A Call to Belong

As it seems, the 20 Christian blogs post has brought a lot of new traffic. For those of you passing through, feel free to subscribe (email available as well)! Use the links to the right in the sidebar. I think we tend to have fun around here, as we all are walking up to the cliff and jumping off. Some of us are church planters, some of us are pastors, some of us are dads, some of us are a combination, and some of us can’t be categorized. But the bottom line is this: we’re journeying together. Feel free to join; newcomers welcome!

20 Christian Blogs You Should Be Reading

With all the lists going around, I figured I’d do one that actually mattered; one we could learn from, instead of just a list of beauty contest winners.  So without further ado, a list of 20 Christian blogs (not necessarily church-planting related) you should be reading.

  1. Evotional by Mark Batterson. This one is a no-brainer. Mark basically put Christian blogging on the map, and he’s the first Christian blog I started reading on a regular basis. He posts regularly with high-quality content. Plus, he’s in DC.
  2. Tony Morgan Live by Tony Morgan. This is another no-brainer. Tony was also one of the original Christian bloggers; it was “simply strategic” for him to do so. Har har.
  3. Monday Morning Insight. I must confess: I’m not a subscriber. Lots of great content, good layout, plenty of people tuning in. I’m just not one of ‘em. But I know it’s a good blog.
  4. Perry Noble dot com by Perry Noble. Great content. Could be updated a little more regular, but great content. I’m just as passionate as he is about some things, so I connect with him well.
  5. Challies dot com by Tim Challie. You want to talk about content? This guy has it. Almost too much. The only thing that brings him down in my eyes? Not enough short content. I don’t feel like reading a book every post. But it takes something special to write like that on a daily basis.
  6. dinorizzo.com by Dino Rizzo. Great stuff from the Ragin’ Cajun. Terrific layout, nice content, and lots of pretty pictures to look at.
  7. Mad Babble from a Church Planter by Gary Lamb. This one’s fiery too. He’s got great content, a decent layout (it’s very readable), and he’s a great guy leading a great church in GA. Why isn’t he 5 or 6? He’s a GA Bulldogs fan. Go Gamecocks.
  8. Earl Creps by Earl Creps. Awesome blog, just recently came across it. Awesome content, with a beautiful layout. I’d much rather see more of the posts on the front page, though.
  9. History in the Making by Ben Arment. Nice content, not just church stuff, either. His church is going through a major transition right now, and it’s been awesome to follow him along in that.
  10. Velocity by Dave Ferguson. The President of the National New Church Conference is using blogs to his advantage in some creative ways, reminiscient of Mark Batterson with Evotional. Good stuff out of Chi-Town.
  11. The Forgotten Ways by Alan Hirsch. The famous missiological writer has a missional blog too. Good content, pretty design.
  12. Church Communications Pro. This guy is all over the place when it comes to tech and church. He covers it all; from music to podcasts and sites to blogs. Good content, decent layout, good blog.
  13. Tadd Grandstaff by Tadd Grandstaff. This church planters’ blog is great. Tadd’s at a point right now where it’s like following along in his story from the very beginning, instead of picking up a year in. He’s a good writer, his layout changes constantly to keep things interesting, and he’s big on comments. Good stuff.
  14. Goodmanson.Com by Drew Goodmanson. Awesome, awesome content. Combine it with a great layout, and you’ve got a great blog. Definite top 10 if he posted more often.
  15. kaleobill.com by Bill Streger. This Texan has a great blog with a good design, but it can be improved upon. Pretty decent content too.
  16. Mark Driscoll’s blog by Mark Driscoll. Man, I wished he posted more often. Good content otherwise, but it’s far and few between.
  17. LeadingSmart by Tim Stevens. A late arrival onto the scene, he was once Tony Morgan’s partner in crime. Keep a lookout for his blog’s stock to be on the rise.
  18. To Encourage and Equip by Tally Wilgis. Decent content, and a good layout make for a solid blog from this church planter.
  19. Pastor Steve Weaver’s Blog by Steve Weaver. I wouldn’t expect any of you to read this guy, but his stuff on preaching and the church is awesome. Simply stunning. Bravo, Steve!
  20. bobfranquiz.com by Bob Franquiz. Great blog, period. Good content, pretty layout. Good stuff.

Notables That Didn’t Make It:

LifeChurch.tv (Swerve): Too new.

Shawn Lovejoy: Too new.

Scot McKnight: Not a real fan of the content or writing style.

Jonathan Herron: Barely squeezed from the top 20. Barely.

Not Counting As Blog:

Church Relevance, Church Marketing Sucks, Churchonomics, etc.

A Simple Prayer

God,

Thank you for choosing a time and place for me that includes running water.

In Your Son’s Name,

Amen.

Throughout your day today, thank Him for the little things. For some reason, I got out of bed this morning really appreciating them.

Harmony Church Newsletter

If you want to subscribe to our upcoming newsletter, click here: Subscribe.

The Transfiguration: A New Model

In thinking about being missional, and how the church is to manifest itself in the culture, we first have to look back in order to move forward. In Exodus 25:40, God sums up the execution of the Law by saying this: See that you make them according to the pattern shown to you on the mountain. That is, just as God has stated in His Word, so it shall be done on earth in practice.

The Transfiguration is the Word of God, King Jesus Christ, shown in His full glory. Exodus 25:40 still applies. In our implementation of the Kingdom of God here on earth, we have to make sure that our application still matches the pattern on the mountain: the Glory of Christ. The Church should reflect His Glory, regardless of culture and circumstance.

Just a thought from last week’s teaching.