Parents, Talk to Your Kids About Sex

Posted on February 26, 2016 by Dana Dill

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Parents, if you don’t talk to your children about sex, someone else will – and who knows what they’ll say.

Melissa Edgington gives some helpful pointers on how to start.

If we start young, we can easily keep the conversation going.

If your child is a teenager and you haven’t opened up a conversation about sex, just do it. It will be awkward and weird, but don’t miss your opportunity to influence him, here and now, while you have him in your house. Invite him to share his struggles with you, and give him godly guidance, even if he doesn’t act like he wants to hear it. He needs to hear it.

But, if you have younger kids, you have a golden opportunity to open this conversation during a phase of life when they aren’t self-conscious and embarrassed. Start small in age-appropriate ways, and begin an open-ended, on-going discussion that leaves plenty of room for questions and honest talk. And, don’t stop talking. Just keep it going. Check in every once in awhile. Ask questions about what she has heard. Find out if she has questions to ask you. If you are especially feeling awkward about it, talk in the car so that you don’t have to look each other in the face. You may both talk more easily that way.

As Christian parents, we want to disciple our kids and lead them in the ways of God. We can’t fool ourselves into thinking that sex education isn’t a huge part of discipleship. Sexual sin is dangerous and rampant, and it always has been. We can’t help our kids deal with the incredible pull of sexual desire unless we talk about it. Will it feel awkward? Maybe, at first. But, it’s nothing we can’t handle. Sex shouldn’t be a dirty word in Christian homes. If we want our kids to think biblically about sex and about their own worth, then we have to teach them what the Bible says about it, one conversation at a time.

Read the whole post here.

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Dear Christian, the Storm Has Passed

Posted on February 25, 2016 by Dana Dill

Sunlight-1Charles Spurgeon offers a simple, but profoundly life-giving word in February 25th’s morning devotion:

It is pleasant to pass over a country after a storm has spent itself; to smell the freshness of the herbs after the rain has passed away, and to note the drops while they glisten like purest diamonds in the sunlight. That is the position of a Christian. He is going through a land where the storm has spent itself upon his Savior’s head…

My friend, enjoy the peace of knowing that, for you, the storm of God’s wrath against your sin has passed. On the cross, Jesus had become your sin and endured your punishment till its end. There is no more wrath left for you, only peace. As Paul said, “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1).

Get Morning and Evening free everyday by visiting this website. Or, if you’d like, you can buy a beautiful black leather bound version of it here.

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The Saturday Post(s)

Posted on February 21, 2016 by Dana Dill

Saturday Post

But, Do You Adore Jesus? “When we look at Jesus, are we warmed? Or do we shrug our shoulders?”

What Would You Say If Your Wife Was Ripped Away From You? “Aassistant coach with the Oklahoma City Thunder, Monty Williams found out last week that his 44-year-old wife had been killed in a head-on car accident. The other driver was driving 92 mph (in a 40-miles-per-hour zone) when she crossed the center line and careened head-on into Ingrid Williams’s SUV. Three of their children were in the car with her; each survived with serious injuries. A week later, Monty Williams stood over the body of his wife of twenty years and mother of their five children — Lael, Faith, Janna, Elijah, and Micah — and delivered a powerful seven-minute eulogy.”

Heavily Discounted Books. Westminster bought too many books and we are the benefactors.

10 Questions to Diagnose Your Smartphone Usage. Do you rule your phone or does it rule you?

Socialism is Evil. Your thoughts?

7 Reasons Why Men Have the Right to Speak About Abortion. “In the fight over abortion, some claim that men have no right to an opinion on the matter. This is about a woman’s choice and health, they say; men have no grounds to speak into the issue like women. However…”

10 X 100 > 1 X 1,000. An unorthodox math equation about churches and church planting.

Is Religion the Cause of Most Wars? No.

Hide & Seek From a Toddler’s Perspective. Step 1: Strap a GoPro to a toddler’s head. Step 2: Hide from the toddler. Step 3: Watch live on your phone as he’s determined to find you. These parents think they know how to show a toddler a fun time. Judging from the kiddo’s laugh, it worked.

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Are You Avoiding This Part of “Gospel-Centered” Living

Posted on February 17, 2016 by Dana Dill

You-got-bitterness-and-jealousy-all-over-my-happiness“See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled…” Hebrews 12:15

Ray Ortlund:

The resurgence of a gospel-centered paradigm of life and ministry in our time has the makings of historic revival. Clearly, God is doing great things, and we are glad (Psalm 126).

