We got up this morning and met with the MC leaders of Soma Fuchu. We spent some time in prayer with them. Yoshi then led the group in some discussion about the church's vision and the upcoming year.
Read MoreToday, Drew and Megumi took us to see the sights of Fuchu. Their new city is a community just west of Tokyo proper. It's a beautiful place. The men toured with bicycles. Drew let me have the electric assisted model. I may have to get one of those back home!
Read MoreAfter about 36 hours with no sleep, Timothy and I caught up this past evening. We are here at the Glosson home in Fuchu, a part of western Tokyo. After a fairly American breakfast, we will head out and tour the city today. So blessed to be here with Drew and Meg. I just told Megumi that, after coming here four times and praying for their future partnership, what we are experiencing now is very much an answered prayer. When I say my heart is partially in Japan, I mean it.
Read MoreTimothy Hixon and I are currently riding the Narita Express train from Tokyo's Narita Airport into the heart of Tokyo to meet up with Drew Glosson this evening. We will spend the next week with Drew and his wife Megumi, catching up, spending some quality time with them, and talking about how our partnership can develop with them down the road. They are a part of the Soma Fuchu team, a church plant led by Yoshi Noguchi and Steve Sakanashi.
Read MoreBut the fruit of the Spirit is love… Galatians 5:22
I sat down to write this and the first thing that came to mind was the 90’s song What is Love? by Haddaway. Yeah, now you try and get that song out of your head! Culture has taught us a lot about love, right? …or has it?
Read MoreWe've been walking through the book of Ephesians in Karis Church, and this past Sunday I began a two-part look at marriage from chapter 5. It's hard to think about what we do in marriage if we don't yet understand what it's for. This past Sunday, I talked about how marriage is from God but it is also for God.
Read MoreKaris Church is excited to announce her 2016 Theology Conference with Tom Schreiner. We’ll gather this November 4-6 to consider what it means to be “Different by Design.” Schreiner, a New Testament professor at Southern Seminary, and truly one of the foremost scholars on Paul in the world, will instruct us on biblical gender roles.
Read Moref you frequent craft stores, chances are you’ve seen a decorative sign with this verse on it.
“ But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. “ - Galatians 5:22
I impulsively purchased one during a trip to Hobby Lobby four years ago, bringing home a “fruit of the spirit” sign that was fire-engine red, three feet long and impossible to ignore from my wall as I dressed each morning.
Many times I would stare down the words on that sign and feel inadequate. That decorative piece had become more than just a cheesy interior design choice. It was a representation of the virtuous woman I desperately wanted to be, but couldn’t measure up to no matter how hard I worked.
Read MoreEffective at midnight on Friday, September 23rd, we’re no longer using The City to handle our giving. Instead, we’re switching to a new platform called GivingFire, which will help us steward donations better, and give everyone more options with giving going forward. This includes giving online, as well as new giving kiosks on Sundays and coming soon, Text-to-Give. Many of you are already using GivingFire to support our missionaries and church planters.
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