The Practice Podcast

In this recurring series, we are walking in the story of scripture, noticing the intricate way God’s story is woven together and shines a light on our own stories. In the last two years, we have walked in the beginning (Genesis 1-11), the blessing(Genesis 12-50), the exodus, the wilderness, the Promised Land, and with the kings.  Now we will continue walking in this era of the kings of Israel and Judah, but we will do so from the perspective of the prophets. We will consider the indictments, judgments, and instruction delivered through the prophets. What do we learn about God and how should we hear these accusations and calls for repentance? We’ll pause with them in the messy middle, and then we will consider the messages of hope. How can we understand God in these messages and lean more deeply into the One who offers us a new heart?  This week, we leaned into the message God delivered to Israel through the prophet Hosea addressing their idolatry. We considered how fear is tied to idolatry and how intimacy with God chases away fear. For additional resources, please visit our website. If The Practice Church is your home community, please join the Core Team. If The Practice Church has been meaningful to your journey, would you consider a tax-deductible gift? You can give at https://thepracticechurch.com/give/ 

In this recurring series, we are walking in the story of scripture, noticing the intricate way God’s story is woven together and shines a light on our own stories. In the last two years, we have walked in the beginning (Genesis 1-11), the blessing(Genesis 12-50), the exodus, the wilderness, the Promised Land, and with the kings.  Now we will continue walking in this era of the kings of Israel and Judah, but we will do so from the perspective of the prophets. We will consider the indictments, judgments, and instruction delivered through the prophets. What do we learn about God and how should we hear these accusations and calls for repentance? We’ll pause with them in the messy middle, and then we will consider the messages of hope. How can we understand God in these messages and lean more deeply into the One who offers us a new heart?  This week, we leaned into the message God delivered to Israel through the prophet Amos. Injustice is one of the consistent indictments of Israel and Judah in the prophets. The message of Amos shows us that faithful worship cannot be separated from justice. For additional resources, please visit our website. If The Practice Church is your home community, please join the Core Team. If The Practice Church has been meaningful to your journey, would you consider a tax-deductible gift? You can give at https://thepracticechurch.com/give/ 

In this recurring series, we are walking in the story of scripture, noticing the intricate way God’s story is woven together and shines a light on our own stories. In the last two years, we have walked in the beginning (Genesis 1-11), the blessing(Genesis 12-50), the exodus, the wilderness, the Promised Land, and with the kings.  Now we will continue walking in this era of the kings of Israel and Judah, but we will do so from the perspective of the prophets. We will consider the indictments, judgments, and instruction delivered through the prophets. What do we learn about God and how should we hear these accusations and calls for repentance? We’ll pause with them in the messy middle, and then we will consider the messages of hope. How can we understand God in these messages and lean more deeply into the One who offers us a new heart?  This week, Dr. John Walton gives us helpful guidance about how we shoudl read, understand, and respond to the prophets. For additional resources, please visit our website. If The Practice Church is your home community, please join the Core Team. If The Practice Church has been meaningful to your journey, would you consider a tax-deductible gift? You can give at https://thepracticechurch.com/give/ 

This fall, we have been offering practices for a kingdom-centered politics. In this short practice, we offer a prayer in preparation of voting. We would encourage you to pray this prayer before you vote, whether in the parking lot of your polling place or while you wait in line. As we hold various groups of people in the light of God's loving presence, we respond together, "Your kingdom come. Your will be done.

In this recurring series, we are walking in the story of scripture, noticing the intricate way God’s story is woven together and shines a light on our own stories. Last year we began our journey walking in the beginning (Genesis 1-11), the blessing (Genesis 12-50), the exodus, the wilderness, and the Promised Land. If you missed the previous series, you can check out the links above. In this series, we will explore the period of the kings from Saul through the fall of the Northern Kingdom and Judah. We will notice how the stories of these kings echo all the way back to the garden. How do the Israelites and their kings respond to that choice to submit to the reign and rule of Yahweh or choose what is right in their own eyes? And how might we see our own stories reflected in the story of scripture?   For additional resources, please visit our website. If The Practice Church is your home community, please join the Core Team. If The Practice Church has been meaningful to your journey, would you consider a tax-deductible gift? You can give at https://thepracticechurch.com/give/ 

