Men's Ministry

Man Crisis

Ben Wright — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 15:12:32 +0000

A couple years ago I had a phone conversation with a guy I’ve never met and, in this life, almost certainly never will. He said things I’d heard before, but which, for some reason, took root like they hadn’t before. He talked about the tendency of American Christian men—particularly Baptists, and even more particularly Baptists from conservative circles in the South—to think we’re doing our job if we’re providing and coming home at night and taking our family to church. He made the point that we need to be actively—proactively—discipling our wives and our families, not just being good guys.

Darrin Patrick, church planting pastor in St. Louis, pushes that conversation a step further, offering some sober words for men regarding our responsibility to disciple other men and embrace active leadership in our churches to advance the proclamation of Christ’s Kingdom.

Click here to view the embedded video.

How Christian Living Always Ties Back to the Gospel

Ben Wright — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 03:43:03 +0000

Lots of preachers talk about the centrality of the gospel in every aspect of the life of a Christian. But not everyone who talks about it actually explains how this is true and how it fleshes out.

Certainly, not everything that needs to be said can be said in an hour, but Tim Keller gives us a healthy push in that direction in this talk.

Don’t Waste Your Life Sentence (Live Stream Tonight)

Bob Perez — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 22:05:00 +0000

This looks like it would be worth watching.

Don’t Waste Your Life Sentence: Voices from the Louisiana State Penitentiary at 7:30pm CT, tonight Friday 8/20/10.

If you miss it you can buy the DVD.

(HT: Desiring God Blog)

Christ is a Great Saviour

Bob Perez — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 18:47:58 +0000

I heard this quote from John Newton in a sermon recently and it’s stuck with me. Newton lived to be 82 years old, active in ministry until the last two years of his life due to failing health.

” My memory is nearly gone; but I remember two things; That I am a great sinner, and that Christ is a great Saviour. “

Surely Mr. Newton was familiar with these words of the Apostle Paul:

This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.
1 Timothy 1:15

Questions that I’ve been chewing on and would encourage you to do the same:

1. Do I view myself like John Newton and Paul viewed themselves?

2. Do I really view Christ as I should? The Great Savior, one who is able to overcome and save such a great sinner as me.

3. How does this impact my daily life?

4. How does this impact my relationships with others?

Much more could be said but this is simply a quick post to share a few thoughts.

Praying Towards the Ends of the Earth

Ben Wright — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 16:32:11 +0000

One resource that was on my mind much in preparing for yesterday’s sermon is Operation World, which is an extraordinarily useful guide to the state of missions across the globe. I haven’t seen this new edition, but I’ve been looking forward to it coming out so I can peruse the latest data.

Use it, and you’ll be introduced to people groups you’ve never heard of, and which themselves have never heard the name of Jesus. It’s a great way to lead your family in prayer for the nations. Christianity Today has a nice story on the new edition here.

And if you thought the two slides were helpful, you can download the whole “State of the Gospel” presentation here. Many more resources—maps and slides—available through the Southern Baptist International Missions Board for purchase or as a free download.

Parenting Forum Video: Children, the Gospel and Conversion

Ben Wright — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 01:37:08 +0000

Last Saturday evening’s parenting forum addressed questions including:

How our children’s ministry curriculum focuses primarily on the gospel, not conforming behavior
How our elders lead parents and children to move towards baptism, church membership, and the Lord’s Supper
How to explain difficult theological concepts in the gospel to young children
What resources are helpful in that work
How to encourage children to respond to the gospel without pressuring them
How we should shepherd older children who’ve made a profession of faith, but whose lives give little evidence of biblical conversion

With Josh Turley’s help, DVDs of the forum will be available for checkout in the library this Sunday. If you need a copy to keep, or to pass on to family or friends, touch base with Josh or me.

Also, many of the helpful resources we discussed are listed and linked in a recent post on Juan’s blog.

Whose Agenda Are You Ambitious For?

Ben Wright — Sat, 12 Jun 2010 04:08:11 +0000

Here’s a good word on ambition. The best part:

One great measure of our humility is whether we can be ambitious for someone else’s agenda.

It works for all of us, but I’m convicted by it as a pastor who’s fortunate enough to serve in a church led by a plurality of elders. And its particularly convicting for an associate pastor.

Men’s Breakfast – May 22nd: Register Online

Site Admin — Fri, 14 May 2010 15:50:12 +0000

Disciplines of a Godly Man by R. Kent Hughes

The next Men’s Breakfast for the Men’s Ministry of High Pointe Baptist Church will be Saturday May 22 at 7am. We are currently going through the book Disciplines of a Godly Man by R. Kent Hughes.

All men are welcome!

Now with online registration!

Learn More information on Men’s Breakfasts.

(Image credit: amazon.com)

More Resources on Purity

Site Admin — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 22:00:28 +0000

At the recent Men’s Breakfast Pastor Ben mentioned Joshua Harris’ book Sex Is Not the Problem (Lust Is). I always appreciate audio resources, so here is a sermon series from Harris on Purity from the Gospel Coalition.

Also from the GC website, related sermons from John Piper.

Video: April Men’s Breakfast

Site Admin — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 05:30:16 +0000

Here’s the video from the Men’s Breakfast on April 24. Pastor Ben taught on purity from Disciplines of a Godly Man by R. Kent Hughes.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Download (.mp4)