chairs at church when everyone else is late, or absorbing the collective drone of screaming toddlers in the church nursery while everyone else enjoys the sermon. At Sacred Journey, we expect all of our members to serve on one of two basic ministries: Nursery Team, where workers look after the congregation&rsquoRead More...
Mar 18, 2011
The fight of faith in the aisle of the Table.
Posted by Joe Paravisini in Church Practices - Gospel Identity - Worship | Comments (0)
For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. (Psalm 51:16-17 ESV) There was a time in my life when monthly (or even less frequent) communion was a time of great personal shame and guilt. I was often reminded beforehand of the gravity of the Lord's Supper, and how people who took it "unworthily" could get sick or die, or just generally bring God's wrath onRead More...
