Welcome to the online home of Tim Challies, blogger, author, and book reviewer.
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I have often shared examples of our Sunday morning services at Grace Fellowship Church. Yet are one of those rare churches that also has an evening service, so I thought you might be interested in seeing an example of how we structure them. First, the answer to the question I know you’re asking: Do people actually come to your evening services? The answer: Yes, though in lower numbers. We get perhaps half as many people in the evening as we …
Though we boast of great things and take confidence in our knowledge, we are actually finite little creatures bound by a million limitations. In fact, our knowledge is so limited we don’t even really know ourselves. We often lack clarity about the motivations behind even our best or worst actions. We can do great things for the Lord while still harboring sinful motives; we can do terrible things that dishonor the Lord while still harboring noble motives. Our hearts are …
Eighteen hours ago, brothers and sisters in New Zealand gathered to worship God. City by city and church by church they joined their voices together to praise him in song, to call out to him in prayer, and to hear from him through the Word. So, too, did believers in the easternmost reaches of Russia. As their worship services drew near to a close, Australians in Sydney, then Adelaide, then Perth began to sing their own calls to worship, as …
Francis Chan has had an interesting journey. Just a few years ago he was pastoring the growing and thriving Cornerstone Community Church in Simi Valley, California. He was in demand as a speaker and received invitations to preach at the biggest churches and conferences. Then, rather suddenly, he announced he would be leaving his church. After a number of months overseas with his family, he returned to California to begin a church planting movement in San Francisco. He is currently …
During my recent trip to India I participated in an Ask Me Anything event and was asked a couple of questions I thought might be of interest to you. One concerned practicing church discipline and the other how to avoid the temptation to be a man-pleaser instead of a God-pleaser. Here are my answers to both of these questions. Transcript How do you overcome the desire for the approval of a man? So, one of my constant prayers is …
Every few weeks I like to share an example of one of our worship services from Grace Fellowship Church. I hope it serves as simply one model of how we can worship the Lord in a distinctly biblical way. This service’s cast of characters included Steve as our service leader, Josh as our lead worshipper, Murray as the elder who read the Scripture text and prayed, and Paul as the preacher. Our band consisted of two guitars, cajon, and piano …
One of the solemn-but-joyful events in the life of a church is the ordination of a pastor (or elder, if you prefer). This is a rare event compared to many others, so is a time of special celebration. We have recently been able to enjoy it in our own church and in one of our church plants and have been greatly blessed. I thought it might be helpful to share the ordination vow our elders take before the church, and …
So Ed Young is at it again. Last week he announced a forthcoming sermon series titled “Wrastlin’” and did so through a video that is nothing short of absurd. “Over four weeks this September, Ed Young and Fellowship Church welcome four legendary guests from the world of professional wrestling – Ric Flair, The Undertaker, The Million Dollar Man, and Sting!” You can probably guess the premise of the series: “The Bible often compares the Christian life to that of a …
It’s obvious, I know. It’s been said a million times by a million different people. But, in my defense, it’s been forgotten by a million more. I’ve said it and neglected it too many times to count: The first two minutes matter most. Today Christians are gathering all across the world for our worship services. We will read the Bible, sing the Bible, pray the Bible, preach the Bible, and learn better how to live out the Bible. Then the …
Every few weeks I like to share an example of one of our worship services from Grace Fellowship Church. I hope that by doing this others will begin to share their services as well. I am eager to learn from other churches as they tell how they choose to worship the Lord. This service’s cast of characters included Paul as our service leader and lead worshipper, and Alex as our Scripture reader. As we had decided to make this a …