This Sunday marks the first Sunday of Advent as we light the Hope Candle. Kate Bowler is a wonderful writer and serves on the faculty of Duke Divinity School. She writes: The tradition of lighting an Advent wreath actually started in
“Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever.” (Psalm 107:1) As we prepare for one of the most appropriate holidays of the year, I invite you to pause a moment and count your blessings. As
I continue to benefit so much from our times together on Wednesday evenings as we go through the book “Practicing the Way” by John Mark Comer. We are half way through and now is the perfect time to join others in
The contrast could not be more dramatic. You step out of my former church in Wake Forest—a place of love and light and good news—to see immediately across the street a house submerged in Halloween decor. Skeletons, cobwebs, monsters,
These Wednesday nights we are learning from the book “Practicing the Way” by John Mark Comer. (Buy it) I personally think it is the most important study we’ve shared since I have been with you and I encourage you to
“Where are the great preachers?” the noted pastor John Killinger was once asked. His response—“where the great congregations are.” I shared that quote yesterday at the church conference following your wonderful gift for Pastor Appreciation Month. I don’t claim to
“This is my body given for you, do this in remembrance of me.” (Luke 22:19) This coming Sunday we will be invited not to the CVBC table, certainly not to my table or yours, but to Christ’s table as we
Life is full of seasons—some are filled with clarity and joy, while others leave us facing questions, doubts, and uncertainty. In those uncertain times, it can be tempting to rely on our own understanding or to feel anxious about what
“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.” (Ecclesiastes 3:1) As I write this it is the last day of summer and another season has come and gone. Life is made up of seasons–some
So much has already been said and written, and sadly it only seems to communicate already fixed views. Our nation once again finds the news broadcasting yet another shooting reflecting political violence, and lost in all of it is the