Darryl Dash's Blog, page 42
December 4, 2022
We Need People (Colossians 4:7-18)
Big Idea: We need people to encourage us, serve with us, and serve.
I know we’re not even past Christmas yet, but in just 98 days, we’ll be watching the Oscars.
You know the drill. They’ll appoint an emcee or two who will try to entertain us. There will be performances and awards, lots of awards. And the awards will be followed by speeches, most of which will go something like this:
I can’t believe I’ve won. Wow. What an honor to be chosen amongst all the other people who were also nominated.
I wan...
December 3, 2022
Saturday Links
Curated links for your weekend reading:
It is not enough simply to accept obscurity, if it happens to be our lot. Rather, there is virtue in positively pursuing obscurity, in seeking anonymity and nonrecognition.
Self-Promotion and the Kingdom of God
The ultimate aim of the universe is not our supremacy but the supremacy of Jesus Christ.
We can learn a lot about the way de-conversions work through stories like Saruman’s.
November 29, 2022
Earth Filled With Heaven
In 2010, I took a three-month sabbatical. We started attending an Anglican Church during my sabbatical, and I discovered how much I treasured liturgy.
Liturgy had always been unfamiliar to me. I heard people criticize it as rote repetition and dead religion. But I had developed a hunger for something more, and I found it in the simple low-Anglican service I attended that summer.
Take the written prayers. I was used to extemporaneous prayer, which, when done well, can be helpful. When I began to ex...
November 27, 2022
Prayer and Evangelism (Colossians 4:2-6)
Big Idea: Speak to God about people, and speak to people about God.
We started a church in Liberty Village over 9 years ago. The reason we started is not just because we wanted another church in town. The reason we started this church is because we needed an outpost of heaven in one of the fastest-growing communities in Toronto.
We’re pretty simple. We want to be a church that’s built around three things:
gospel — what Jesus Christ has done for us in turning sinners into saints, choosing us, adopti...November 26, 2022
Saturday Links
Curated links for your weekend reading:
When we read the Old Testament laws, it can seem like women get a raw deal … But, as we take a closer look, we see that God has abundant mercy for women on display—even in these laws.
Can Christians Date Nonbelievers?
Who you marry will likely shape who you become more than any other human relationship.
Missed Your Quiet Time? Do This.
God’s mercies are new every morning (Lam. 3:22) — they were this morning when we overslept, and th...
November 22, 2022
Don’t Pastor Like Elon Musk
Facebook’s motto for its developers used to be “Move Fast and Break Things.”
Since entering Twitter headquarters on October 26 with a sink, Elon Musk seems to have borrowed from Facebook’s old playbook. He’s laid off half the staff, made Twitter verification a paid service, issued ultimatums, and faced mass resignations. Last week, rumors swirled that Twitter would shut down as early as last Thursday night.
Some think that Musk has miscalculated. Others think that Musk is simply following a playbo...
November 19, 2022
Saturday Links
Curated links for your weekend reading:
Looking Back: 3 Lessons from My Deepest Valley
Looking back from the vantage point of a decade, I find three lessons coming to the fore – lessons which may just help others, whether they be fellow sufferers or those seeking to minister to them.
Screen Sabbaths: A Modest Proposal for a Digital World
Taking disciplined time away from screens may not be the only way to live in the digital world without being conformed to it, but it is one good way.
November 15, 2022
Sing Loud, Die Happy
Singing is a big deal for Christians.
It’s “one of the most repeated commands in Holy Scripture,” according to Jim Thompson, author of Sing Loud, Die Happy: An Exploration of How God's Gift of Song Is Meant to Change Us. “It’s right up there with ‘believe’ and ‘do not fear.’” It’s so important that Martin Luther said, “Next to theology, I give to music the highest place and the greatest honor.”
And yet I’m not sure that many of us have given much thought to why singing matters to us as Christians....
November 13, 2022
Remember Who You Are (Colossians 3:1-17)
Big Idea: Remember who you are; act in light of who you are.
In my mind, one of the most fascinating characters of the 20th century was Edward Albert Christian George Andrew Patrick David, better known as King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Empire and Emperor of India from 20 January 1936 until he abdicated in December of the same year and became simply the Duke of Windsor.
What’s so interesting about him? Any king who abdicates is fascinating. Even before he be...
November 12, 2022
Saturday Links
Curated links for your weekend reading:
We must be willing to go as slow as necessary in order to see faithful local leaders raised up. We can only do this by trusting God with the timing, the adjusted expectations, and the weight of the lostness around us.
You Are the Horse: Low-Bar Evangelism Strategy
After a while you can provide some more training and equip them for some bigger jumps where they might start articulating the gospel to other people and answering their questions....
