Darryl Dash's Blog, page 30

Saturday Links

Curated links for your weekend reading:

Seeking Revival Is the Pastoral Task

In at least four key ways, pastoral ministry is a renewal-seeking enterprise.

Spurgeon on Building a Culture of Evangelism

Spurgeon gives three basic principles for building a culture of evangelism: Patience, Pastoring, and Prayer.

The Two-Bar Strategy: How to Have Ambitious Goals Without Overwhelming Your Days

How do we set ambitious goals without being disappointingly unrealistic in our daily plans?

Give Humble Counsel

Here a...

Don't Start the Race to the Bottom

I’ve heard Seth Godin use the phrase “race to the bottom.” Once you start to compete on being the cheapest, someone else can undercut you. You’ll find that you’ve entered a race based on cutting corners and getting the lowest possible buy-in from customers.

He warns:

…the problem with the race to the bottom is that you might win.
You might make a few more bucks for now, but not for long and not with pride. Someone will always find a way to be cheaper or more brutal than you.

The same applies to mini...

Saturday Links

Curated links for your weekend reading:

The Godliness of a Good Night’s Sleep

For those prone to productive self-reliance, the bed is a desk in God’s school of humility.

Our Missions Approach Is Too Western

If Western missionaries are to be faithful stewards of this treasure, we must avoid the individualism, egalitarianism, and consumerism that mark our culture.

Pray the Directory

One of the practical things you can do to ensure that you pray for all of the people in your church is to pray through you...

How to Autograph a Book

How should you respond when you’re asked to autograph a book?

I guess you sign it, at least if you are the one who wrote the book. But as you do, you battle the temptation to pride. One way to do this is to remind yourself of a biblical truth that helps you keep perspective. A Christian author from the past signed a book this way.

Merrill Tenney was his name. He was a professor of New Testament and Greek, and author of several books. He was the general editor of the Zondervan Pictorial Bible Dicti...

God Fights (Joel)

Big Idea: God fights for his people, but he will fight against those who reject him.

Have I told you what I really appreciate about people? I like people who care enough to fight.

Don’t get me wrong. I don’t like fighting. I hate it. I avoid argumentative people who love to start squabbles. I don’t have time for that. There’s a line from the movie 1917: “Some men just like the fight.” Avoid people like this. In fact, the Bible tells us to guard the church against people like this. “As for a person...

Saturday Links

Curated links for your weekend reading:

Efficiency in Churches

Pastors aren’t managers, they aren’t CEOs, they are gardeners, they are shepherds.

Advice from a Retiring Minister

Some words of advice for young (and old) pastors from John Samuel after 37 years of church ministry.

You Don’t Know When Your Last Sermon Will Be

Every pastor will preach his last sermon — but unlike Jesus, most of them won’t know it. Here are a few examples from history.

What I’ve Learned

From Anglicans, Baptists, and Presbyter...

Personal Update

I have some personal news to share.

Concluding a Ministry

On Sunday, July 16, I announced that I’ll be concluding my ministry at Liberty Grace Church on our tenth anniversary Sunday at the end of September.

I still can’t believe this news. We knew this day was coming, but it’s still hard for me to grasp. From the beginning when we helped start the church, we knew that, with God’s help, I would one day find a successor to take over my role. We’ve had the privilege of seeing God work over the past te...

What Will New Creation Be Like? (Isaiah 65:17-25)

Big Idea: The new creation will be a place of joy and restoration, and we’re made to look forward to that day.

When I was studying to be a pastor, I was invited to speak to a primary school class at a Christian school. The topic was heaven. I had to stand in front of a bunch of kids and tell them what heaven is like.

It was awful. I knew heaven would be good, but I had no idea how to describe it. The thing about kids is that you can’t fake it in front of kids. They know if you don’t know what you’...

Responding to Anxiety (Psalm 3)

Big Idea: Look to him, cry out to him, give him your problems, and then go to sleep.

When’s the last time you stayed up at night worrying about something?

I don’t have to think too hard to answer that question. A couple of weeks ago, we had a tense situation unfold with someone. It was awful. It involved an angry person, lots of stress, and some difficult decisions about how to respond. I went to sleep mostly okay, but then woke up less than three hours later and was up the rest of the night. I wa...

Saturday Links

I will post a sermon tomorrow and on July 30. However, I will not write my regular post next Tuesday or share links next Saturday while I am on a short break.

Curated links for your weekend reading:

What to Do When You Don’t Enjoy Church

If you’ve ever wondered why sometimes church feels more like a burden than a blessing, here are five possible reasons why (and what you can do about them).

13 Principles for Teaching the Bible

Below are 13 principles for teaching the Bible every pastor and teacher sh...