Jonathon Edwards sweetly said, "There is a difference between having an opinion that God is holy and gracious, and having a sense of the loveliness and beauty of that holiness and grace. There is a difference between having a rational judgment that honey is sweet, and having a sense of its sweetness. A man may …
God’s Created Order God has designed humankind with intended design and purpose for his glory This includes our responsibilities, relationships, bodies, and identities We are fundamentally designed by God - physically, emotionally, spiritually, and relationally We are fundamentally dependent on God - including our sexuality and identity Trusting God’s design for us will lead to …
Continue reading Designed for Purity 4 – Identity and Sexuality (Notes)
Have you ever accidentally poured soured milk into your coffee or cereal? Undeniably, it was an unpleasant experience. Spoiled milk is quite disgusting, but also quite interesting. Milk turns because it is inherently unclean. Therefore it is unable to keep for very long outside of a cool environment. Only by pasteurization (a quick blast of …
God’s Created Order God has designed relationships with order and purpose for his glory. God has created marriage and sovereignly ordains marriage. God sovereignly blesses some with the gift of singleness. No status is more important than the other and one’s value is not tied to their relationship status. God calls us to be faithful …
Continue reading Designed for Purity 3 – Marriage and Singleness (Notes)
God’s Created Order God has created order in the world (gravity, math, light, sound, seasons) and in our families God has created men and women for different roles, especially inside of the family (Gen 1:26-27) As image-bearers, we honor God and represent God by obeying our roles (Eph 5:22-6:4) As image-bearers, we have different roles …
Continue reading Designed for Purity 2 – Biblical Roles for Husbands, Wives, and Children (Notes)
By now we have come to understand our culture's fascination with internet challenges. Each year numerous challenges ebb and flow through our timelines, onto our walls, and hyperlinked to our profiles. People we know, and some we don't, urge us to perform certain tasks that many others are doing in order to fit in, have …
We had a great time learning from God’s Word at Winter Retreat! Spencer led us through the book of Ruth and called us to be surprised by God’s work in everyday life and in Christ his son. Faith in God leads us to risk things that we cherish for God’s glory and kingdom. Here are …
Parenting is full of rough seas, from stress-filled dinners to the backlash from a teen to joylessness to a child's habitual, embarrassing disobedience. Parents can feel overwhelmed by it all, as if they are trapped in an ever-shifting, unsolvable puzzle and the only other sentient beings alongside them are their rebellious children. It is in these difficult or perplexing times parents turn to what they truly believe will offer them help, thus these are the times that parents are tempted to turn to their idols for help in raising their kids.
In each of us there is a personalized and malleable core belief system, this matrix of beliefs is called a worldview. Our worldview is the lens through which we see, interpret, and operate in the world around us. It, at the very basic level, dictates what we love and what we sacrifice for. This means that …
Familyhood 