Happy Friday! Truth be told, we love our church here in Athens! We haven’t shared much about it, but our church here has been a great encouragement in life and ministry. Recently we had a spring picnic for families in a spacious suburban church camp/center. Good times! Here are some snapshots from that picnic, plus… [Read more…]
July 12, 2010
Preaching is indispensable to Christianity. Without preaching a necessary part of its authenticity has been lost. For Christianity is, in its very essence, a religion of the Word of God. - John Stott, Between Two Worlds, pg. 15 As you may remember, I love to preach! And I’m thankful that since we’ve returned from furlough… [Read more…]
March 24, 2010
Kristin, Emma, and I safely returned from New England yesterday (Sofia stayed back in Chicago with grandma and grandpa). We had a great trip visiting friends, teaching, making ministry contacts, and touring this beautiful part of the country. We started in Boston (pictured left) for a walking tour and a visit with part of the… [Read more…]
March 3, 2010
Looking forward to the opportunity to speak at Thorn Creek Church this evening. Thorn Creek is a small but spirited congregation in South Holland, Illinois (a south suburb of Chicago). Kristin grew up in this church; and we were married here almost 5 years ago (it has a special place in our hearts)! We’re looking… [Read more…]
February 24, 2010
I got a chance to speak at West Side Christian Church (Springfield, IL) on Sunday. We were loved and welcomed by this generous congregation (Thanks, West Side!). I (Brett) was interviewed by Eddie (the lead pastor) during the message, which you can listen to online HERE. Scroll down slightly to find the sermon from 2/21,… [Read more…]
February 8, 2010
Found some great resources at Round Trip Missions, a ministry of Christianity Today that’s helping the church rethink how we do short-term missions. There is some great stuff here about the church’s philosophy and approach to short-term missions (an experience shared by nearly 2 million Americans every year!). Short-term mission teams have been invaluable to… [Read more…]
October 7, 2009
The church is not dead in Europe. In fact, God is doing some exciting things here in regards to evangelism and church planting. Dave Ferguson, from Community Christian Church, recently blogged about his time coaching/training church planters in Europe. It’s encouraging to see what active, mission-oriented churches are doing in Europe (see here, here, and… [Read more…]
June 15, 2009
Beginning today and culminating with “Refugee Sunday” on June 21, we’re officially observing refugee week here in Athens. It’s simply a time to raise awareness about refugees and refugee issues. Would you try something new this week? Visit the following site - HERE – and pick one activity to do this week with your family,… [Read more…]
May 6, 2009
Tomorrow morning we’ll load up a rented van and head west for a 3-night retreat near Patras, Greece. As a team, we will study the Word, praise God together in song, pour out of hearts to God in prayer, and – of course – have some fun along the way. Typically, our team schedules two… [Read more…]
April 29, 2009
The refugee situation in Patras is quite bad. Perhaps you remember my visit last month (story and pics). The government has promised action, but so far the bureaucracy and bickering has stalled any actual movement. Now the government has a new plan that will have the illegal camps bulldozed by the end of May. Would… [Read more…]
April 22, 2009
Here’s a great quote from a book that I’m currently working through, The Mission of God, by Christopher J.H. Wright (pg. 62): Mission is not ours; mission is God’s. Certainly, the mission of God is the prior reality out of which flows any mission that we get involved in. Or, as has been nicely put,… [Read more…]
March 23, 2009
A few people have asked for an update concerning the situation in Patras. So, here’s the latest: Last Saturday, I trekked back to Patras along with three teammates in order to talk with the local Greek Free Evangelical Church about the refugee situation there (we also picked up a two carloads of supplies that they… [Read more…]
December 29, 2008
“The local church is the hope of the world,” as Bill Hybels has said. I must agree. God has ordained His Church to take Christ both to our neighbors and the nations. Our ministry in Athens understands the importance of partnering with local churches to carry out the Great Commission (Mat. 28:18-20). One day, we… [Read more…]
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April 15, 2011
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