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| John Piper | 
This article was triggered
by the drift of my mind on Sunday afternoon toward the Apple Computer
video ads. They are funny. But as I was pondering Mac vs. PC, I began to
ask myself if I was lured away from being spiritually minded. I do believe
it is possible to think about computers in a spiritual way. But was I
doing that? Or was I drifting into the very fascination and desire that
makes God feel remote and the Bible unattractive and heaven irrelevant and
hell inconceivable? It was a critical moment. God snatched me.
Being spiritually minded is a matter of life and death. Paul said in Romans 8:6, “To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.” The phrase “set the mind on the Spirit” translates a noun phrase, phronēma tou pneumatos— “mindset of the Spirit.” There is no good one-word English equivalent for phronēma. It is not just “mind” but also “attitude.” And not just “mindset” but also “attitude-set.” It is the frame and disposition of our mind. To say that we have a “phronēma of the Spirit” is to say that the Spirit is shaping our mind- attitude-set according to his own. It exalts Christ and values God and cherishes the Word of God and sees people and things with a relentless God- consciousness. I long to be spiritually minded all the time. I want to see the world with spiritual eyes—computers and all. So I stopped computer gazing and wrote the following strategies for being and staying spiritually minded. They are not in any particular order. Only as they came to me with a few tweaks. | |||||
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| Brad Hambrick | 
Have you
lived the book of Judges lately? Not have you read the book of Judges
lately, but have you lived it? The chorus of Judges is, “The Israelites
did evil in the eyes of the Lord their God.” Then there is a new verse of
a different Judge who God sends to deliver Israel from its sin
bondage—Othniel, Deborah, Gideon, most famously Samson and several others—
before the chorus begins again.
When we read the story of Judges, we shake our heads with a pious grin and confused chuckle. Could they not learn from the mistakes of one generation to the next? Could they not be satisfied with God’s blessings to the intermittent generations of faithfulness? When we live the book of Judges we feel dumb, ashamed, embarrassed, like hiding, and defeated. We did know better. We had been there, done that, and still bear the scars to prove it; yet we did it again. After a moment of God’s gracious deliverance—whether it be conviction or more commonly exposure—we see the foolishness of our actions for what they really are. Now the big question: WHY DO WE DO IT AGAIN, AND AGAIN! AND AGAIN? The short answer: we domesticate sin. We view sin as just the bad things that we do. It is there when we do it, but otherwise it is a non entity. We do not believe sin has a lasting presence, personality, or agenda. We believe sin is there to serve us (if we could get away with it), rather than seeing its desire to rule our lives. | |||||
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| Brad Hambrick | Sermon from Hebrews
3:12-14 
[The
following message was given on October 23, 2006 at the First Baptist
Church of Waynesboro. If your church or ministry are interested in having
a Crossroads counselor speak at one of your services or events, please click
here to submit your enquiry.]
The book of Hebrews addresses a congregation who has seen many of its members leave the church as a result of their sinful practices. Those who remained were saddened, confused, and fearful. In this passage, the author of Hebrews calls the church to fight against sin collectively (not just as individuals). The sermon contains many thought-provoking questions designed to assist you harnessing the strength of the gospel through God's people in your fight with sin. | |||||
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It is not an exaggeration to say that depression touches the life of
every believer. At some point, you will be called on to give hope to
someone (a friend, a family member, yourself) who struggles with
depression.
What is depression? How is it different from “just being down”? How do you fight against not wanting to try? What can friends and family do to help? How do you know when you need help? Is it sinful to not “rejoice in the Lord always”? Does medicine treat all the types of depression? The subject is too common for the church not to take time in serious reflection about how to bring hope in the midst of the darkness of depression. You don’t have to be a counselor to care enough to learn to help. Come be equipped to be a part of God’s solution to depression. Christ, the church, Scripture, and the gospel contain much hope for the depressed. Find out how to be a conduit of those blessings.
NOW AVAILABLE: Crossroads’ teaching materials (both seminars and sermons) are now available on CD. If you would like to have a copy of these materials, please click hear for the order form for past seminars and sermons. To Register for the Seminar Click Here | ||||||
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April 21, 2007
THEME: Age of Opportunity
FEATURING: Paul Tripp
LOCATION: Westminster Presbyterian Church Who needs to know about this conference and have it on their 2007 calendar?
Ken Sande writes about Age of Opportunity, "[Paul Tripp] provides a superb road map for raising teenage children... and experiencing with them the challenges, victories, and joys of our journey to maturity in Christ." Tedd Tripp, author of Shepherding a Child's Heart and the brother of Paul, says, "A wealth of biblical wisdom and a treasure of practical steps for understanding and shepherding your teen's heart." If you are a parent or work with teenagers, then you will want to be at the Conference on Biblical Psychology 2007.
For a "Save the Date" Promotial Poster Click
Here
To Register and Save Your Spot Click
Here | ||||||
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