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The baptism in the Holy Spirit is certainly one of the most polarizing issues in Christianity (I feel dirty calling it an ‘issue’). There’s tons of confusion, a fair amount of accusation, and not nearly enough open and thoughtful dialogue. As with any polarizing ‘issue’ people tend to run to one side or another…and then [...]
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We do a lot of brainstorming where I work. Occasionally an idea will be shot down because it won’t be applicable or helpful to the bulk of people. Something like this will be said, “That will only appeal to the fringe.” Good point. We’ve got limited resources and we want to impact as many people as [...]
Continue Reading →Some rules are dumb. Legalistic types in ancient Israel made it a rule that you couldn’t spit in the dirt on the Sabbath. The idea was that spitting in the dirt was similar to mixing mortar…which is work. And, of course, you can’t work on the Sabbath. Therefore: Spit on the dirt: you sin! Spit [...]
Occasionally I just ‘go’ to the Maryville Vineyard. Most weeks I’m ‘the preacher guy’. When I’m not ‘the preacher guy’ it’s generally because I’m out of town. But this week, I just showed up and worshiped. Here’s what stood out: People were engaged. I typically sit on the front row, eyes forward. I’m always a bit [...]
Continue Reading →Steve Jobs and the Apple Corp. planned to revolutionize higher education, and they just might. But Christian education’s going to be revitalized first. Why? Because the Church is filled with some of the most innovative and creative people in the world…and they’re not nearly as concerned about who owns the content. When it’s not about [...]
Continue Reading →Finally wrapping up the A-Team series! If you’ve noticed the delay, my apologies…it just that I’ve started to write this one 3 or 4 times now. There’s a reason. Here’s my tendency: I want to tell you all of the amazing stuff Matt can do. He’s a phenom. He’s a savant without the idiocy. He’s [...]
Kyle Mules is an incredible kid. He’s also incredibly sick right now. He’s fighting a ruthless virus called Guillain-Barre, along with severe pneumonia and other complications. He’s in ICU at Children’s Hospital. Kyle’s mom, Kelly, recently posted on facebook: Last night the warm peace of Jesus came over me and held me tight…I KNOW HE is [...]
Aaron McCarter is the Lead Pastor of Maryville Vineyard Church in East TN.
