Hey, this Sunday is going to be Tom's last Sunday with us before he begins his ministry in Chester, PA. I am so proud of you, Tom! We're going to have a picnic in his honor this Sunday at Fisher Farm Park.

There will be a softball game at 3:00 pm. Dinner will be at 5:00 pm. Hot dogs and hamburgers will be provided. Everyone please bring a side dish and drink to share. It's going to be a great time of fellowship! Come help us send Tom off with a lot of love, prayer and support!

A 15-minute film that may change your life forever.

Shout out to Tim for the link!

Interested in some good reading and reflecting? Sink your teeth into the new 9Marks newsletter (available in a PDF Version) which contains the following articles:

The Therapeutic Gospel by David Powlison
The therapeutic gospel limits itself to giving people what they want, instead of calling for a change of what they ultimately want.

Brian McLaren and the Gospel of Here & Now by Greg Gilbert
This emerging leader is alright on the "already," but neglects the "not yet."

Satanism, Starbucks, and Other Gospel Challenges an interview with David Wells
The medium is the message, and theologian David Wells says the gospel message is increasingly compromised by "relevant" methods.

Leaving Home, Returning Home by Michael Lawrence
This biblical theology of the Fall identifies precisely why a gospel is necessary.

The Devil's Favorite Domino–the Penal in Penal Substitution by Jonathan Leeman
Here's why the penal in penal substitution is all precious, and why the devil always topples it first.

Gospel Coalition Travelogue by Michael McKinley
A report from the frontline of Carson and Keller's Gospel Coalition Conference.

There is also a roundtable discussion on explaining the gospel to unbelievers and reviews of the following books: N.T. Wright's Simply Christian, Leonard Sweet's The Gospel According to Starbucks, and Erwin McManus' Soul Cravings.

Wow! I ran across this clip on Tony McCollum's blog today, and it was too good not to pass along. Check out Tony's site to read his reflections on the video. Couldn't have said it better myself!

There is so much misunderstanding concerning the Gospel. A friend of mine recently forwarded me the following email. It was from a friend of his who was explaining his understanding of salvation. Here's a portion of what he wrote:

"We believe the concept of being saved is not dependent on just accepting Jesus as your savior... accepting Jesus is only the FIRST STEP. After that comes many other things, like living a charitable and Godly life. Even 'saints' have questioned on their deathbeds if they done enough to enter God's kingdom. Read More...

I met Tom Smith more than 20 years ago while I was a seminary student in Cincinnati. He quickly became an early mentor to me and has been a friend through the years. I recently found out that his wife, Debbie has been diagnosed with extensive cancer. Please pray. Thank you.

http://lovingdebsmith.blogspot.com

We had some very delicious desserts at the church picnic tonight thanks to the guys who participated in our Father's Day Cake Bake-Off. All the guys did a terrific job! Here were the results:

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Nor have I fallen off the planet, I've just been tied up with other things. In fact, I've even gotten behind on the 30 or so blogs that I try to keep up with on a daily basis. I've been playing catch up tonight and there have been some really good ones:

• Perry Noble on following Christ - spot on!
• Tim Stevens on Donald Miller - Go Poets!
• Sobering stats from Mark Driscoll
• Mark Waltz reminder of God's kingdom agenda

I'm looking forward to the Hot-Doggin' Talent Show and picnic tomorrow night. Hot dogs cooked to perfection by Don "the grill master" Bredamus... and then look out for dessert! The men have been challenged to pull out all the stops for our Father's Day Cake Bake-Off. I'll try to post some pictures of all the masterpieces. Remember, the picnic starts at 5:00 pm. Hope to see you there!

Click on the picture for more photos

Wow, what a game! We played First Presbyterian Church tonight and they are always a tough team to beat. They jumped out to an early 11-0 lead in the very first inning - ouch! We chipped away at their lead throughout the game, but they added several runs and were up 18-10 (I think) in the last inning. We definitely needed some serious runs in a serious way!

We scored a couple and were down to our last out. We had pulled to within 1 with a couple of runners on base. There was a sharply hit grounder which scored the runner from third, the throw to first was bobbled and Jonathan Peters came racing from second, around third, headed for home, trying to beat the throw from the first baseman. . . he slid, the catcher applied the tag. . . and the umpired yelled. . . "Safe!" He slid in under the tag for the game winning run! What a come back! We ended up winning 19-18. That was a lot of fun - way to play, guys!

After just returning from camping out in the Mount Rogers recreational area, this post from Al Mohler strongly resonated with me. "Turn off the Nintendo, the television, and the computer and send the kids outdoors." Amen!

Have you seen Apple's new iPhone? They just keep raising the bar. I've told several people that while it would really be neat to have one, the price is simply out of my league.

But then I watched these.

No, I won't be purchasing one any time soon, but even if you're not an Apple fan, you've got to admit, these are pretty cool.

I missed being with everyone this past Sunday, but I had an absolute blast camping out over the weekend with the guys from our Thursday men's group. I'll be posting some pictures of our excursions later this week, so keep your eyes peeled. Even though I love to teach, an occasional week off from speaking is really refreshing. I'm really looking forward to getting back into our journey through the Old Testament. This Sunday we're going to be looking at the lives of Isaac, Jacob and Joseph, focusing on the truth that God is always with us! Read More...