The following post is by Troy Hostetter, an elder at Redeemer Church: Recent events in the lives of friends and neighbors reminded me again of the need to be merciful to those who are in need of mercy.  What follows is a great call to be merciful by D. Martin Lloyd Jones in his Sermon on…

Jack Miller wrote a book entitled “Outgrowing the Ingrown Church”. I’ve only just read the first chapter, but merely reflecting on the title has proven convicting and challenging. Churches easily become ingrown. They easily become self-focused. They easily slip into “maintenance-mode” and “survival-mode” instead of having a sense of urgency and mission. Both corporately and…

(The following is an excerpt from the Easter sermon) Just yesterday, Amy and I went to a funeral and took our daughter with us. It was her first funeral, and, being only 20 months old, she was oblivious to what was happening. While others were somber, grieving, weeping, she was smiling, laughing, exclaiming “Hi pup!” (she loves dogs and…