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This is an edited transcript of one of my recent sermons at Desert Mission Anglican Church. Listen here.

Now when they drew near to Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples and said to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately as you enter it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it. If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord has need of it and will send it back here immediately.’”

And they went away and found a colt tied at a door outside in the street, and they untied it. And some of those standing there said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” And they told them what Jesus had said, and they let them go. And they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it, and he sat on it.

And many spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut from the fields. And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!”

And he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple. And when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve. (Mark 11:1-11 ESV)

During Holy Week we will through Scripture readings, prayer, and special services walk with our Lord to the cross, and it all starts on Palm Sunday. This is– as you would expect–a rather somber journey, but Palm Sunday is a celebration. I don’t know about you, but this strikes me as a little strange. The whole story of the Triumphal Entry is–if you think about it–a little weird. The great preacher Charles Spurgeon said,

“Christ’s kingdom is a very strange one, totally different from anything that ever has been seen or ever will be seen…”

This story is a perfect example of this. At virtually every turn Jesus is doing something that neither his disciples, nor the crowds that celebrated him, nor the religious authorities, nor even you and I would probably expect.

Now, this story may be strange, but here’s the thing…it’s in the strangeness that we’ll find the significance. We have to go a bit beyond a surface-level reading to see what’s happening here. Are you ready to dive a little deeper with me? Read More “4 weird things about Palm Sunday”

Christmas is all the rage in our culture right now…but I say we slow down and do something counter-cultural.

Let’s savor Advent so we can better celebrate Christmas.

Here are 3 reasons why:

1) You’ll get more of the Gospel

The Christian liturgical year allows for the whole story of Christ’s birth, death, and resurrection to be lived out and celebrated. Part of that story is a long time of waiting with an expectant hope based on God’s promises. Advent is when you get to remember and celebrate that part of the story, the prologue, if you will. It’s still part of adoring Jesus and celebrating his birth, but it keeps us from rushing through the story.

2) You’ll actually get more Christmas, if you think about it.

Christmas doesn’t start the day after Thanksgiving and culminate on December 25…it starts on December 25 and is traditionally celebrated for–wait for it–12 days. That means you could extend and enhance your celebration and appreciation of Christ’s birth if you began with Advent.

3) You’ll be in-step with the Church

The liturgical seasons are one way of unifying the whole Church, past and present. Most Christians still celebrate Advent. To participate in Advent as a priority over the secular “Christmas season” is a way of connecting with the universal Church and keeping the focus firmly on Jesus–not just individually, but as a covenant community.

How and why do you celebrate Advent?

I’ve spent the last three or so years mentoring college-age men in both one-on-one and group settings. One of my initial challenges was figuring out what I should be talking about so I could effectively lead the conversation and make the most of our time together. It doesn’t help that the goals of many mentoring relationships are somewhat vague (learn from the mentor’s mistakes, become a better Christian, etc.)

After my first year as a formal mentor, four essential conversation categories emerged for me. These make up a focused, productive, and ultimately life-changing mentoring conversation. Each of your mentoring sessions should generally include all of these elements (though not always in identical proportions).

1) Relationship building

Relationship building is how I start most of my meetings. This is where you look for opportunities to connect with the person you are mentoring on a personal level. Ask questions about their background if you’re just getting to know them, or about their day or week a little later in the relationship.

Use this time to simply enjoy conversation about topics of mutual interest. If you have the time it’s also great to do something fun and meaningful together. On occasion you may devote your entire session to relationship building. Although it may not seem particularly productive, spending the time up front to simply get to know the person you are mentoring and allowing them to get to know you will lay the foundation for a trusting relationship. Without a certain level of trust, it’s impossible to be an effective mentor.

2) Accountability

Accountability is the tough part of any relationship (and thus, the easiest to let slide), but I promise you will be rewarded as you lean into it. Mentoring relationships usually entail some sort of commitment… Has your mentee followed through?

Ask the tough questions, and don’t let difficult subjects slide by…but remember to practice a lot of grace, mercy, and love as well. Don’t be afraid of awkward silence–embrace it. Sometimes the person you are mentoring will need a few moments to think about how to answer a particularly personal or probing question.

3) Teaching

It’s easy for the teaching step to get lost in the shuffle (especially when you’re having fun relationship building) but a massive part of being a mentor is helping others learn. For them to learn, you have to teach.

Don’t think it needs to be a lecture, though. Never forget the power of teaching through asking leading questions and genuinely listening even as you offer thoughtful feedback. You should always be willing to be vulnerable and share your mistakes, but don’t forget that now isn’t the time for you to be on a soapbox.

