A Small Serving of Vegetables Please!
“Better a little with the fear of the Lord than great wealth with turmoil.  Better a small serving of vegetables with love than a fattened calf with hatred” (Proverbs 15.16-17, TNIV). I’ve been trying to reflect on this giant tidbit of wisdom the last few days.  I live in a culture that seems to ignore God more and more in pursuit of its own agenda…some of which looks very appealing, regardless of your religious convictions.  I am not immune to culture nor is anyone else. Lord…please help us to be content with the small serving of vegetables, to feast on you and your ways alone.

“The Bait and Switch of Contemporary Christianity” by Richard Beck
Here is the link to a little diddy titled The Bait and Switch of Contemporary Christianity by Ricard Beck posted on his blog.  Richard Beck is a Christian and an Associate Professor at Abilene Christian University in Abilene, Texas which means that he is an educator of students who for the most part are professing Christians.  As a Christian minister and leader,I found this post to be spot on, very thoughtful and provocative, and well written.  I wish it could be published in every church bulletin.  Take a few minutes to click on the link and read.

“Faith and Fear” 1 John 5.5-12
The sermon is titled “Faith and Fear” from 1 John 5.5-12.  I preached this sermon on May 3, 2009 at the Kandiyohi Church of Christ in Kandiyohi, Minnesota.

Obedience: The Christian Apologetic
Walk in to most Christian bookstores or pick up a Christian book catalogue and you most likely will find a section entitled “Apologetics.”  Christian apologetics is that discipline which seeks to offer a positive defense for the Christian faith using philosophical arguments along with historical and physical evidences (generally categorized as ontological, teleological and cosmological arguments).  I had classes at both the undergraduate and graduate level dealing with this subject and I do believe there is a place for this discipline in the study and advancement of the Christian faith.  But is this the best apologetic we Christians have to of

News from the Missional Front
It’s been two and a half months since my family and I made the move to the Denver Metro area to be involved in church planting.  We have settled for the time being in the northeast suburb of Brighton.  Laura is teaching at the Denver School of the Arts, a high school with Denver Public School for students who seek to excel in the arts and entertainment.  Caryn and Jared, our children, will soon be going to a nice home day care as their father goes to work (more on that later). The church we are helping to establish, Clay Neighborhood, has begun.  We have a core group of 13 adults along with six children to begin with.  We have been meeting for worship and fellows