Sojourn Community Church, where I am a member, is partnered with both the Acts 29 network and the Southern Baptist Convention. The fact that Sojourn is dual-aligned leads to some interesting conversations considering the well-documented fall-out between the two.

This past week, Sojourn hosted one of Acts 29’s boot camps—a two day long conference dedicated to training present and future church planters. Over 400 were in attendance, including myself. What makes this particular boot camp unique was the participation of several SBC pastors and employees: Daniel Montgomery (Sojourn’s pastor of teaching and vision), Ed Stetzer, Dr. Russell Moore (Dean of the School of Theology and Senior Vice-President for Academic Administration at SBTS), and Dr. Greg Allison (Professor of Christian Theology, SBTS). Following the boot-camp, Matt Chandler, pastor of the Village Church (dually-aligned SBC and Acts 29 church in the Dallas-FW area), preached a sermon on Hebrews 11 at the SBTS chapel service on Sunday.

I say all of this for a few reasons:

It expresses healing between the two groups, which is a direct result of the Gospel. Dr. Albert Mohler, president of SBTS, had several of the Acts 29 pastors over at his house for a number of hours (Inluding my pastor, Daniel Montgomery), and wrote this article in response: Younger Pastors and the Hope of a Future. In response, Scott Thomas (Director of Acts 29), wrote a response to Mohler’s response: Honored and Awed: This is what Graciousness Looks Like.

I wish everyone, but particularly present and soon-to-be pastors and church planters, would listen to Chandler’s sermon. It was excellent. One of the best sermons I have heard in a long time.

I wanted to point Ryan Couch’s blog, which says everything I wanted to say about the conference and more. Why reinvent the wheel? Go here and read all about it. You can also read Steve McCoy’s take on the conference. I have followed Steve’s blog and twitter for awhile now, and was very grateful to finally get to meet him and his awesome family at the conference.

It was an incredibly beautiful week that has given me lots to meditate on.

My good friend Jacob has started a new blog and asked me to be a contributor. The blog, Image of Truth, is “dedicated to engaging aesthetics and the arts from a Biblical Christian perspective,” and will feature several contributors from a range of protestant traditions. The goals for the blog are listed as:

• To equip the Church to recognize the importance of beauty and developing a truly biblical aesthetic, that is, a philosophy of beauty.
• To equip the Church to recognize the importance and sanctity of the arts in the daily life of the Christian and the corporate Church, as well as in the history of God’s people over the course of history. Specifically, we will address issues of visual art [drawing, painting, sculpture, printing, etc], music, theater, film, and literature.
• To engage the arts in our contemporary culture. Interacting with and analyzing various artistic expressions today, from contemporary art to music, film, and theater.

I’m really excited about the opportunity. I will continue posting here at katagraphais, of course, and will also cross post my Image of Truth postings here as well.

I intended to have part 3 of my review of Michael Wittmer’s book Heaven Is a Place on Earth up today, but I got distracted by reading Mark Driscoll’s Confessions of a Reformission Rev. As someone who wants to plant a church one day, the book was an incredible read that encouraged me while at the same time scared the crap out of me. More than either of those things, however, it kindled the fire even more.

All that to say, I hope to write part 3 in the next few days.

Have a happy and blessed Thanksgiving, knowing that every good and perfect gift comes from our Father (James 1:17).

Psalm 100
1Shout with joy to the LORD, all the earth!
2 Worship the LORD with gladness.
Come before him, singing with joy.
3 Acknowledge that the LORD is God!
He made us, and we are his.
We are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving;
go into his courts with praise.
Give thanks to him and praise his name.
5 For the LORD is good.
His unfailing love continues forever,
and his faithfulness continues to each generation.