Category Christward Collective

As we come to the end of the year and press into yet another new year, it is always beneficial for us to evaluate our commitments and priorities from the past year–noting the ways in which we have, by God's…

There is something wonderfully unique about Christian parents. Christian parents seek to maintain a counter-cultural flavor even as we seek to prepare our children for entrance into that culture as fully-functioning adults. They seek to prepare their children for life…

What makes the church special? I don’t mean what makes a church special, there may be many answers to that question. What makes the church, the church of Jesus Christ truly special? The answer is simple: The church is the only place on the face of…

You’d think Pavlov invented it, that characteristic sound of a new instant message, the "buh-ding." That’s what Jack heard in his cubicle that morning, before caffeine had cleared the fog in his head. He clicked over to his messenger application…

As we head toward another Christmas–and a renewed time of remembrance of the fulfillment of the prophecies that God gave for millennia concerning the Christ–it would do us good to step back and consider the fact that the Old Testament…

When I moved to Savannah, GA in 2009 to plant New Covenant Presbyterian Church, I commited to planting a church that–along with a number of other important priorities–would observe weekly communion. It wasn't because I believed that the Scriptures command the…

A few weeks ago, I was stunned by the beautiful vineyards that filled the Vineland area of the Niagara region in Ontario. So much time, so much money, and so much effort must have been poured into these vines in…

One of my seminary professors would routinely tell his students, "The most important thought that you will ever have is the first thought you have when you hear the word, 'God.'" I think that he is correct. Our first thought…

Does God speak to us, and if he does, can we understand him? This two-part question, much more than the question of the existence of God, is particularly relevant today. Most polls of religious views show that somewhere between seventy…

Many years ago, I was teaching through a section of Romans that contains particularly difficult theological truths. No sooner had I finished teaching that an individual–who had been a member of evangelical churches for many years–came up to me and…