Advice I’d Give My Younger Self | Joshua Branham

Advice I’d Give My Younger Self | Joshua Branham

Click here to read the full article at RENEW.org: https://renew.org/advice-id-give-my-younger-self/ [https://renew.org/advice-id-give-my-younger-self/]  This is an audio version of a written Article from RENEW.org * Check out other great articles on RENEW.org here: https://renew.org/articles/ [https://renew.org/articles/] I’ve only ever worn a purple robe once in my life—the day I graduated high school. I grew up in Fairbanks, Alaska, and attended Lathrop High School. Our colors were purple and gold. It didn’t exactly intimidate the other sports teams when we walked out wearing what looked like interpretive dance outfits. Anyway—go Malemutes! It’s been sixteen years since I walked across that stage and received my diploma. Looking back, I can’t help but notice how different my life looks now than I thought it would back then. My plans were significantly disrupted by God calling me into vocational ministry. I certainly had no idea I would spend my life serving as a pastor in Boise, Idaho (though at least we have famous potatoes). Since then, I’ve had the privilege of discipling many teenagers and young adults through mentorship and small groups. It often makes me wonder: what if I had the chance to speak into my own life at that age? If I somehow found a time machine—Marty McFly style—and could sit down for coffee with my younger self, what would I say? Here are a few things I’d tell him. Maybe they’ll resonate with you—or with a graduate you know. Listen for more... Join RENEW.org's Newsletter: https://renew.org/resources/newsletter-sign-up/ [https://renew.org/resources/newsletter-sign-up/] Join RENEW.org at one of our upcoming events: https://renew.org/resources/events/ [https://renew.org/resources/events/] Get the RENEW.org App -- https://renew-app-page.bolt.host/ [https://renew-app-page.bolt.host/]  Be sure to like, subscribe and follow on social media!  You can find us on: Instagram: @the.renew.network  Facebook: Renew.org  Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@RENEWnetwork [https://www.youtube.com/@RENEWnetwork] Twitter: @therenewnetwork TikTok: the.renew.network  Rumble: https://rumble.com/c/RENEW [https://rumble.com/c/RENEW]

Practices of Top Disciple Making Groups | Grant Fitzhugh

Click here to read the full article at RENEW.org: https://renew.org/practices-of-top-disciple-making-groups/ [https://renew.org/practices-of-top-disciple-making-groups/]  This is an audio version of a written Article from RENEW.org * Check out other great articles on RENEW.org here: https://renew.org/articles/ [https://renew.org/articles/] Recently, I was shopping around for a new car (and by new, I mean used, but new to me). I am not much of a car guy, but it was pretty clear from the beginning that not every make and model of car is created equal, and the price often reflects that. As I began asking around, so many people pointed me towards Toyota vehicles because they last for so long. I finally stumbled across a 2010 Toyota Camry with only 110k miles and felt like I had hit the jackpot for what I needed (sorry, Ford fans). Listen for more! Join RENEW.org's Newsletter: https://renew.org/resources/newsletter-sign-up/ [https://renew.org/resources/newsletter-sign-up/] Join RENEW.org at one of our upcoming events: https://renew.org/resources/events/ [https://renew.org/resources/events/] Get the RENEW.org App -- https://renew.org/app-download/ [https://renew.org/app-download/]  Be sure to like, subscribe and follow on social media!  You can find us on: Instagram: @the.renew.network  Facebook: Renew.org  Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@RENEWnetwork [https://www.youtube.com/@RENEWnetwork] Twitter: @therenewnetwork TikTok: the.renew.network  Rumble: https://rumble.com/c/RENEW [https://rumble.com/c/RENEW]

Practices of Disciple Making Churches: Obedience-Based, Reproducible Models | Bobby Harrington & Josh Howard

Click here to read the full article at RENEW.org: https://renew.org/obedience-based-reproducible-models/ [https://renew.org/obedience-based-reproducible-models/]  This is an audio version of a written Article from RENEW.org * Check out other great articles on RENEW.org here: https://renew.org/articles/ [https://renew.org/articles/] Imagine a disciple making model so simple a teenager could lead it in a school cafeteria, a new believer could start it in a living room, a prisoner could lead it in his prison unit, and a recovering addict could reproduce it in a halfway house—with no staff, no budget, and no special training. If your model can’t do that, it may be good ministry—but it’s not multiplication. If it isn’t reproducible by teenagers and new believers, it’s not disciple making; it’s a dependency factory. Jesus never asked his disciples to master theology before they could make disciples. He sent them out while they were still learning. He taught them through doing, not just hearing. And when he commanded them to make disciples of all nations, he expected them to pass on what they’d received—immediately, simply, and practically. The early church understood this. They didn’t require seminary degrees or a complex curriculum. New believers turned around and made disciples. Ordinary people—fishermen, tax collectors, former prostitutes—reproduced what they’d learned because the model was simple enough to pass on. Somewhere along the way, we made it complicated. We turned disciple making into programs requiring trained professionals. We created systems so complex that only the educated could navigate them. We made disciple making a class to attend instead of a life to imitate. And then we wondered why multiplication stopped. Level 5 churches have recovered something the early church never lost: the power of simplicity. Listen for more... Join RENEW.org's Newsletter: https://renew.org/resources/newsletter-sign-up/ [https://renew.org/resources/newsletter-sign-up/] Join RENEW.org at one of our upcoming events: https://renew.org/resources/events/ [https://renew.org/resources/events/] Get the RENEW.org App -- https://renew-app-page.bolt.host/ [https://renew-app-page.bolt.host/]  Be sure to like, subscribe and follow on social media!  You can find us on: Instagram: @the.renew.network  Facebook: Renew.org  Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@RENEWnetwork [https://www.youtube.com/@RENEWnetwork] Twitter: @therenewnetwork TikTok: the.renew.network  Rumble: https://rumble.com/c/RENEW [https://rumble.com/c/RENEW]

