Tag: Gospel-Centered Discipleship

Links for the Weekend (2024-11-15)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

How Pondering Death Fuels Our Faith

Pondering one’s own death might not be popular these days, but Jenny Marcelene argues that it strengthens our faith.

But when I ponder the finiteness of my days, I’m drawn back to what matters most—Jesus. I’m propelled to carve out more moments to soak in God’s Word. To redirect my heart to pray on the way home from dropping kids off at school or at a stoplight. To take those extra moments to listen for the Lord’s voice before declaring my daily devotional time “done.”

Is Every Psalm About Christ?

What is the relationship between Jesus and the Psalms? Can Jesus pray every psalm, even the ones that involve confession of sin? Here’s a solid answer, in video format.

Sardis

Our poem of the week: Sardis, by Tania Runyan. It’s a poem about serving in the church nursery.

On the WPCA Blog This Week

This week on the blog we published an article I wrote called Reading the Bible for the Ten Thousandth Time. If you haven’t already seen it, check it out!

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2024-08-16)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

The Healing Power of Confessing Sins to One Another

Lydia Kinne explains why confessing our sins to each other is such a good practice.

Our pride gets in the way of confessing seeds of sin in our hearts. We’re upstanding church members, Bible study leaders, and parents. How could we possibly have given in to that thought or secret habit? So we nod and smile in small group prayer times, asking for more patience and wisdom while skirting around the things we don’t want to admit.

Every Good Parent Will Have Regrets: Advice to My 30-Year-Old Self

Dave Harvey writes some parenting advice to his younger self and it is full of good reminders.

I didn’t realize that a child’s “seeming” lack of progress was the place where parents truly encounter God. We pray, “God, fix them!” Then God whispers back, “Yes, Dave, they’re on my list. But first let’s talk about you.” Parenting didn’t exhibit my strengths; it exposed my limitations. It revealed the dozens of places where I trusted in myself and my leadership rather than in God. Ultimately, it laid me low and revealed my self-trust. But that weakness drove me to Jesus where, in my desperation, I was able to see he had plans for my kids and power for me (2 Corinthians 12:9).

Memento Vivere

Our poem of the week: Memento Vivere, by Christina Baker. It’s a poem about her thinking after an encounter with a rose bush.

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2024-05-24)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

Hospitality: A Command for Our Joy

I need regular reminders about hospitality; perhaps you do too. One of the particular blessings of this article is the way it describes our spiritual growth through showing hospitality.

If I hadn’t grown up in a community that loved hospitality, I wouldn’t naturally think of having people over for a meal. I can cook, but most of what I make is not that exciting. I love being with others, but too much social interaction exhausts me.

Despite those excuses and the uncertainties children add to the picture, we’ve chosen to prioritize hospitality. This is in part because of the joy it’s brought to our lives but also because Scripture commands us to.

The judgement of getting exactly what we want

Sometimes God shows his kindness by protecting us from what we want; other times he exercises fatherly discipline by giving us what we want.

In the end, we should thank God when he doesn’t give us the desires of our heart or the thing that we prayed for. We should trust that he knows best. He knows what work for his kingdom we are best suited to and what blessings would be more a snare to our hearts than for our ultimate good. Let us give thanks for those things God keeps us from and let us pay attention, if and when we get them and they prove to be hard, that the thing itself may be a judgement upon us.

His Glory and My Good

Here’s a new song by CityAlight which celebrates the way God’s glory and our good work together.

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2024-02-09)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

The Parenting Book Too Few Parents Read

Tim Challies encourages us to learn from the ways our fellow church members parent their children.

And yet I believe that many parents fail to read the parenting book that could make the biggest difference to their lives and families. Many neglect to give their attention to the parenting book that God has set right before them. It’s the “book” that is being written in the lives of the people in their own local church.

Why We Pulled Our Kids from Club Sports

This article is an interview with the athletic director at Dordt University about kids’ involvement in club sports. He highlights the good things about sports for children, and he offers some cautions as well.

Navigating that fine line between loving sports and idolizing sports is really hard, and that’s why we need Christian coaches and leaders to help educate families on moderation—on what is enough for their family. Certainly, we are getting no help from the culture on de-idolizing athletics, so we need to be intentional. We hear loud noises from the greater sports culture saying, “Indulge, indulge, indulge.”

Selfless Self-Control in a Selfish Society

When we think of self-control, we often think primarily of ourselves. This article explains why self-control is commanded of God’s people—to benefit others.

Godly self-control, such as we find described in Titus, is the opposite. It is about us restraining ourselves not just for our own sake but for the sake of other people. Self-control admits that, left to our own devices, we would not tend towards the interests of others but towards our own interests—and seeks to do better.