4) Prayer

I close every one-on-one with those I mentor with prayer. Few people have someone with whom they can pray with regularly, and I consider it a particular honor to be able to be that person for some of the men I mentor. Make sure to allow plenty of time for this as well (at least 15 minutes). I’ve found that asking someone how you can pray for them can lead to some very honest and very encouraging conversations…sometimes this can be the deepest and most meaningful part of our time together!

How could implementing these four elements improve your own conversations with those you mentor? Did I miss anything? Let me know in the comments!

If there’s one thing I’m not a fan of, it’s the goes-without-saying assumption that Christian leaders should basically pretend like they never struggle with anything, at least not in the present. If it was a long time ago, that’s okay, because it’s in the past. But we really can’t have our leaders admitting weakness in the here and now, right? Wrong!

If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. (2 Corinthians 11:30 ESV)

Time for a trip to the confessional. Without further ado, here are 3 spiritual struggles that are ongoing for me.

1) Death to Self

I am entirely too self-absorbed. When I should be thinking of others, I think of myself, often at their expense. This is expressed in me acting like a real jerk (usually to the people I should love the most). Irritability and impatience too often get the best of me, along with childish reactions when I don’t get my way or when things don’t go according to (my) plan.

2) Discipline

I write and talk a lot about discipline, because it’s one of my own problem points. Although I have–by God’s grace–experienced some measure of success in this area, I know I have a long way to go. I become discouraged quickly when things get difficult, and it’s a struggle to maintain the discipline I have built. It takes tremendous effort every single day, and I fail in some regard in this area constantly. It’s three steps forward, two back. There’s steady progress, but not without consistent setbacks.

3) Distraction

I suppose this is sort of a sub-struggle of #2 and definitely related also to #1. I am so easily distracted from what should be the most important things in my life: faith, family, ministry. My days often seem to slip through my fingers. Before I know it I’ve wasted hours tracking a pointless Internet debate or with a mindless, unnecessary task that serves to help me avoid starting a more difficult (but also more important) project. I even distract myself from legitimate rest and relaxation by prioritizing work at the wrong time.

I don’t write this to wallow in, justify, or glorify my sin. Nor am I attempting to elicit any kind of pity. I just think that–as a Christian leader–it’s important to acknowledge that I am as flawed as everyone one else. I struggle day-to-day with following Jesus, just like everybody else.

Just like you, I’m fighting the old man with God’s help, every day.

How could admitting weakness change your ministry for the better?

I consider it an honor to lead in multiple areas of Christian ministry. From my university ministry day job to working on staff at my local church, leading is part of what I do and who I am. I sometimes even write about some of the things I have learned about leadership here and on social media, but I’m far from an expert. Although I think I’ve been given some gifts in the area of leadership, learning to lead in a Godly and effective way has been one of the hardest things I’ve done. Here are three leadership struggles I deal with on a daily basis: Read More “My Top 3 Leadership Struggles”

I used to buy into the idea that freedom was about life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. I thought freedom was primarily the ability the make my own choices.

Then I realized that while that’s part of it, the ability to make my own choices was never enough for true spiritual freedom, because I tend to make selfish choices that keep me enslaved to sin.

In the Bible freedom is more about identity (who we are) than choice (doing what we want), and that identity is always connected to Jesus through the Holy Spirit.

In a letter to the church at Corinth, St. Paul wrote:

Where the spirit of the Lord is there is freedom (2 Corinthians 3:17)

And what does the Spirit do? He changes our hearts to be more like Christ, because Christ perfectly shows us the Father, and as image-bearers of God, this was our original design as human beings!

We are set free, Paul says in Romans 8:4, “in order to fulfill the righteous requirement of the law.” What’s the righteous requirement?

At the most basic level it’s to do good works, to worship God. It is to show forth, to demonstrate, to radiate the beauty and goodness and love of God.

The more I think about it, the more I realize that when we are doing these things we are displaying the image of God to the world.

Here’s a way think about this idea of identity being the crucial aspect of freedom: Imagine a fish. Regardless of the set of choices in front of him, freedom for the fish is to swim! He was created for it!

Freedom for a bird is to fly. Freedom for trees is to grow. Freedom for you and I is to give glory to God by living in a loving relationship with him!

In his first letter to the church at Corinth, the Apostle Paul describes what he calls “spiritual gifts.” These charisms are special abilities given in grace to the believer by the Holy Spirit. The gifts that Paul describes enable spiritual growth and help Christians to live out God’s purpose for them in love.

