Playing Church
On January 1, 2012, we are going to stop “Playing Church!” I know of at least one Council member who doesn’t particularly care for the title. That’s understandable. Often, when we characterize people as “playing church,” we mean that we don’t think they are taking their faith and the cost of discipleship seriously enough. In other [...]
Hosea and Gomer in their later years
I know it may not seem like it, but there are times when I can not bring everything to church in the message that I would like to bring. Yesterday was one of those days. While researching for the message, I came across a poem by John Piper on Hosea and Gomer in their later [...]
The PAPA Prayer devotionals
Over the course of the next several weeks, I would like to lead you through “The PAPA Prayer: The prayer you’ve never prayed,” by Larry Crabb. I have to admit that when I first saw the book and read the introduction, I thought, “The guy is selling snake oil.” The title of the book seemed [...]
Almost Finished
It’s late on Saturday, March 19. Within the next 14 hours or so, I plan to head out to Oconomowoc, Wisconsin for a retreat at The Cedarly from the Pastor’s Retreat Network. I will be on a “media fast” while I am there, so I will be unavailable except for emergencies. On Monday, March 28, I will return [...]
Leave of Absence
By now, most of you reading this know that I am taking a 12-week leave of absence. I partially explained the reason behind that on Sunday when I announced it during our morning worship. Since not everyone was there on Sunday and since some might want more of an idea of what I’m going to [...]
Journey to the Heart of God
“In 1864 Jules Verne published ‘Journey to the Center of the Earth,’ the charming narrative of the adventures of a party of three…who have lowered themselves into an extinct volcanic crater.” Their goal? To reach the center of the earth. (You can find the book at Amazon.com…or your local library.) A journey to the center [...]
Who is Pastor Cal?
Calvin Friend has been serving the Bethel congregation since July, 2001. Prior to that, he served as an Associate Pastor at Immanuel Christian Reformed Church in Ripon, CA. He has a wife and four children. He likes waterskiing, woodworking and writing...all of which start with W, but that probably doesn't mean anything.
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Playing Church
[Translate] On January 1, 2012, we are going to stop “Playing Church!” I know of at least one Council member who doesn’t particularly care for the title. That’s understandable. Often, when we characterize people as “playing church,” we mean that we don’t think they are taking their faith and the cost of discipleship seriously enough. In [...]
Hosea and Gomer in their later years
[Translate] I know it may not seem like it, but there are times when I can not bring everything to church in the message that I would like to bring. Yesterday was one of those days. While researching for the message, I came across a poem by John Piper on Hosea and Gomer in their [...]
The PAPA Prayer devotionals
[Translate] Over the course of the next several weeks, I would like to lead you through “The PAPA Prayer: The prayer you’ve never prayed,” by Larry Crabb. I have to admit that when I first saw the book and read the introduction, I thought, “The guy is selling snake oil.” The title of the book [...]