On the WPCA Blog This Week

This week on the blog we published an article I wrote called God’s Promises Are So Much Better Than We Think. If you haven’t already seen it, check it out!

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2023-08-18)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

Why Is It Better That Jesus Went Away?

In this book excerpt, Brandon Smith explores the surprising moment when Jesus told his disciples it was better that he went away from them. Imagine their shock!

The comfort, however, is the truth that our triune God never leaves us. Though we are intent to destroy ourselves and everything around us, he is faithful to keep moving history toward redemption. When he makes a covenant, he keeps it. When we break the covenant, he still keeps it. Though he may feel distant at times, we know he has never left us—Pentecost is proof. Every promise of God has come true, and the Holy Spirit brings the triune God’s comforting presence into our hearts, come what may.

3 Things You Should Know about Psalms

This short article provides a brief introduction to the Psalms using some facts about that book that might be surprising.

The Psalms portray the life of faith with searing honesty. They poignantly remind us that the pattern of death and resurrection that was etched into the holy humanity of the Lord Jesus Christ is the pattern that the Holy Spirit seeks to replicate in the lives of all God’s children. The book of Psalms is a divinely inspired songbook that reflects the highs and lows, the triumphs and tragedies, of God’s covenant people over a millennium. John Calvin described the Psalms as “an anatomy of all the parts of the soul.” Let us sing the Savior’s songbook, lest we risk impoverishing our worship and robbing ourselves of the rich spirituality contained within its songs. 

God of Every Grace – The Story Behind the Song

Kristyn Getty explains the background and lyrics to the new hymn God of Every Grace. The song lyrics explore how God is with us in our deepest sorrow. You can listen to the song here. Here’s the chorus.

Now to the God of every grace
Who counts my tears, who holds my days
I sing through sorrows, sing with faith
O praise the God of every grace

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2023-05-05)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

Union with Christ: An Unbreakable Fellowship

The doctrine of union with Christ is deep and wonderful and sustaining for a Christian. This short article gives an introduction to union with Christ.

The doctrine of union with Christ changed my life. It changed the way I conceive of my relationship with God. It changed the way I read the Bible. It changed the way I pray. It changed the way I pastor. It changed everything.

The Power of Encouragement

It’s worth considering: in any given day, we often have the most impact on the people we encourage.

It’s interesting that near the end of Moses’s life, God tells Moses not once but twice, to encourage Joshua. God knew the leadership burden and the opposition that Joshua would face. He knew the shadow Joshua would live in as the leader following Moses: the man who led the Israelites out of Egypt, who had met God face-to-face on Mount Sinai, and who delivered the Ten Commandments to God’s people.

Midlife and the Striver’s Curse

In this article the author describes three lies that we tend to believe as we head into middle age. He also offers helpful, corrective truths.

While there is some debate on when midlife occurs, I’m going to suggest that it begins sometime between ages thirty-five to forty-five. This season is revealing to me where I have unknowingly believed some lies. While always susceptible to them, they have a tendency to creep up with intensity in midlife.

On the WPCA Blog This Week

This week on the blog we published an article I wrote called How to Ask Better Questions. If you haven’t already seen it, check it out!

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2023-03-03)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

We Must Repent: An Introduction to Lent

This article is a nice introduction to Lent.

Lent, then, is about turning away from our sins and toward the living God. A season dedicated to repentance and renewal should not lead us to despair; it should cause us to praise God for his grace. Central to Lent is the idea that we need this kind of renewal consistently throughout our lives. We do not receive God’s grace only when we turn to him at the beginning of our spiritual journey. God’s grace meets us again and again.

The Scariest Thing Jesus Ever Said

Scott Sauls offers his thoughts on the scariest thing Jesus ever said, and then he goes on to discuss the (related) matters of faith and works.

Both Jesus and James are putting a spotlight on our inclination to replace Jesus’ call to deny ourselves, take up our crosses, and follow him. We replace his call with a self-serving path in which we deny our neighbors, take up our comforts, and follow our dreams. When we do this, we exchange true faith for a counterfeit. We exchange irresistible faith with a way of thinking, believing and living that God himself will resist. Why is this so? Because demonstrating active concern for our neighbors—especially those whom Jesus calls “the least of these”—is an inseparable aspect of a true, Godward faith.

5 Things You Should Know about the Doctrine of the Trinity

This article has an historical flavor, explaining the importance of, and some of the misunderstandings of, the doctrine of the Trinity.

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2022-12-02)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

The King Came in Rags

Sometimes a simple, straightforward meditation on the great contrasts of the incarnation is exactly what we need.

