The (Spring Break) Friday Five (3.14.25)
A Few Things for My Friends
Hey!
Every week, I share five things to encourage and equip in daily life with God. There has been so much goodness the last few weeks that I am including a few extras in bullet points at the end. So, five and some change for this week.
Watch for Tuesday’s newsletter! Have a great weekend.
MK
1. Watch & Pray
In Matthew 24, the Disciples ask Jesus, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” Jesus responds with parables, one of which is about ten bridesmaids waiting for the bridegroom. Half of the bridesmaids were prepared for his coming, and the other half were not. The unprepared ended up outside of the feast, unable to go in. Any listener to Jesus’s answer should ask, “How do I ensure I’m among the wise?”
Here’s my sermon on the parable from last weekend:
2. We Want More
This has been on repeat over the last week.
3. We Needed Mercy, and He Gave Mercy
One of my favorite professors told us that how we see the congregation will shape how we pastor. If you see church members as stubborn and unmotivated, you will treat them that way. However, if you see them as Christ saw Jerusalem, as harassed and helpless, sheep without a shepherd, you will see and treat them differently. That has stuck with me for 15 years.
How Zack Eswine discusses this has helped add dimension and color. We have needed grace to get where we are, and we can’t forget that lest we think we’ve done it ourselves.
Every preacher is a human being who once was a child needing to grow up, whose stories are mixtures of tragedies and triumphs. Every preacher is a human being who has given wrong answers, prayed incorrectly, misquoted the Bible, daydreams, and longed for things that now embarrass or have hurt other people. And it was there, as such a person in such environments, that God came and found us. Anything good we ever preach has been made possible by a prior testimony of God’s mercy. We’ve dreamt of making a difference. But what if differences are made by remembering where we’d be without God and then ministering to others out of that knowledge? What if preaching requires something prior to homiletics? ...Until we remember that God drew us to himself and nourished us before we even knew where to find the book of Exodus in the Bible or that such things as Arminianism or Calvinism existed, we will withhold from others the same mercy that was required for us to learn what we now know.
Zack Eswine, Preaching to a Postmodern World, 11
4. If You’re a Little Jealous
Jon Siedl has a great word on jealousy - why we feel it, how to deal with it, and the fact that it’s common among us all. This was good medicine.
5. Time to Seek The Lord
A friend sent this last week, and it’s been in my head ever since. Sobering, convicting, encouraging, and inviting.
Five and change
Griffin Gooch has written The Witch Trials of John Mark Comer
The kids and I enjoy this Forrest Frank song on the way to school.
Michael F. Bird has a quick reminder about The Lord’s Supper
I’m reading Healing What’s Within, by Chuck DeGroat and enjoying it. Thank you, Chuck. It’s doing work.
Also reading In His Presence by Ann and Ray Ortlund, Sr.
Check out this collection of wisdom from Dr. John D. Hannah (one of my favorite profs!)
Thanks for Reading
If someone forwarded this to you, I write two types of emails: one on select Tuesdays about life with God and the other every Friday, where I share things I’ve found during the week. If you want to subscribe but can’t afford it, email me, and I’ll take care of it—no questions asked.
I pastor, teach, and lead at The Village Church, serving as an Elder and the Executive Director of Discipleship. In my spare time (ha!), I’m working on a Ph.D. in Church History, studying Jonathan Edwards and character formation. Also, I’ve written A Short Guide to Spiritual Disciplines: How to Become a Healthy Christian.
Thank you for reading and supporting my work as I seek to shepherd with compassion and wisdom, equipping people to embody God's truth for all of life.
Talk soon,
MK
I made the cut!! Hazah! - friend of show
So honored to be featured here.