Why We Do 180 Weekend

January 29, 2017 by Leave a Comment

180

For many years, right around Super Bowl weekend, Parkwood has lead in a student gathering for churches across greater Gaston County to bring their youth groups, large and small, to hear the Gospel presented, to worship the Lord, and to make lasting friendships with their peers and discipling relationships with their small group leaders.

This year, over 30 different local churches will come to the main sessions at two locations; Parkwood and Bethlehem. Parkwood will have over 100 volunteers to serve the 200 students affiliated with Parkwood and the thousand affiliated with other churches. We see this as a great way to galvanize with other youth and student workers out of obedience to God. Jesus prayed, “Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one” (John 17:11). Paul wrote, “complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind” (Philippians 2:2). Coming together for the gospel is a must, as that furthers His glory among the world.

Titus 2:1 says, “Teach what accords with sound doctrine.” Paul tells the Ephesians in Acts 20:27, “I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God.” The truth of God’s Word will be proclaimed in 3 different settings throughout the weekend: large group at Parkwood, small groups in homes (Acts 20:20), and throughout the day (Deuteronomy 6:7). Parkwood hosts 3 large group gatherings that are structured like our Sunday morning services. From what is faithfully taught there, the small groups then return to their host homes to discuss the Bible deeper with their leaders. The third way the Bible is taught is through one-on-one conversations. Small group leaders are trained to leverage regular conversations into gospel conversations. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Discipleship, General, Gospel, Missions, Parkwood Events, Worship Tagged With: , ,

5 Issues the Sanctity of Life Affects

January 15, 2017 by Leave a Comment

Sanctity of Life

January 22, 2017 is Sanctity of Human Life Sunday. Every year we specifically remind one another life is God-given and God-made. As we remind one another of this, we are sobered in that many disagree with this. We can easily sobered knowing such a biblically-based belief is so counter cultural. Below are 5 articles or messages that will help your understanding of the importance and effects Sanctity of Life has on life as a Christian, American, and citizen of the world.

Understand the Sanctity of Life and ethics. Carrie Earll and Focus on the Family explain the value of life is unquantifiable, and the baseline reason is found in that humans are created in the image of God (Genesis 1:27). Human dignity and distinction are derived from this, and this is what drives our conviction.

Understand the Sanctity of Life in the face of abortion. John Piper, in this resource of 3 transcribed sermons, articulates abortion factually, exhorts us to consider Lordship, and the call to follow Jesus despite all else in the world. The last sentence is a gracious summation we need regular reminder of: “Jesus Christ can forgive all sins, and will give all who trusts him the help they need to do everything that life requires.”

Understand the Sanctity of Life and the American tax dollar. Joe Carter of the ERLC provides a credible exposé on the federally-funded Planned Parenthood, the nation’s most used women’s health organization and the largest provider of abortions in America.

Understand the Sanctity of Life Sunday and why we ought to pray it become unnecessary. Russell Moore, through anecdotes and cultural insight, reminds us that this Sunday is not meant to remain with the church for the rest of our history, unlike Christmas or Easter. A good prayer to pray is that this Sunday emphasis would be removed by the Lord orchestrating orphans to be adopted and abortions to be removed from the face of the earth.

Understand the Sanctity of Life as it relates to the world. David Platt helps us see that the issue does not exist in America, alone. The issue of devaluing human life is worldwide, and the answer is “make disciples of all nations, by baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded” (Matthew 28:19-20).

While the fight and disagreement about this issue transpires outside of the church and in the public square, we must have our minds set that when we gather, we gather not to argue about this issue, but to celebrate God and honor Him by strengthening one another and believing His Word.

Filed Under: Abortion, Books/Resources, Discipleship, General, Gospel, Missions, Worship Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Guest Blog From an Aspiring Missionary

December 4, 2016 by Leave a Comment

At the age of 15, the Lord burdened my heart for the nations in a way that was different from brothers and sisters around me. I knew the trajectory of my life had come into focus on my first international missions experience. Due to the support and mission at Parkwood, I’ve been able to spend anywhere from a week to 10 weeks in different countries making disciples and leading others to do the same. The time is drawing near when my family will become “official” missionaries working among unreached peoples in Central Asia.

William Carey is best known as a British missionary who served until his death in 1834 in India. Some regard Carey as the “Father of Modern Missions.” Currently, the International MiWilliam Careyssion Board is discussing professionals using their jobs to take the Gospel to the unreached. Carey wrote about that in 1792. Currently, common practice is to send missionaries to join missionary teams rather than to work independently. Carey advocated that to be a better practice in his day. Currently, unreached people groups are the focus of missionary sending. Carey produced one of the first charts statistically accounting for how many Protestants, Catholics, Jews, Muslims, and Pagans (we would now delineate as Hindus, Buddhists, Animists, and Atheists) exist in every part of the world. He wrote an essay, An Enquiry into the Obligations of Christians to Use Means for the Conversion of the Heathens, that is still pertinent to our considerations of to what the Gospel’s calls our lives. Friends, family, and strangers have all made sure I was aware I could make disciples in my city because not everyone is a Christians here. The same have also given reasons as to why most individuals shouldn’t go, but, brothers and sisters, please contemplate William Carey’s rebuttals that he wrote before 1800.

“They are too far away.”

“Whatever objections might have been made on that account before the invention of the mariner’s compass, nothing can be alleged for it, with any colour of plausibility in the present age…Yea, and providence seems in a manner to invite us to the trial, as there are to our knowledge trading companies, whose commerce lies in many of the places where, these barbarians dwell.”

The compass was thought of as technology sufficient to get to all peoples. May I ask, what is our excuse when we can communicate instantly with 40% of the world?

“The way of life is too barbaric.” [Read more…]

Filed Under: Books/Resources, Discipleship, General, Gospel, Missions, Sermon Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

Why Parkwood Does Fall Festival

October 30, 2016 by Leave a Comment

Typically, only those familiar with European or Church History see October 31st to be Reformation Day, a day Protestants reflect as paramount to their history. Take out this small minority, and the rest of our community has spent weeks gearing up for Halloween, a child’s candy-dream come true and a night of promiscuity for many.

Halloween is the one night Christians have collectively learned to neglect our neighbors by hunkering down in our homes, turning off our lights, and having a quiet evening to ourselves. George Robinson, in an article you ought to read, says of Halloween that it “is the only night of the year in our culture where lost people actually go door-to-door to saved people’s homes.” I suggest that lost people do not go to saved people’s homes, but they would! Trick-or-treaters know which doors are prepared for them, and as Ed Stetzer puts it, “You can meet more neighbors tonight—in one night—than any other day of the year” if we are prepared.

Although there has been a stronghold of Christianity in Gastonia and our region, we must view Halloween and other holidays evangelistically and missionally. Consider applying the framework of Matthew 5:14-16 to your Halloween witness. Don’t confine the Gospel message to a dimmed living room. Halloween makes evangelism as convenient as walking to your doorstep prepared to speak with boldness and love.
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