Posts in Life
LEARNING TO WORSHIP IN THE PAIN: 3 LESSONS OBSERVED FROM MY FRIEND EMILEE JOYNER
LEARNING TO WORSHIP IN THE PAIN: 3 LESSONS OBSERVED FROM MY FRIEND EMILEE JOYNER

Last week I promised a post that I’ve decided to delay till next week. After I wrote those words, life was interrupted by the sudden, shocking, unexpected death of someone dear to our church, and I want to tell you about her today.

Emilee Joyner left this earth last Wednesday after only 34 years with us. In the last several years, she had a deep impact on everyone who worshipped at Christ’s church. And since Wednesday we’ve seen how her influence was even wider, based on a faith that was deeper than some know.

Her memorial service is happening as you might be reading this, and I want to tell you three things about Emilee I’m sharing at the service.

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Church, Leadership, LifeTrevor DeVageworship, loss, death, pain, eternity, help, mourning, love, embodied, kidney, heaven, heartComment
COVID CHRISTIAN CHURCH
COVID CHRISTIAN CHURCH

I said last week and I repeated this Sunday my conviction that the church will not—we dare not—get back to “normal” once this crisis is over. The old normal just won’t work anymore. And it shouldn’t. Here are three ways the church must be different after the quarantine is lifted.

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Church, Leadership, LifeTrevor DeVagecovid, corona, virus, social distancing, gathering, worship, simple, simplicity, video, camera, content, authenticity, change, church, online churchComment
THE PANDEMIC OF GOOD NEWS
THE PANDEMIC OF GOOD NEWS

This shutdown is only beginning, and already most of us are looking forward to life getting back to normal. But my prayer is that the church will never get back to normal. Here’s what I mean.

Too much of the church I’ve seen in my 41 years has been complacent, apathetic, lukewarm, and self-seeking. I don’t want to get back to that.

In some ways, the church is being scattered today, and that’s what should continue:

“We gather to scatter.”

Maybe God is using this moment to scatter the church so it can actually BE the church. Maybe this quarantine can make us more aware of the needs and hopes of those around us.

So I’m praying for a new pandemic, a gospel pandemic, a pandemic as contagious as any virus we’ve ever experienced.

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Church, Leadership, LifeTrevor DeVagehope, pandemic, corona, covid, hope dealer, faith, love, church, leading Comment
A PANDEMIC THAT NEEDS PRAYER
A PANDEMIC THAT NEEDS PRAYER

Confronted by uncertainty and pressing needs all around us, I decided to lead a Facebook Live prayer session yesterday. Inspired by Craig Groeschel’s Dangerous Prayers, I quoted several biblical prayers he lists at the back of his book. While the world has hit “Pause,” we paused for prayer. As I shared the Scriptures, dozens among the 320 who joined us wrote their prayer requests in the Comments section so all of us could pray about their needs.

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Church, Leadership, LifeTrevor DeVagecorona, virus, prayer, dangerous prayers, craig groeschel, guidance, unity, healing, hope, unbearable, life, protection, confession, pandemic, panicComment
REFINING IS DEFINING
REFINING IS DEFINING

I was wrecked within the first 10 pages.

I’d received a prepublication copy of Craig Groeschel’s latest book, Dangerous Prayers: Because Following Jesus Was Never Meant to Be Safe. As founder and leader of the revolutionary multisite Life.Church and presider over the international presence of Life.Church Online, he deserves a hearing. So I expected to appreciate his book.

But I didn’t expect to be undone by it. I didn’t expect it to lead me to deep repentance about the wrong ways I’ve led in every sphere of influence: with my family, with our staff, and yes, with our church. I didn’t expect to learn why I must be more intentional about the types of things I pray for. I didn’t expect to realize that my inadequate prayers have gotten in the way of people coming to know Jesus.

Anything I’d write here wouldn’t do the book justice. You must read it for yourself. And, besides, my purpose isn’t to post a book review. Instead, I want to tell you about the three prayers Groeschel challenges us to pray. And I want to explain how those prayers are changing me.

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Church, Leadership, LifeTrevor DeVagedangerous prayers, life, church, prayer, break, use, send, craig groeschelComment