By Matthew R. Olson in Alumni, Church
Once in awhile I will visit a church where I feel like I would like to just stay and become a member! Such was the case at Keystone. Every part of what I saw was refreshing and encouraging. Andrew is an alumnus of Northland and I couldn’t be more thrilled with what I saw. My prayer is that we can be an encouragement to families and churches like these.
Pictured above is Andrew and Vivian Haney with their children at Keystone Bible Church in Odessa, FL.
By Matthew R. Olson in Church, Encouragement
This past Sunday I had the opportunity to speak at Colonial Baptist Church in Cary, NC, where Stephen Davey is pastor. While I have known Stephen for many years, and still remember when he planted this church, we have not done a good job in staying in touch. This was a great reconnect and a very encouraging day for both Diane and I. We were extremely impressed with the ministry of the church and were also surprised with how many people we knew! It was especially encouraging to meet up with a number of Northland alumni.
Sunday evening we drove up to Virgina Beach, VA to spend a couple of days with my parents. I was able also to enjoy some good fellowship with my friend Daniel Davey (Stephen’s brother). Daniel is pastor of Colonial Baptist Church in Virgina Beach. It was another uplifting time. As we head home, my heart is full of thanksgiving to God for two brothers who have great passion for Christ and His church.
Here is what I found common with both of them:
I am thankful for these brothers!
By Matthew R. Olson in Church
I have great confidence in this next generation. They get what matters most. This was evidenced in my visit Sunday to Grace Bible Church in Philadelphia, where Ian McConnell serves as the pastor for preaching and vision. It was great to connect with some Northland alumni at Grace as well. Danny Adams (and his wife Becky [Dillabaugh]) serves as the the pastor for children’s ministries. Jesse Trach is currently an elder in training and being evaluated for pastoral ministry and Nathan Branine is attending Grace while making much of Jesus in the Philadelphia school systems. Come the beginning of September Greg Dietrich and his wife will be relocating to Philadelphia to attend Grace and work remotely for us at Northland.
My soul was refreshed and encouraged as I saw a variety of things taking place at Grace. At Grace they focus on Christ in all that they do. This was evidenced by their worship, expository preaching, and deliberateness of their service. This is a church that is multi-ethnic, has a heart for the city, thriving with young people, and getting ready to launch a church plant in the next 9-12 months into another part of the city. They get what matters most.
By Matthew R. Olson in Around the Web, Church, Education
“College should be a temporary season of academic preparation and personal growth to propel a lifetime of effective service to God and neighbor. It should be a launching pad into all that goes with responsible Christian adulthood. Yet for some it’s a time when they abandon the Christian faith, displaying that they never really belonged to Christ (1 John 2:19).”
Brian Croft at Practical Shepherding had this to say in his post this week, “Husbands, here is some very practical advice on ways to communicate love to your wife. This is what I shared at the men’s luncheon on Monday at the Berean Baptist Church Marriage Conference and we had a great discussion about them. Use them as a template to know how to best make your wife feel loved and cherished by you.”
So what should I do when I start attending a new church? DeYoung gives you a list of seven items.
This is a follow up to the previous post of “How to Start at Your New Church.” Again, an excellent list of seven items.