In this recurring series, we are walking in the story of scripture, noticing the intricate way God’s story is woven together and shines a light on our own stories. Last year we began our journey walking in the beginning (Genesis 1-11), the blessing (Genesis 12-50), the exodus, the wilderness, and the Promised Land. If you missed the previous series, you can check out the links above. In this series, we will explore the period of the kings from Saul through the fall of the Northern Kingdom and Judah. We will notice how the stories of these kings echo all the way back to the garden. How do the Israelites and their kings respond to that choice to submit to the reign and rule of Yahweh or choose what is right in their own eyes? And how might we see our own stories reflected in the story of scripture?   For additional resources, please visit our website. If The Practice Church is your home community, please join the Core Team. If The Practice Church has been meaningful to your journey, would you consider a tax-deductible gift? You can give at https://thepracticechurch.com/give/ 

In this recurring series, we are walking in the story of scripture, noticing the intricate way God’s story is woven together and shines a light on our own stories. Last year we began our journey walking in the beginning (Genesis 1-11), the blessing (Genesis 12-50), the exodus, the wilderness, and the Promised Land. If you missed the previous series, you can check out the links above. In this series, we will explore the period of the kings from Saul through the fall of the Northern Kingdom and Judah. We will notice how the stories of these kings echo all the way back to the garden. How do the Israelites and their kings respond to that choice to submit to the reign and rule of Yahweh or choose what is right in their own eyes? And how might we see our own stories reflected in the story of scripture?   For additional resources, please visit our website. If The Practice Church is your home community, please join the Core Team. If The Practice Church has been meaningful to your journey, would you consider a tax-deductible gift? You can give at https://thepracticechurch.com/give/ 

This guided practice is a part of our series The Liturgy of Politics. As we seek to untangle ourselves from the partisan liturgies of our culture, we are engaging counter-formational practices. In this practice of the Examen, we consider our political activity (the media we consume and our response, our conversations, the ways we serve our communities, and voting) and ask when our activity was centered on the partisan liturgies of our culture and when they were centered on the radical alternative of God's kingdom.

Aristotle said the purpose of politics is to create a people who are better than they would be without it. Politics has a way of shaping how we see ourselves, how we see others, and how we should live in the world. Have you noticed how this is parallel to the task of the gospel? This journey of faith creates us to be someone better than we would be without Jesus. Jesus shapes how we see ourselves, how we see others, and how we should live in the world. Is it any wonder our political activity has gotten so bound up in our understanding of the gospel? In fact, our partisanship and faith have become so wrapped up together, that it is like one big ball of tangled string. They influence one another in various ways (some helpful and some not), and often times it is hard to tell where one begins and the other ends. This month, we will be crafting experiments together. These experiments will center on how we engage politics and how we are being formed by politics. Together we will notice what strings in this tangled mess the Holy Spirit is drawing to our attention, and we will intentionally practice ways of untangling that thread. How can we seek to be formed in the way of God's kingdom and bring that to bear on politics rather than allowing politics to shape how we view the kingdom? We continued our experiments this week exposing the partisan liturgy of tribalism, reflecting on the ways we are tempted to find our identity in a political party or position. Then, we considered the counter-formational liturgy of humble service. What if our political activity followed the way of Jesus and humble service? You can find the handout for crafting an experiments here. For additional resources, please visit our website. Resources for Navigating This Political Season If The Practice Church is your home community, please join the Core Team. If The Practice Church has been meaningful to your journey, would you consider a tax-deductible gift? You can give at https://thepracticechurch.com/give/ 

This guided practice is a part of our series The Liturgy of Politics. As we seek to untangle ourselves from the partisan liturgies of our culture, we are engaging counter-formational practices. In this practice, we respond to the partisan liturgy of fear with the practice of breath prayer.​ With Jesus, we pray the words, “Your kingdom come. Your will be done.” This prayer reminds us, in the words of Pastor Mike Lueken, even if the worst we can imagine happens in this election season, “Jesus is still king. The kingdom is still real, and all shall be well.” And it reminds us that we are invited to join the Holy Spirit in its redemptive kingdom work.