But one aspect of gospel-centrality remains under-emphasized among us: interpersonal reconciliation. The Bible says, “God . . . gave us the ministry of reconciliation” (2 Corinthians 5:18). It doesn’t say, “God gives us the option of reconciliation now and then, when it suits us.” No, God has given us the ministry of reconciliation as a matter of sacred stewardship. There is nothing more gospel-centered.

Do we pursue reconciliation with that urgency? Jesus said, “So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift” (Matthew 5:23-24). Maybe we need to reach out to an offended brother or sister before next Sunday. Our approach might be rejected. We are grateful for this realism: “If possible, so far as it depends on you . . .” (Romans 12:18).

But have we tried? If not, what are we waiting for? It isn’t the gospel that needs to change.

Read the whole post here.

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Is This How You See Your Place in Church?

Posted on February 15, 2016 by Dana Dill

church-people-1Jonathan Leeman shares what he says to everyone desiring to become a member of the church he pastors.

When people come to join my church, they are asked to do an interview with an elder, where they are asked to share their testimony and to explain the gospel. At the conclusion of any interviews I personally conduct, assuming I’m going to recommend the person for membership to the whole congregation, I will say something like the following:

“Friend, by joining this church, you will become jointly responsible for whether or not this congregation continues to faithfully proclaim the gospel. That means you will become jointly responsible both for what this church teaches, as well as whether or not its members’ lives remain faithful. And one day you will stand before God and give an account for how you used this authority. Will you sit back and stay anonymous, doing little more than passively showing up for 75 minutes on Sundays? Or will you jump in with the hard and rewarding work of studying the gospel, building relationships, and making disciples? We need more hands for the harvest, so we hope you’ll join us in that work.”

How about you? Have you undertaken this work? How would our churches be different if each member committed themselves to study the gospel, build relationships, and make disciples?

Read the whole post, “Your 7 Responsibilities as a Church Member,” here.

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The Saturday Post(s)

Posted on February 13, 2016 by Dana Dill

Saturday Post

The Old Testament in 5 Minutes. A short, helpful video.

Israel & Women-in-Combat. ““Whenever anyone at National Review … writes in opposition to opening all combat jobs to women or (even worse) drafting women into ground combat, there is predictable hue and cry from the Left. ‘But Israel! You conservatives couldn’t possibly be criticizing Israel, could you?’” Here’s why Israel isn’t the trump card.”

Your 7 Responsibilities as a Church Member. Were you aware?

Don’t Be Embarrassed by Your Ordinary Church. “Is your church ordinary? Small? Well, my Christian friend, if it is preaching the gospel and endeavoring to help others to know and follow Jesus then it is not insignificant. It is powerfully important and surpassingly glorious.”

The Danger of Turning a Good Thing Into a Moral Thing. “Public school, home school, and private school can all be good things. Organic food can be a good thing. Dressing up for church or dressing down for church can be good things. Dating, courting, and dorting, can all be good things. Watching television can be a good thing and abstaining from television can be a good thing. The danger, however, is when we take a good thing and we turn it into a moral thing.”

Gospel Song Union. All the former Mars Hill bands unite. Wonderful!

How to Provoke Your Children to Anger. The Bible says don’t do it (Ephesians 6:4). Here are a few ways we may do it.

Random Motivation. This driver provides some unexpected motivation to a jogger.

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Why I Want to Hear Bad Sermons in My Church

Posted on February 9, 2016 by Dana Dill

001-bad-sermonsI believe that the life of the church is sustained by the ministry of the pulpit. If God’s Word is what brings conviction of sin, life to the spiritually dead (1 Peter 1:23), and nourishment for the spiritually alive (Matthew 4:4), then the life of the church depends on the proclamation of God’s Word from God’s people. The Church’s only food is the Bible.

It is because of that belief – that’s God’s people rely on God’s Word – that I hope to always be at a church that allows bad sermons every now and then. Tim Challies explains (better than I could) why I want that.

There have been times in the life of Grace Fellowship Church when we have endured some bad sermons. You could even say that in these seasons we purposely endured bad sermons. We heard men preach texts that were clearly beyond their ability to understand and explain. We heard men preach with all the fire of Paul Washer but with none of his depth or pastoral concern. We heard men preach who had neglected to ensure the sermon actually had a main point and an outline. There were other men we tried to hear while desperately fighting the distraction of their tics and idiosyncrasies. We sat through some pretty awful sermons, some of which were undoubtedly mine.

But we considered it a privilege. We counted it joy.

We counted it joy because these bad sermons came from unseasoned men who were learning to preach. There are not many preachers who get away without preaching a few stinkers along the way.

