Congratulations to our graduating high school seniors—Noah Choy (University of Utah) and Kaley Fung (Willamette University)—as you step into this exciting new chapter. We celebrate with you and send you off with this simple but profound charge from the Apostle Paul in 1 Thessalonians 4:11–12
The secular culture of ancient Corinth, the prosperous, ethnically diverse, and worldly city in which the early church grew, sounded not too dissimilar from our Western culture today. In a way, it’s a bit sad that humanity hasn’t changed. Humanity has a way of repeating itself as the depravity of our species was sown into our DNA.
As my wife Tammi and son Joshua have heard me say many times — and some of you too — my college years were among the best four years of my life. If I could’ve been a professional student forever, I would’ve done it in a heartbeat.
Jesus was both fully God and fully human. So when He said, “In this world you will have trouble” (John 16:33), He wasn’t speaking abstractly—He truly understood the trials of everyday life. But Jesus didn’t stop there. He continued: “But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
I love Dallas Willard’s famous quote: “The main thing that God gets out of your life is the person you become.” But I’d like to add a corollary to that thought: “… in His family.” Spiritual formation doesn’t happen in isolation—it happens in community. Church is family, and family is church.
We've been diving into the Prayer Practice by looking at this practice in four movements: Talking to God: We called this “pre-made prayers.” When Jesus’ disciples asked him to teach them how to pray, he gave them what we know was The Lord’s Prayer. Luke 11:1-4.
Movement Four: Being with God. We've been talking a lot about prayer lately—not just the “ask God for stuff” kind of prayer—but the kind where you actually just be with God. We might call this “contemplative prayer.”
Movement Three: Listening to God. In the third movement of the Prayer Practice—Listening to God—we learn how to recognize and respond to the voice of God. In John 10:2–5, Jesus describes Himself as the Good Shepherd whose sheep know His voice.
Prayer, as modeled by Jesus, invites us into a dynamic and multifaceted relationship with God. At Formation Church, we describe the Prayer Practice through four movements.
This week we welcomed the start of the Prayer Practice. Like Sabbath and Solitude, Prayer is an ancient practice of Jesus that allows the Holy Spirit to transform us. Prayer, as modeled by Jesus, invites us into a dynamic and multifaceted relationship with God. At Formation Church, we describe the Prayer Practice through four movements.