by Brad Blocksom | Sep 15, 2020 | General, Missional, Practical Theology
That’s right. It as was October-December of 2016 when I made the transition from Institutional Church (IC) to Missional-Organic Church. Thought it might be nice to post some thoughts on the journey thus far. 1.) ITS HARD – Yep! I don’t know what else...
by Brad Blocksom | Aug 31, 2020 | Devotionals, Discipleship, Preaching
Mark (p. 1776) They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!” (Books*) “and there was a great calm.” (Mark 4:39, ESV) Who is Jesus? The disciples don’t know at this point. They are clueless...
by Brad Blocksom | Mar 16, 2020 | Practical Theology
Dear friends, house church leaders, organic church practitioners, and adherents of the simple church model, I am one of you. I left the Institutional Church (IC) in 2016, and have been on the journey with you of exploring what it means to practice Christianity outside...
by Brad Blocksom | Jan 27, 2020 | Leadership, Missional, Practical Theology, Reviews, Theology
Full disclosure up front: I love Alan Hirsch! He is one of my favorite authors and missional thinkers/leaders. His book, The Forgotten Ways, literally changed my life. But enough about that. In 2017, I walked out of the Missio Alliance conference with an armful of...
by Brad Blocksom | Sep 8, 2019 | Christian Living, Church & Pastoral, General, Healing, Missional, Practical Theology, Prayer, Reviews, Small Groups, The Vineyard Movement, Theology
Disclaimer: Mike Turrigiano is one of my favorite people in the Vineyard movement! Luke Geraty (his co-author) is a friend and kinda my boss here at Think Theology. What follows is my attempt to, none-the-less, provide an impartial, unbiased review of Pastor...
by Robby McAlpine | Aug 5, 2019 | Cultural Engagement, Disciple Making, Discipleship, Evangelicalism, Missional, Practical Theology
We all know what George Orwell said in his famous dystopian novel 1984: “In times of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.” The glistening irony of this quote is that Orwell neither said it nor wrote it. People tend to balk at hearing this. The...
by Robby McAlpine | Jul 27, 2019 | Church Life, Discipleship, Evangelism, Forgiveness, General, Healing, Messy Church, Practical Theology
“But one thing I do: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.” ~ Philippians 3:13-14 Memory can be a tricky thing. Case in...
by Brad Blocksom | Jul 24, 2019 | Devotionals, Ethics, Practical Theology
Leviticus (p. 151) “If, however, they are poor and cannot afford these they must take one male lamb as a guilt offering to be waved to make atonement for them, together with a tenth of an ephah of the finest flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering, a log...
by Brad Blocksom | Jul 17, 2019 | Devotionals, Discipleship, Practical Theology
Mark (p. 1782) Peter answered, “You are the Messiah.” (Books)The Books of the Bible, NIV Jesus heals the blind (p. 1782), casts out demons (p. 1781), miraculously multiplies bread to feed thousands, stills storms, and yet the disciples still don’t...
by Robby McAlpine | Jul 2, 2019 | Cultural Engagement, Messy Church, Missional, Practical Theology, Prayer, Revival
The crackling fire provided a calming soundtrack to their yearly gathering. A log shifted, and a swirl of sparks gusted heavenward, the sizzling sound accented by a choir of crickets in the darkness and the occasional blip of unseen fish breaking the surface of the...
by Brad Blocksom | Jun 20, 2019 | Devotionals, Practical Theology
Mark (p. 1786) “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. (Books*) Jesus took the twelve aside again to remind them of His coming suffering and death...
by Robby McAlpine | May 18, 2019 | Discipleship, Evangelicalism, Practical Theology, Revival
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by Brad Blocksom | Mar 30, 2019 | Devotionals, Discipleship, Practical Theology, Prayer
Mark (p. 1791) do not let him find you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’ ” (Books) Jesus prophesies the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple. The disciples ask ‘when will this happen and what will be the sign?’ Jesus...
by Michael Sterns | Dec 12, 2018 | General, Practical Theology
Philippians 4:11-13 …I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether...
by Michael Sterns | Oct 25, 2018 | General, Practical Theology
Psalm 13 How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? I just recently celebrated two years at the church that I work at. It is an absolute honor and privilege to work at this church, and it is incredible working with my...
by Robby McAlpine | Apr 30, 2018 | Messy Church, Practical Theology, Revival, The Vineyard Movement
“The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, but the Lord tests the heart.” (Proverbs 17:3) Purify my heart, let me be as gold and precious silver Refiner’s fire; my heart’s one desire is to be holy Set apart for You, Lord (Refiner’s Fire ~ Brian Doerksen) The...
by Robby McAlpine | Dec 29, 2017 | Disciple Making, Discipleship, Ethics, Evangelicalism, Leadership, Missional, Practical Theology, Small Groups
Our church recently completed a sermon series on the book of Ephesians, and one of the repeated bylines for this series was the phrase: “Bringing our behaviour in line with our beliefs”. And in a nutshell, that is precisely what Roger Helland’s newest book, The Devout...
by Able Baker | Dec 21, 2017 | Leadership
Not all pastors are pastors in the same way. Sure, we can turn to Titus 1:5-9, 1 Tim. 3:1-7, and 1 Peter 5:1-4 to learn something about what it means to be a pastor. What is often not talked about is what kind of person the gift of pastor falls upon. In this article I...
by Able Baker | Dec 14, 2017 | Church Life
As a pastor do you desire to become more involved in the life of the community outside the church building’s walls? I don’t mean something along the lines of “hey, let’s turn God’s church into a community center”. I’m taking about a desire to...
by Brad Blocksom | Oct 28, 2017 | Evangelicalism, Leadership, Missional, Practical Theology
Dear Protestants, Coming up this Tuesday (October 31, 2017) we celebrate the 500th anniversary of the start of the Protestant Reformation launched by a simple act of academic publication, when an Augustin Monk and Professor of Sacred Theology at the University of...
