Skip to main content

Formations Reflection

The following is a brief excerpt from today's Formations Reading. You can go to the Formations Site to download the entire book, or to read the daily reflections.

At your favorite restaurant, there may be a teenage boy who refers to himself as the “Hygenic Engineer for Organizational Hardware”. Practically, he’s a dishwasher. In the same way, someone who claims to be a Christ follower, but lives as if there is no God is practically… an atheist.

Giving in to Jesus is the message of the kingdom. It is the seed the farmer threw.

Jesus said that those who accepted the farmer’s seed would produce a multiplying crop. In other words, those who accept the message of the kingdom will be noticeably different from those who do not. Here is where we ask the hard question. What do we call those who claim to hear the message, but have no demonstrable return for their investment? Practically, they are no different from the atheist.


Read the whole reflection at Formations

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Discussion Questions for Easter

Have several people ask the question, “What’s the most important thing you’ve ever done?” Ask other people, “What do you hope to accomplish in the next several years of your life?” Tell your class that today you’ll be talking about “life mission” or the one most important thing you do that drives everything else. Tell them that Jesus’ resurrection from the dead is the defining moment in history, so it should be the defining moment in our lives. Read 1 Corinthians 15:12-19. How does the resurrection impact some of the crucial beliefs of Christianity?  How would Christianity be different if there was no resurrection? How would you be different without the resurrection? Read 1 Corinthians 15:50-58. What are some specific ways that the resurrection gives us hope? If you had been a friend of Jesus when he was on earth, how would the resurrection have impacted your life?  How do you think his followers then were effected by the resurrection? Read 1 Corinthian...

FIGHT CLUB! (iron sharpening iron)

Our youth pastor, Keith Sandison, has implemented "Fight Clubs" with the young men of our church. While these teenagers and young adults aren't actually pummeling each other physically, they are using the opportunity to aggressively challenge one another to be more attentive to their spiritual formation. Right now my son is participating in a fight club focusing on Proverbs. I love it. Keith has created a handout he uses for the fight clubs which lists seven different methods of "generic Bible study". I think the idea started with this post a few years ago, but as he often does; Keith took my thoughts and made them immensely more substantive and beneficial. Check out his system below:

Every Small Group Leader Needs These 4 Tools To Be Successful

Leading a small group for the first time can be intimidating. Many people are afraid they are not capable, gifted, or intelligent enough to lead a group of people as they follow Jesus together.  I think they are wrong. Matthew 28:18-20 is often called the “Great Commission”. In these verses, Jesus commissioned His disciples to go and make other disciples. Interestingly, though, He did not tell them to do this in their own power or using their own strength. Rather, He made it clear they would be successful because He has all power. Jesus’ authority is what makes it possible for us to make disciples. If you are a disciple of Jesus, you have been empowered by Him to make other disciples. Not everyone can lead a small group, but almost anyone can. Of course, there are a few qualifications that every small group leader should have: They must be a follower of Christ. They should be a mature enough believer that they know their way around the Bible and can help ot...