Jesus didn’t look like a King, either. His appearance was marred with no form, majesty, or beauty that would have captured our attention as he walked past (Isa. 52:14; 53:2). His face carried the marks of tears and grievous afflictions. We would turn our faces away and fail to esteem him as we ought (Isa. 53:3). Our Savior knows the depths of rejection and sorrow since the very people he came to save are the ones who rejected him (John 1:11). We all rejected him—at least until he opened our eyes to see how great he truly is.

The Value of Repeated Bible Reading

Scott Slayton encourages us to read sections of the Bible repeatedly and force ourselves to summarize what we’ve read.

To me, the most important aspect of Dash’s post was what you do on the last day you read a section. He advises that you go through a write a one-sentence summary of each division in the section you are reading. You might do this by paragraph or by section, but it is a necessity that you do this. There is something about writing that helps us gain a grasp of what we have read. In addition, when you go back and look over what you have written, it refreshes your mind about what is in a passage.

New Advent Resources: 75-Song Playlist, Books, and More

This article contains links to Advent resources you can purchase, but its greatest value might be the playlist of Advent music to help you prepare for the season.

On the WPCA Blog This Week

This week on the blog we published an article written by Zack Wisniewski called Truth and the Silver Screen. If you haven’t already seen it, check it out!

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2022-11-04)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

The Body Is Bigger Than You Think

Trevin Wax writes about the ways he has realized the body of Christ is larger than he assumed and why we need the global church.

Yes, Christians have divided into various traditions and denominations, but despite the outward differences, every true believer in Christ is connected by “mystic sweet communion” to all the Christians who have gone before and to all true Christians around the world today. The beating heart of orthodoxy joins us to confessors across space and time. We say, “I believe,” and we know we share a commonality with millions of people who have found the same treasure, who recite the same words, who believe the same concepts and trust the same Savior. The Body is big.

From Burden to Image Bearer: How God Changed My View of Children

The title of this article does a lot to convey its content. I enjoyed reading about how relationships in the local church helped Lainee Oliver view children more biblically.

My love for her children began to grow, and so did my heart toward motherhood and children in general. The Lord used this family—along with other families in my church and the faithful preaching of his Word each Sunday morning—to put right before my eyes the joy of raising children to know and love God. The more I got outside my college student bubble, the closer I became with families who valued children rightly. Couples who weren’t just raising children for the self-gratification of raising “successful” kids, but because of their calling as parents who viewed their children as fellow image bearers of our Almighty God.

Hymn of the Day

I love this idea: an email every day with the lyrics to a hymn. Often the emails will contain some historical or theological background to the hymn and/or a link to a recording on YouTube. I just signed up for this email; maybe it will interest you too!

On the WPCA Blog This Week

This week on the blog we published an article I wrote called Gather With All Ages. If you haven’t already seen it, check it out!

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2022-09-09)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

Money’s Not the Problem

Paul Tripp reflects on problems that we have with money, and what those problems can tell us about deeper matters.

Your financial life is always determined more by the desires of your heart than by the size of your income. To the degree that you ask money to provide for you what it was never meant to provide, to that degree you will find it very hard to be careful and disciplined in your use of money. Money can’t buy you a satisfied heart, money can’t buy you peace and happiness, and money can’t buy you a reason to get up in the morning. Money isn’t meant to be your source of comfort when you are hurting or of hope when you are feeling discouraged. Money can’t and was never intended to give you life. To ask money to do any of those things will always lead to money troubles.

The Messy Home of Blessing

Raising children can be really hard. This article reminds us why that hard work is worthwhile, despite what others might say.

Whenever God gives a child, he’s entrusting us with a precious and eternal heritage — a new life that will never end, and that, Lord willing, will grow to change and shape the world in all kinds of ways (maybe even having children of their own). Their impact on eternity will easily outweigh whatever work the world holds up as more meaningful and consequential.

Jesus Wants You to Know You Are Weak

Even Christians need to be reminded that there is no such thing as self-reliant Christianity.

Why highlight this point if we are already gospel people? Because we need constant reminders. Jesus reminded His disciples that they were already clean because of the word he had spoken to them (John 15:3). This motley crew of ragamuffins didn’t have it all together and neither do we. We are so forgetful. We often do our devotions and move into the workday as though the weight is completely on our shoulders. We treat our vocations, our hobbies, our parenting, and sometimes even our ministries as though we don’t really need much help. We’re like the adopted child who keeps trying to prove to his parents that he is part of the family.

On the WPCA Blog This Week

This week on the blog we published an article written by Caroline Higginbottom called Toward Mending a Divided World. If you haven’t already seen it, check it out!

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here.