5 Sources of Endurance | Debbra Stephens

Click here to read the full article at RENEW.org: https://renew.org/5-sources-of-endurance/ [https://renew.org/5-sources-of-endurance/]  This is an audio version of a written Article from RENEW.org * Check out other great articles on RENEW.org here: https://renew.org/articles/ [https://renew.org/articles/] 5 Sources of Endurance – Building Strength in Faith * 5 Sources of Endurance emphasize that God, Scripture, and prayer provide the foundation believers need to persevere through trials. * Hope in Christ inspires endurance, allowing Christians to press forward even when challenges seem overwhelming. * A heart grounded in joy and trust helps believers endure hardships with resilience and grace. Endurance is the ability to withstand difficulties. Endurance can be defined as the “continuing commitment in the face of difficulty” (Baker Evangelical Dictionary). Boy oh boy, do we ever have our share of difficulty! Have we seen “continuing commitment in the face of it”? Well, we’ve heard many inspiring, heroic stories of people enduring extreme situations on the historical world stage. And we also have the witness of those believers in the New Testament who endured spiritually. When I think of endurance, my mind often goes to the world of sports, because of the intense training athletes undergo in order to compete. How as Christians can our capacity to endure increase? Let’s allow Scripture to answer our probing questions. From Scripture, we learn 5 sources of endurance: Listen for more... Join RENEW.org's Newsletter: https://renew.org/resources/newsletter-sign-up/ [https://renew.org/resources/newsletter-sign-up/] Join RENEW.org at one of our upcoming events: https://renew.org/resources/events/ [https://renew.org/resources/events/] Get the RENEW.org App -- https://renew-app-page.bolt.host/ [https://renew-app-page.bolt.host/]  Be sure to like, subscribe and follow on social media!  You can find us on: Instagram: @the.renew.network  Facebook: Renew.org  Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@RENEWnetwork [https://www.youtube.com/@RENEWnetwork] Twitter: @therenewnetwork TikTok: the.renew.network  Rumble: https://rumble.com/c/RENEW [https://rumble.com/c/RENEW]

A Meditation on Ephesians 4:29 | Chad Ragsdale

Click here to read the full article at RENEW.org: https://renew.org/a-meditation-on-ephesians-429/ [https://renew.org/a-meditation-on-ephesians-429/]  This is an audio version of a written Article from RENEW.org * Check out other great articles on RENEW.org here: https://renew.org/articles/ [https://renew.org/articles/] Before launching into this post, I need to acknowledge that I struggle with my words. In my writings, I wrestle publicly with ideas in the hopes of arriving at some clarity. That doesn’t mean that I have everything figured out. In the case of “taming the tongue” I have a long way to go. My favorite author is G. K. Chesterton, who possessed the unique ability to lay waste to a mountain of foolishness with one razor-sharp aphorism. For instance, he once said, “Tolerance is the virtue of people who do not believe in anything.” This is true, but it also bites. This is why Chesterton is revered by many but reviled by some. I will never be Chesterton, but in my juvenile attempts to emulate him, it is tempting for me to put the bite over and above the truth. I’ve always been drawn to those who are eloquent in the language of irony and sarcasm, to those who are skilled at fighting with their words. Venkman in Ghostbusters. Stark in Avengers. Solo in Star Wars. I know that doesn’t make me special. Those are most people’s favorite characters. I’m merely recognizing that to actually live like these characters will invite trouble. It is with that necessary preface, then, that I offer this brief meditation on Ephesians 4:29. Listen for more... Join RENEW.org's Newsletter: https://renew.org/resources/newsletter-sign-up/ [https://renew.org/resources/newsletter-sign-up/] Join RENEW.org at one of our upcoming events: https://renew.org/resources/events/ [https://renew.org/resources/events/] Get the RENEW.org App -- https://renew-app-page.bolt.host/ [https://renew-app-page.bolt.host/]  Be sure to like, subscribe and follow on social media!  You can find us on: Instagram: @the.renew.network  Facebook: Renew.org  Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@RENEWnetwork [https://www.youtube.com/@RENEWnetwork] Twitter: @therenewnetwork TikTok: the.renew.network  Rumble: https://rumble.com/c/RENEW [https://rumble.com/c/RENEW]