Why are golden retrievers so loved by their owners? They are faithful. Reliable. Consistent. In a world where breaking promises is the norm, faithfulness stands out, even when it comes from our pets. We see broken promises all around, as we observe: Politicians not fulfilling their campaign platforms; Professional athletes not honoring their contracts; and, more person...

I wonder if you've had this experience- you sit down to pray, and immediately your mind wanders. To-do list items float to the front of your mind, dominating your thoughts like lily pads covering a pond. Before you know it, your prayer time is finished, and it's time to face the day. Secretly, you wonder whether it was even worth the effort. Why can prayer be such a challe...

Dear Hope Fellowship, This week we are stepping into the Old Testament as we begin preaching through Malachi. I suspect that very few of us have heard a sermon series on this short prophetic book. It begs the question: why are we preaching through Malachi? Here are a few reasons: To maintain a balanced spiritual diet as a church, continuing an effort to preach through ...

Church is an ideal place to learn God's perspective on difficult issues. Few issues are more difficult to talk about than how to deal with sin in the church community. In our age of licentiousness and self-empowerment, calling out another's "sin" is nearly unthinkable. Fellow Christian, let me remind you that we are called to follow God in this area (as in all other areas)...

Have you ever felt uncomfortable when "money" or "giving" is talked about at church? You are not alone. There are very few topics about which we are more reticent to share with other believers than the topic of how we handle our personal finances. And yet, Jesus spoke frequently on the subject. Perhaps this is because He knows how money can uniquely displace God as the foc...

Let's admit it: church life can be difficult at times. Why is that? Perhaps it's because living in community exposes our flaws and shortcomings. That is uncomfortable. Not to mention that at some point we will inevitably hurt others, and be hurt by others. Consequently, some of us have concluded that life is better lived with a bit of distance from other Christians. The ra...

When you picture a "church leader," what comes to your mind? Are you filled with gratitude and gratefulness for those who have loved you, cared for your soul, and humbly taught you the Word of God? Or do you picture someone who has hurt you, disappointed you, or someone whose behavior has disillusioned you? Regretfully, many of us identify with the latter description more ...

As we begin the New Year, the elders have called a prayer meeting for this Sunday evening (1/8) at 7pm at the church offices. As you contemplate whether to attend, you might be asking yourself, "Why should we pray together?" It's a valid question. Here are 10 reasons, in no particular order: We pray together because we are completely dependent on God for everything. We...

Somehow January 1st feels different than other days. It feels like change is more possible. It feels like there is a bit of a reset, a blank slate ahead. Now if we're honest, we know that we won't change just because the calendar does. However, in a very real way, the beginning of a new year can provide the motivation to do things we've been meaning to do. Like exercise. O...

It's hard to believe that Christmas is only two days away. The anticipation is building. Presents are getting wrapped, and last-minute gifts are on their way (Please get them here soon, Amazon!). Holiday traditions are in full swing. As we hurry around, readying ourselves for the big day, have you stopped for a moment to consider your motivation for all this busyness? The...

As Christians we always have an occasion to give thanks. The apostle Paul exhorts us in 1 Thessalonians 5:18 to "give thanks in all circumstances." So as Christmas approaches, don't let it pass by without spending many moments giving thanks to God for sending his Son Jesus. Last week's passage in John 1 reminded us of this unfathomable truth: God became a man. Amazing. Jes...

Black Friday. It's a day where marketers are vying for our attention. The promise of life-changing deals on everything, from clothing to new technology, bombard us from all directions. Companies are desperate for us to spend money on their products. It is out of control. In any case, the good news of Black Friday is that Christmas is not far away. As followers of Jesus, o...

Why is it so challenging to pray, or at least to persevere in prayer? Perhaps it is because prayer feels unproductive in our efficient age. Perhaps it is because our minds are so easily distracted. Perhaps it is because we are unsure of its effectiveness- we secretly think "Is God really listening? Does He really care?" Perhaps we forget the intense spiritual battle ...

This Sunday, in Colossians 3:18-4:1, we come to a passage that continues to answer the question: "How do I walk in Christ throughout my daily life?" It's a section of scripture that Martin Luther called "household tables," which are commands related to how a household should function. Three sets of the typical 1st century household are addressed: wives and husbands, childr...

Have you ever wondered: "Why do I still struggle with some of the same sins if I am a redeemed child of God?" or "How can I defeat the ugly pattern of thoughts and actions that remain in my life?" If so, you are not alone. In this Sunday's preaching passage, Colossians 3:5-17, God continues to show us how to live the life that is ours in Christ. This involves "putting to ...

This Sunday we come to yet another majestic passage in Colossians. Paul begins chapter three by turning our eyes heavenward: "If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God" (Col. 3:1). After reading this verse, questions may be flooding your mind, such as: How am I raised with Christ? What are...

On Sunday we will be celebrating communion together once again. You may be thinking, "why so soon- I thought we did this two weeks ago?," and you would be correct! The recent pattern at Hope has been to participate in the Lord's Supper once per month, with some exceptions. However, for a while now, even before I arrived at Hope, the elders have been considering an increase...

This week we will have the opportunity to participate in child dedications during the service. As an aside, we should really call these "parent dedications" since it is the parents who are dedicating themselves to raise their children in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. In any case, let us reflect today upon the tremendous blessing it is to be raised in a family...

Last Sunday we launched the Colossians series and celebrated communion together. It was a meaningful service, and if you missed it, you can watch here. As we look ahead to this Sunday, in Colossians 1:15-23 we come to one of the most amazingly majestic passages about Jesus in all of Scripture. Remember that the believers in Colossae were being tempted to move beyond Jesus ...

