2014

|Leadership
Fourteen insights for ministry, marriage, and more.
What I Learned in 2014
Image: Flickr

This year has been the best of times and the worst of times. Yet through it all, God has been faithful to his promise––to continue to conform me into the image of Jesus. Over the holidays, I’ve spent time reflecting, and I want to share 14 insights I had ...

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|Leadership
Prepare for the new year with a time of reflection.
Crafting a Life Vision Statement
Image: Unsplash

As we approach a new year, it is a great time for reflecting on what God has done, is doing, and wants to do in and through us. Over the past few years, I have used a life vision statement as a tool to help me think through what I believe God is asking me to do in my life. ...

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|Discipleship
How to experience healing in Christ.
Hurt People Hurt People
Image: Erick Hodge

Jesus assumed our rejection so it will not continue to harm us because hurt people hurt people. If you want to know if someone is mature, do not look at how many Bible verses they know but watch how they act when someone hurts them. Jesus became our rejection and our sorrow ...

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|Gospel of Grace
Lessons in grace from the prodigal’s brother.
The Other Brother
Image: Brandon Robinson

The story of the prodigal son in Luke 15 is a familiar one to many Christians. There is much to learn about grace from the story of the son who rebels and returns. But, there is also a lot to learn from the one who stays behind.

Sadly, the older brother is just as far from ...

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|Evangelism
What gospel-centered evangelism looks like in a multiethnic context.
More Characteristics of High-Definition Evangelism
Image: Brandon Robinson

A few weeks ago, I shared three characteristics of high-definition evangelism. Today, I want to continue that conversation with three more ideas to help you be intentional in reaching out to a multiethnic world.

In the earlier article, I shared how gospel-centered vision, ...

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|Discipleship
God wants to use teens to change the world.
Teens Are Not the Church of Tomorrow
Image: Brandon Robinson

We believe our teenagers are not the church of tomorrow but the church of today. God has used teens throughout his redemptive history. He used David, Mary, and most of Jesus’ disciples at young ages. Teens, we believe God can use you today to change the world.

Watch ...

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|Leadership
Three leadership insights that will make you a better pastor today.
It’s Not All About the Weekend
Image: Erick Hodge

Every day it feels like I learn something new. When I was younger, I thought I knew everything, but the older I get the more I realize how much I really don’t know. Here are three pastoral leadership insights I’m learning. I hope they encourage you.

Don’t ...

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|Discipleship
Is your Bible study helping you to seek and to save the lost?
Us Four and No More
Image: Erick Hodge

On August 2, 1997, during training camp with the Indianapolis Colts, God the Holy Spirit awakened my heart to see my need for Jesus. A former teammate named Steve Grant had shared the Good News with me for five years. Steve was passionate about reaching people with the gospel ...

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|Leadership
Seeing salvation in high-definition.
How Can Enemies Now Be Friends?
Image: Erick Hodge

How can enemies now be friends?

When the people of first-century Ephesus looked at its multiethnic congregations of Jews and Gentiles, this question must have been on their minds. The apostle Paul wrote his letter to encourage these ethnically diverse congregations of former ...

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|Discipleship
Trusting God in difficult circumstances.
We All Have a Little Egypt in Us
Image: Death to Stock

I love the Exodus story. It has mystery, adventure, heroism, defiance, miracles, and the struggle of real people in a world swirling with volatility and danger. So often, I, and perhaps you, read the Bible like it’s a sterile textbook, instead of as God’s redemptive ...

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|Gospel of Grace
What the incarnation means for you.
Jesus, the Ultimate Team Captain
Image: Flickr

What does the word “incarnation” mean and how can it impact your life today? I share about this gospel truth in this short clip from a recent sermon. When Jesus puts on flesh, he becomes our representative to God the Father, like a team captain on the football field. ...

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|Leadership
Developing servant-leaders in the local church.
Ask for a Towel, Not a Title
Image: Flickr

A little while back, I was in a conversation with a gentleman at our monthly newcomer’s gathering. He was a Christ-follower who had walked with Jesus for many years. He asked the typical questions that someone would ask concerning the new local church he was considering ...

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|Church
Live as an ambassador to a hurting world.
#Ferguson and the Cross
Image: Erick Hodge

In August, Michael Brown, an unarmed, black 18-year-old, was shot and killed by Darren Wilson, a white policeman, in Ferguson, Missouri. Tonight, we learned that the grand jury decided not to indict Wilson on any charges related to the event.

In the months since the shooting, ...

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|Evangelism
Three characteristics of high-definition evangelism in a multiethnic world.
Gospel-Centered Evangelism
Image: Erick Hodge

Hi friends, I just finished the first draft of my forthcoming book, The High-Definition Leader: Building Multiethnic Churches in a Multiethnic World. Here is a sneak peek. I sure hope it encourages you.

Ninety-four percent of local churches in America are not growing.

This ...

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|Church
How the consumerist worldview affects the church.
God Is Not Santa Claus
Image: Unsplash

God is not Santa Claus.

But we seem to forget that sometimes because we have embraced a worldview called consumerism. In this way of seeing the world, the consumer is at the center, and his or her goal is to find pleasure and avoid pain by consuming things, experiences, ...

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