Practical Christianity

Our faith in God does not prevent hard times from coming our way or cause them to not be genuinely hard times. But, our faith reminds us that the God we trust is the One who promised to never leave us nor forsake us. He is the One who loves us and has our best interest at heart. And because he has promised to always be with us, we can have courage. Our courage is not in ourselves but in the God we...

Come spend time with me in a time of prayer as we prepare for a new day and a new week. There's no better way to start both than spending time with the One who loves us and has our best interest at heart.

In this episode we finish up our series on cultivating the mind of Christ by running down every rabbit trail and throwing in everything else, including the kitchen sink. From Stoicism to the spiritual disciplines, we discuss how all this relates to wisdom and the mind of Christ.

On this week's "Godly Manhood" episode of Walking Points, we're going to be considering something that applies to both men and women: spiritual friendship. Having those who invest themselves into our lives is a tremendous blessing. Pouring your life into another's life is more rewarding than you can imagine. And having a friendship of mutual encouragement, support, and accoun...

While you're here, don't forget to subscribe to the podcast and click "like." Why in the world would we ever return to dead-end ways of life once we've been liberated from them? That's what we're discussing on the podcast today as well as how we can stay on track in the new life that God desires us to enjoy! Thanks for stopping by.

Come spend some time with me in prayer with God as we reflect on his goodness and grace in our lives.

In today's episode, David Preston and I discuss how cultivating the mind of Christ is ultimately all about discipleship. How can the mind of Christ help us follow Jesus more faithfully in every sphere of life and build up Christ's church by serving it? That's a little of what we'll be talking about in today's episode. Thanks for checking it out.

Join me in the mission. What mission? The mission for one hundred godly men? God has called us to make kingdom-minded and kingdom-hearted disciples of all the world, and that includes men. But what article after article point out is that men, and young men in particular, are searching for identity, affirmation, values, purpose, meaning, and more in other places than church. The "online gurus&...

What does it mean to follow Jesus? Why would Jesus tell us to "count the cost" before becoming his disciple? What is he including? Can't I keep some things just for me and give him the rest? What does it mean to submit to him as my Lord? These and other questions are what we'll be thinking abut together in this episode. Thanks for stopping by.

Let's spend some time today with God and one another as we reset and prepare together for worship and the week before us.

What does it mean to have a purposeful mind? The Bible suggests our minds are to be sanctified or set apart for the sake of Christ and his Kingdom. How can set apart our minds for Christ in order to think as he does about God, the world in which we live, our own lives, and more? That's what we're going to explore in our conversation today. Join us... and thanks for stopping by. Also, check...

Today our walk in the word explores new life in Christ. Join me as we look at Ephesians 2:1-10 for our devotional study.

Today picks up where last Tuesday's podcast left off. Why should Christians reach out to men? Why should churches have ministries to men? In today's world, younger generations of men are going outside the walls and influence of the church to seek wisdom. Many fine thinkers are rightly diagnosing the issues young men (and not-so-young men) are wrestling with, but their prescriptions, while...

Our feelings can be fickle. One day we're on a spiritual high and the next day we can be on a spiritual low. Have you ever experienced that. And yet, in either circumstance, we are called to pursue God. What does that mean? What does that look like? That's a little of what we'll be thinking about in today's episode. Thanks for stopping by and checking it out. You can find the notes for this episod...

What better way to reset and prepare for the day and week than by spending time with God. Join me in prayer as we spend precious time with the One who loves us. By offering God our adoration, confession, thanksgiving, and praying for others, we have the blessed opportunity to draw close to God. And don't forget to listen for God's voice in the midst of your time with him. Don't do all...

The mind of Christ is a mind that has an eternal perspective. It's a mind that seeks to put others first by serving their needs. It's a mind that finds ways to express the love and grace of God to others and seeks to extend God's Kingdom. It's the mind of those who deny themselves, pick up their crosses daily, and follow Christ. It's the mind we are called to cultivate so we ma...

Today begins a new Tuesday theme called, "In Pursuit of Godly Manhood." Every Tuesday I'll be focusing on helping and encouraging men become all God created, redeemed, and called them to be. This is Christian flourishing. Today I lay out how I got to the place in my ministry as a pastor in which I was convinced that ministering to men was much needed... for the men themselves, as wel...

Age does not guarantee wisdom. Not even experience guarantees wisdom. There is nothing magical about the lapse of time in one’s life that causes him to become a sage for the ages. We probably all know someone who doesn’t have 25 years of experience at his job, but instead, has experienced the same one year, 25 times in a row. No growth or maturation has taken place. So, how do we grow in wisdom? T...

What a privilege and blessing to spend personal, intimate time with the God of the whole universe. We are able to do just that because of God's love poured out upon us through the work of our Lord Jesus Christ. His mediating work on the Cross has made a way for us to be able to draw close to God in prayer. May the Lord bless you as you reflect on how he loves you, all he has done, is doing, an...

The word "disciple" literally means "learner." As disciples of Jesus Christ, we are called to be learners of Jesus - his way, his word, his will, and his world. He has been given authority over heaven and earth... and everything that exists was created by him, for him, and through him. In fact, everything is continually sustained by him. That means everything we learn can be us...

Make sure to click "Like" and subscribe. Today's walk in the word looks at Ephesians 1:15 -23, in which the Apostle Paul prays a glorious and encouraging prayer for the church at Ephesus... and for us. He gives us hope to know God desires us to know him and given us all the resources of heaven to make that a reality in our lives. There's nothing better than that!!!

This bonus episode is a sermon I preached yesterday at Southside Methodist Church (www.smcjax.org). Our church is beginning a sermon series on what it means to be Methodists. I was blessed to kick things off in the series and share a little about how much the early church and John Wesley had in common regarding the world in which they lived and ministered, and how they went about declaring the Gos...

Do you ever find yourself struggling to trust Jesus? To trust God in the midst of difficult times or tough decisions? Today's episode is about how we can "take Jesus at his word" and trust him through the good times and the bad. Join me and let's reflect on these things together.

This "Sunday" edition is our weekly prayer time drawing closer to God through prayer. Let these reflections and prayer prompts guide you as you seek to draw close to your heavenly Father. We come to know and love God more as we spend more time with him. I encourage you to listen to today's episode and do just that... draw closer to God and get to know him better and love him more. Ha...

In today's episode we continue our series on what it means to have "the mind of Christ." Just imagine the possibilities of what your life can become when you begin to think like Jesus about every sphere of life. How might your life change? How might you live in a way that glorifies God and blesses others if you saw life the way Jesus does? Those are some of the issues we wrestle with...