Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word (2 Thess. 2:16-17). If you only measured by the attitudes and actions of your life, would you be a sinner or a saint? If you measure by the Bible’s standard that counts even our best works as “filthy rags” before God, the answer is pretty clear. There is so much humanity in our motives and deeds that no one is going to brag of earthly performance before a holy God in heaven. Since God’s standard for ..read more

Missionaries retire, just like everyone else. And, over the past few years, many Mission to the World missionaries have concluded their decades of faithful service and entered new seasons that don’t involve overseas ministry. But the number of new recruits has not kept pace with this rate of retirement.  The disparity is troubling. Could the denomination be experiencing foreign missions mission drift? Mark Bates, senior director of U.S. operations for MTW, says he wonders if the PCA, in recent years, has emphasized two of its founding pillars—”faithful to Scriptures” and “true to the Refo ..read more

The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing. (Zeph. 3:17) A small statue at our door displays a Middle-eastern father with robe and turban, on his knees, holding a small child over his head. The child is “airplaning” over his father – arms out, feet back, and head forward, confident of his father’s grasp. What makes the statue so special to us is the look of rapturous joy on the face of the father and the child. The child delights in the father’s care, and the fat ..read more

For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. (Heb. 12:11) In his book, The Great Divorce, C. S. Lewis describes a man troubled by a red lizard sitting on his shoulder.  This lizard, representing sin and the temptations with which we wrestle, constantly taunts the man. One day, an angel offers his services, promising to rid the man of this pesky tormentor, and the man is thrilled. But as the angel prepares to strike the lizard, the man suddenly has second thoughts. What will l ..read more

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.  (1 John 4:7-8) We all want to experience intimacy with God. We speak to him in prayer, and we listen for his voice as we study his Word, hear sermons, and consider the counsel of fellow Christians. But along with talking or listening to God, there’s another component to spiritual intimacy: loving others. When we express Christ’s love for the those easy to love and for those hard to love, our hear ..read more

We know that God works all things together for the good of those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose. For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son. (Rom. 8:28-29 BSB) We can throw the words of this verse around with casual ease, and not understand the richness or seriousness of its meaning.    Laura Story’s song “Blessings” includes these lyrics: What if my greatest disappointments Or the aching of this life Is the revealing of a greater thirst this world can’t satisfy? What if the trials of this life The rain, the storms, the ..read more

Excitement builds this time of year as elders from across the PCA anticipate gathering for our annual General Assembly this summer in Richmond, Virginia. This year’s General Assembly will be a first in the history of the PCA because it is a coordinated effort among four different presbyteries. The local host committee includes representatives from Blue Ridge, James River, Korean Capital, and Tidewater presbyteries. All these members volunteer their time to provide the best possible experience for commissioners, exhibitors, and guests. Anyone who has attended a General Assembly unders ..read more

His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (Isa. 9:6) There are times when we all could use some good counsel — someone on our side who can understand our needs. In Scripture, Jesus is called Wonderful Counselor, but translators could just have easily rendered the phrase, “He will be a wonder of a counselor.” What does a wonder of a counselor do?  We seek a counselor because we desire good advice. But that advice can only come when the counselor understands us (perhaps better that we understand ourselves) and reveals a path to help and h ..read more

Photos by Anne Keegan. On April 21, First Presbyterian Church of Tuscumbia, Alabama, celebrated its 200th anniversary. The weekend celebration was one of its largest gatherings in the church’s history. The sanctuary with seating for 300 was filled to capacity. The festivities included a hymn sing led by Daniel Cason, pianist at Briarwood Presbyterian Church, and Sunday worship Ligon Duncan preached on the weekend’s theme verse, Psalm 115:1, “Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory … .” Daniel Cason leads a hymn sing The church particularized on April 13, 1824, with 13 charter ..read more

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