Matthew | December 31, 2008
I do not believe there is a church within America that does not have a visitation program or had a visitation program. A lot of churches of desired to have a strong and active visitation program in the church but often these programs start but fade away. There is always a remnant of the program, [...]
Matthew | December 30, 2008
Over the holidays, I noticed that some people discovered my blog with the search terms of “Kevin Youngblood Fired.” This was stocking to me as well as puzzling. At first, I did not pay much attention to the search terms, but than I was invited to a Kevin Youngblood support group. I clicked on the [...]
Matthew | December 29, 2008
To improve in most disciplines, it takes intentional practice. Preaching is not much different. Some would rely solely on the Holy Spirit to empower their preaching, but often this is a long sermon with repeated phrases. If the Spirit is really quiding every word without preparation before hand, then the Spirit is a poor preacher. [...]
Matthew | December 28, 2008
If most people do not know yet, I typically read a hockey book for the holiday season. This year the book was read in Edmond, OK and not in Nova Scotia (but was read in honor of moving to Colorado). It was a little different atmosphere for the read. Most of my readers do not [...]
Matthew | December 23, 2008
The eggnog comes out. The Christmas music is playing in the background. The tree is up with presents surrounding the base. Family events are planned and office parties are attended. These are some of the familiar sites of the Christmas season. This Christmas season is especially rich for the Morine family because of the snowy [...]
Matthew | December 22, 2008
Ever since I was introduced to the church, I have heard the common statement that “all one has to do is read the Bible and the pattern of the New Testament Church would appear.” The reason that this statement was so accepted was because of “common sense realism” within the movement. In fact, I was [...]
Matthew | December 19, 2008
Perhaps there is a lack of obedience in the church because of the past focus on the intellect instead of a balanced perspective of faith being both knowledge and trust. People will never realize the full nature of strong faith unless individuals are able to see the hand of God at work. This is where [...]
Matthew | December 18, 2008
Knowledge is an essential element in a strong faith, but the intellect of belief does not encase the complexity of Biblical faith. Faith is also strengthened through past experiences of trust. In fact, trust is one of the foundational components of a strong faith. Faith is larger than a mental acknowledgement of God because knowledge [...]
Matthew | December 17, 2008
Most people with a Christian background have heard the verse of Roman 10:17 repeated over a hundred times. The verse states a simple truth concerning faith: “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.” The verse was usually quoted in two contexts. One was in relation to the plan of salvation [...]
Matthew | December 16, 2008
This was a fantastic read in the dynamics of church growth. The book is a narrative of a dialogue between two ministers over the challenges and the opportunities for the various size congregations. The book basically deals with the small church 35-200, the medium church 200-400, and the large church 400-1000. The book talks about [...]