Sooner or later every aspiring preacher needs to take the plunge. Knowing he is inadequate to the task, knowing he is unseasoned, knowing that the congregation is accustomed to hearing a skillful preacher, he goes to the pulpit and preaches his very first sermon, and then his second and his third. He inevitably hits a few bumps and branches along the way. But he also learns the art, the craft, of preaching. He becomes confident, he becomes skilled.

Today, many of those young men who preached bad sermons at Grace Fellowship Church continue to minister in the Toronto area. They are among my favorite preachers and I eagerly anticipate every opportunity to hear them exposit Scripture. They survived and they thrived. We survived too and were able to gladly commend them to other churches as men who can skillfully handle the Word of God.

Young preachers, new preachers, preach bad sermons. They preach bad sermons as they learn to preach good sermons. And in some ways, those bad sermons serve as a mark of a church’s health and strength because they prove that the church is fulfilling its mandate to raise up the next generation of preachers and the one after that. They prove that the church refuses to be so driven by a desire to display excellence that they will not risk the occasional dud. They prove that the congregation is mature enough to endure and even appreciate these first, messy attempts. There is hidden beauty, hidden value, in these bad sermons.

Churches who value God’s Word and desire it to be spread all over the world will desire to hear some bad sermons every now and then because that means preachers are being trained, equipped, and one day sent out to bring the life giving Word of God to a dead world.

Read Tim’s whole post here.

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When the Church Seems to Slow You Down

Posted on February 2, 2016 by Dana Dill

shutterstock_120235057Mark Dever relays a personal story with a much needed point for Christians struggling with the local church.

During my doctoral studies, however, about ten years ago, my mind began to focus even more on the topic of the church, and especially on the centrality of the local congregation. I remember having a jarring conversation one day with a friend who worked with a para-church ministry. He and I attended the same church. I had joined when we had first moved to the city; he, a couple of years later, had chosen merely to attend. And even in his attendance, he would come only for the morning service, and then only half-way through when it was time for the sermon. So one day, I decided to ask him about this.

He responded with his typical honesty and transparency. “I don’t really get anything out of the rest of the service,” he said. “Have you ever thought of joining the church?” I asked. Genuinely surprised, with an innocent chuckle he responded, “Join the church? I honestly don’t know why I would do that. I know what I’m here for, and those people would just slow me down.” Those words sound cold when I read them, but they were uttered with the typical, genuine, humble warmth of a gifted evangelist wanting not to waste one hour of the Lord’s time. He wanted to put his time to the best use possible, and all the concerns and attendant bothers about officially joining a church seemed utterly irrelevant.

“Slow me down”—the words reverberated in my mind. “Slow me down.” My mind raced with various thoughts, but all I said was a simple question—“But did you ever think that if you link arms with those people, yes, they may slow you down, but you may help to speed them up? Have you thought that might be a part of God’s plan for them, and for you?” The conversation went on, but the crucial, crystallizing portion of it for my own thinking was done. God intends to use us in each other’s lives—even at what would sometimes appear to be a spiritual cost to us.

See the whole post here.

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How to Become Spiritually Miserable

Posted on February 1, 2016 by Dana Dill

miserable-old-manEric Davis offers 13 ways to become spiritually miserable. Each one is worth your consideration and reflection.

  1. Meditate on how you have seemed to receive a “raw deal” when things are hard.
  2. While thinking about your “raw deal,” seek the world’s solutions to soothe yourself.
  3. Ponder often how things used to be so much better for you than they are now.
  4. Operate with a “one-for-you-one-for-me” mentality towards God and people.
  5. Meditate on how little others seem to be doing in comparison to you.
  6. Decrease your ministry and service for Christ and to people because others are not “pulling their weight.”
  7. Meditate on how most people seem to have it easier and better than you.
  8. Prioritize little time for prayer and taking in the word of God.
  9. Grumble and complain, especially about other people in your local church.
  10. Meditate on how no one really understands how hard you have it.
  11. When involved with interpersonal skirmishes and conflict, wait for the other party to initiate peacemaking.
  12. When things get really hard and discouraging in life, distance yourself from the local church.
  13. Rely on your own moral performance for forgiveness of sin and right standing with God.

Read the full post with his explanation of each point here.

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Good Advice for Your Nextdoor Neighbors

Posted on January 27, 2016 by Dana Dill

neighborScott Slayton shares some great advice on how Christians should go about their neighboring:

Be a good neighbor to the people who physically live around you. Know their names, talk to them when you see them, and help out any way you can. Don’t awkwardly try to get them to come to church the first time you meet them. If you are a good neighbor they might just invite themselves.

Read the whole post, which is specifically about pastoral ministry, here.

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