How to develop and discover your spiritual gifts

The spiritual gifts are important to spiritual formation, because identifying how we are gifted (or perhaps not gifted) can help Christians know where to concentrate our disciplines. If your spiritual gift is teaching, for example, you may recognize this and emphasize the importance of the discipline of study. Or, you may find that edification or encouragement is an area where you have room to grow, so you may consider spending time in meditation on passages about God’s promises and faithfulness.

If you sense a faltering in your faith, you might fast as a reminder of God’s provision and faithfulness. Developing our spiritual gifts helps us to conform to God’s will for our life—the very definition of spiritual formation.

Acts of spiritual formation and discipline like prayer, fasting, meditation, and study can also help you figure out what your spiritual gifts should be. Submission to the will of God opens the door for blessings in the form of gifts that, in our natural state, we were resisting.

Since spiritual formation is key to both discerning and developing spiritual gifts, and since spiritual gifts are clearly a God-ordained part of how we minister to the entire Body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:5), it becomes clear that spiritual formation itself is an absolutely indispensable part of the Christian journey.

Differentiated or divided?

Although it is easy to confuse differentiation with division, this is not the purpose of the spiritual gifts!

It certainly wasn’t what St. Paul had in mind as he laid out his letter to the Corinthian church. Instead of dividing the Body of Christ, the spiritual gifts unify believers by allowing each individual to fulfill their unique purpose in the community of faith.

When the gifts are practiced correctly, they always function to edify the Church and spread the Gospel (Palma, 1979, p. 19). The focus that brings these diverse abilities in sync is the person of Jesus, who functions as the Head of the Church and through the Holy Spirit is ultimately directing each and every gift given.¹

St. Paul describes it this way,:

For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. (1 Cor. 12:12 ESV)

The gifts, although distributed in different kinds and quantities among the entire Body, are still part of the unified whole as result of the person of Jesus. In this way these distinctions are quite different from the worldly divisions that were plaguing the church at Corinth when St. Paul wrote this letter.²

Your calling and the gifts of the Spirit

Many thinkers have linked the spiritual gifts with various offices in the institutional church, but taking this too far misses the point.³

Paul isn’t so much highlighting how the gifts are different, but rather their unifying threads: the common source of the Holy Spirit’s power, Jesus’ service, and God’s direction.⁴

That said, there’s no doubt the spiritual gifts are necessary for you to carry out your mission and purpose because they all directly correspond to real actions:

• Teachers teach.
• Prophets prophecy.
• Those with the gifts of tongues speak.

The list, of course, goes on. As gifts from God (not necessarily natural abilities) these deposits of grace also confirm you’re doing the will the God when you’re exercising your gift faithfully.[^5]

When you are faithfully and obediently exercising your God-given gift by the power of the Holy Spirit, you are functioning correctly in your capacity as an “organ” in the Body of Jesus.⁵ The spiritual gifts confirm that all good things come from God, and that as believers we can only truly and completely fulfill our purpose when we are conformed to his will, living in obedience, and practicing his commandments to us in love.

What are your spiritual gifts, and how has God worked through them? Let me know in the comments.

The doctrine of the Triune nature of God is a core, essential teaching for historic, orthodox Christianity. This concept, officially formulated very early in the history of the faith, is part of what makes Christianity unique among world religions. Heretical challenges in the first centuries of the Church prompted leaders to join together in order to articulate an “official” doctrine. Examples of these proclamations include the Nicene Creed and of course the Athanasian creed (commonly read on Trinity Sunday in liturgical traditions).

Over time theologians have sought to explain and express this paradoxical concept in terms that make sense in their context. Interestingly enough, three primary ways of thinking about the Trinity emerged: the economic Trinity, the essential Trinity, and most recently the social Trinity. Read More “3 ways to think about the Trinity”

It seems to me American Evangelical culture in general is guilty of trying to sort of domesticate God. There’s an emphasis on the love of God that often overshadows (or better: glosses over) the fact that he is wholly other, that he is a God of justice, the truth that simply standing in his presence would kill us. Read More “Preparing for Pentecost: Are you trying to tame God the Holy Spirit?”

I just took my family on camping trip in the woods of northern Arizona. I barely had cell service, so I couldn’t be on Twitter or Facebook or check my website stats. I went for walks, played with my kids, laughed with my friends, and enjoyed the cool weather.

I was reminded of how great it is to get a digital “reset,” a rest, a sabbatical. It’s really one of the most refreshing habits you can have in today’s world. Trust me, you need to do this if you don’t already. Here are 5 surprising benefits of taking a digital sabbatical for a day for a day or two–or longer. Read More “5 surprising benefits of taking a digital sabbatical”