This Sunday we will dive into Paul's letter to the Colossians - I'll be preaching on the first fourteen verses of chapter one. What an amazing text! The letter to the Colossian church was penned by Paul from a prison (Col. 4:18), likely in Rome, while he was serving time on account of the gospel. During this prison stay, Paul probably also wrote the letters to the Ephesian...

Sunday morning marks a significant moment in the life of our church. As always, our focus will be upon worshipping the Lord Jesus through the preaching of God's Word, prayer, and song. In addition, during the service there will be a special moment where the elders will officially "install" me as your lead pastor. Here are three reasons (among many) that a pastoral installa...

I am really excited aboutAll That Jesus Asks: How His Questions Can Teach and Transform Usby Stan Guthrie. It was released this month, but last April I did a series of posts in which I interviewed Stan about his forthcoming book.I find it really helpful in sermon preparation when authors look at scripture and collect all of what scripture says about a particular topic or...

I have been working through The Theology of B.B. Warfield: A Systematic Summary. I thought this section in chapter 2 was helpful in defining apologetics. A Right Definition of Apologetics "Apologetics does not merely teach men how to defend Christianity; if it were only this, then it would belong to the discipline of practical theology. Nor does apologetics set out mer...

The Valley of Vision Prayer Guide by Joe Thorn...

If you are like me, you are always looking for something to share with family members who will be gathering for Christmas in order to talk about Jesus and the hope we have in Him. I wrote the following story, "A Question for Christmas"for a group of 3rd grade girls' "Christmas Cocoa" that a wonderful family at College Church hosted on Saturday, December 17, 2010. My desire...

One of my favorite books about the incarnation is The Incarnation in the Gospels in the Reformed Expository Commentary series. I highly recommend it as a collection of sermons that are very encouraging and edifying to read and think about this Christmas season....

From the Crossway.com blog: Practicing Hospitality, Pat Ennis and Lisa Tatlock ...

STARS Family services annual fundraiser....

Dietrich Bonhoeffer writes in Life Together about fellowship and how we must speak God's Word to one another. ...

The new song we sang last night by Mike Magnussen, "We are the Body" from Ephesians 4....

We discussed how to Talk to your Kids about the Sermon today in our Adult Community at College Church by Joe Holland. We used it as a jumping off point to talk about how to listen to and gain from the sermons we hear....

Seven things we can pray for from 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10 for Hope Fellowship....

A very helpful article on the practical applications and meaning of bearing our cross by Chris Castaldo....

Ben Stevens writes in an article posted at The Gospel Coalition how we, in order to love our neighbors, must get to know them first. He also gives some very practical advice on how to get to know your neighbors. He ends with this: "You cannot love your neighbors if you don’t know them. Get it on the calendar and have fun." How true! ...

The quote from James Edwards about Jesus functionally trading places with the leper by cleansing him. What a great quote!...

This Sunday we will be focusing on parables about the Kingdom of God from Mark 4:21-34. Here is a great quote about the kingdom of God from John Frame....

Why is it important to know that we are made in the image of God? The incarnation hangs on it....

So you went on a short term mission trip this summer and you are getting ready to come home (or you just returned home). Here are ten things to remember about the gospel, missions and humility as you process through your trip....

Fifteen ways for someone heading off to college to remember about glorifying God in your studies....

Grace is enough for even the chief of sinners (1 Timothy 1:15). It is sturdy. It can withstand the most difficult suffering and trials. It is enough on our best days, when we think we earned something, and enough on our worst days, when we wonder how God could possibly love us....

The garage door went up and out went our minivan. For the first time in nearly 8 years, I wasn’t going to church. I was scheduled to preach, but stomach issues laid me low, so home I sat (providentially with an internet outage to remove the temptation of NFL Countdown)....

Of all the issues that cause stress and confusion among Christians, the question of divine guidance must be near the top. How can I know God’s will for me? Are there certain steps we need to learn in order to access information from God that we would not otherwise know? How does God guide me?...

By “reason,” I mean rational thinking and God-given common sense. Proverbs 3:5 does not say, “do not use your understanding” but rather, “don’t rest on human understanding, don’t make it your ultimate rule; don’t put all your weight upon it!” Instead, put all your trust in God who rules and over-rules all human decisions. There are always gaps in our know...

Many of my books sit on the shelf only being referenced once every year or two, as need arises. There are other books like "Jonathan Edwards on the Christian Life," by Dane Ortlund that I come back to again and again. And there is one chapter in this book that I find exceptionally helpful to me personally as I seek to grow in my faith; his chapter on "Gentleness: The Aroma...

If you have been around Hope for any length of time, you have probably heard us talk about the “functional centrality of the gospel” from the pulpit and in our mission groups. Starting the last week of August we’ll be unpacking what it means that the gospel is central and functioning as it should in our lives and church. My desire is that this short series serves to ...

We should be set free from the view of planning and decisions that make us put the weight on ourselves that only God should bear. We will not plan for everything. Sometimes we won’t know what to do. Even in our best plans, there will be the unexpected that arise. We take comfort in a God who is in control and who works all things according to his purposes....

On Sunday morning we spent some time in Psalm 119:9-40. My main goal was to begin this new school year (and re-entry into post COVID??) by helping us desire to be nourished by the Word of God. We didn't spend time on the "what does this look like practically" or "how can we try some new ways to study God's Word" because I wanted for us to desire God's word before we looked...

In our sermon last week we looked at Galatians 2:20, the description of the decisive death to our old person that has happened when we believed in Jesus and where crucified with Christ. In this quote from John Stott see three ways that Scripture speaks of this union with Christ in his death and the kind of death(s) that we die....

When we looked at Galatians 5:16-17 we spoke about the flesh. But it is more than simply the flesh that threatens to undo us in this life. Ephesians 2:1-3 speaks of the trifecta of difficulty we face in sanctification. ...