tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-150456812009-04-19T19:52:15.481-04:00Thoughts and musings from Chad Miller of Kannapolis, NC. Independent of Chad's roles in the local church or any parachurch organization.Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.comBlogger50125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-51737104272210062842009-04-19T19:41:00.005-04:002009-04-19T19:49:54.373-04:00

Thou God of all grace, Thou has given me a Savior, produce in me a faith to live by Him, to make him all my desire, all my hope, all my glory. May I enter Him as my refuge, build on Him as my foundation, walk in Him as my way, follow Him as my guide, conform to Him as my example, receive His instructions as my prophet, rely on His intercession as my high priest, obey Him as my King. May I

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-69861097452793810002009-04-15T07:29:00.002-04:002009-04-19T19:51:14.715-04:00

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-86494477565810907252009-03-21T14:13:00.003-04:002009-03-25T08:55:06.960-04:00

Valentines Day weekend we had a wonderful time of worship at our West Cabarrus Church's "Love For A Savior" evening service. One of the elements of the service was communion.When the juice came around, Chase eyeballed it pretty intently. He asked Ashlie what it was for. She explained, as much as you can to a 3 year-old, that it was to remind us of the blood that Jesus shed for us on the cross.

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-80328948706899413862009-01-27T06:25:00.003-05:002009-01-27T06:57:16.017-05:00

I keep finding out more and more things about myself as I look in the mirror of His Word and live this thing called life.  I was reminded yesterday in a session on Grasping the Word of God that until we meditate on His Word (this particular definition from Joshua 1:8-9 is explicit of the marriage between meditation and action - "that you might do all that is written") we're probably more in the

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-41429187187040827482009-01-23T14:56:00.002-05:002009-01-23T14:58:10.610-05:00

More truth packed into this 30 seconds than many a sermon I've listened to (and some I've preached unfortunately).

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-82242676608594149672009-01-22T07:40:00.002-05:002009-01-22T07:49:21.847-05:00

Mahaney reminds us in Chapter 9 of his book (Humility - True Greatness) that encouraging others is not only an act of humility but the fruit of it.Here's a quote from Sinclair Ferguson (The Power of the Tongue, Tabletalk, June 1997, 45):"The tongue is the hinge on which the door into our soul swings open in order to reveal our spirit. In effect, our words are like so many media people rushing to

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-81489150799719248282009-01-12T12:29:00.001-05:002009-01-12T12:29:27.860-05:00

Great clips in here about the urgency of the Gospel.

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-28718858718376858892009-01-12T07:20:00.003-05:002009-01-12T07:23:53.908-05:00

(taken from "The Gospel Way", an entry in The Valley of Vision - A collection of Puritan prayers and devotions)"Blessed Lord Jesus,No human mind could conceive or invent the gospel.Acting in eternal grace, thou art both its messenger and its message, lived out on earth through infinite compassion, applying thy life to insult, injury, death, that I might be redeemed, ransomed, freed..."

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-79999940454759268492009-01-01T19:36:00.006-05:002009-01-07T10:23:57.721-05:00

Wow...how many days could be devoted to exploring different answers and angles to this question? I won't even pretend to scratch the surface on it.Here is one recent reflection, though, to this point.Having been around/exposed/involved with a handful of ministries in the South, I have seen one or two effective and a myriad of ineffective leadership models. With one particular ministry, a

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-89468926863848184152008-12-30T14:57:00.004-05:002008-12-30T15:18:35.722-05:00

Here are some great lyrics that have been rolling over in my head from Paul Baloche's I Cling To The Cross:I cling to the cross And ev'rything it means I know it's the only hope there

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-39597960257166695682008-12-29T08:15:00.002-05:002008-12-29T09:27:46.209-05:00

Endeavoring to reflect on the cross, I'll follow up with some things that have captured my attention in other readings...(from Valley of Vision prayer entitled, "The Spirit's Work")Lead me to the cross and show me his wounds, the hateful nature of evil, the power of Satan; May I there see my sins as the nails that transfixed him,the cords that bound him, the thorns that tore him, the sword that

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-76023058078403455662008-12-28T08:00:00.001-05:002008-12-28T08:00:00.616-05:00

Some new personal goals:trembling at God's Wordweakening pridedeveloping humilitySome practices for starting the day:Acknowledge my dependence upon God and my need for God.Express gratefulness to God.Practice the spiritual disciplines: prayer, study of God's Word, and worship.Seize my commute time to memorize and meditate on ScriptureCast my cares upon Him(taken from CJ Mahaney's Humility)

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-76665899600790493272008-12-27T07:28:00.003-05:002008-12-27T07:37:45.516-05:00

"Every time we look at the cross Christ seems to be saying to us, 'I am here because of you.  It is your sin I am bearing, your curse I am suffering;, debt I am paying, your death I am dying.'  Nothing in history or in the universe cuts us down to size like the cross.  All of us have inflated views of ourselves, especially in self-righteousness, until we have visited a place called Calvary.  It

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-66862655259188465252008-11-04T07:57:00.007-05:002008-11-04T09:08:08.505-05:00

     I am privileged (I suppose) to attend quite a few ministry conferences/events.  At a recent Youth Ministry conference in Pittsburgh, PA where attendance was about 1/3 of what they had anticipated, a few observations emerged.     A couple of the exhibitors (I was there exhibiting, too) were discussing possible reasons for the low attendance.  "Do you think it's the economy?" or "I think it

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-22829702829199272902008-11-01T16:44:00.006-04:002008-11-01T17:07:59.321-04:00

Pittsburgh might be one of the nicest looking downtowns I've been to in a long time.  If you've never been, you should come.  Just don't get hungry after 3pm on a Saturday; that's when 7/10 of the eating establishments close down.What's up with that?There are more bridges into and out of this city than I've ever even seen before.  It's a really great looking town.Must eats - Christo's Authentic

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-28466557941949126592008-10-16T07:20:00.002-04:002008-10-16T07:48:30.872-04:00

So...I'm not the most consistent blogger (obviously).  But the answer is - "to blog".

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-56958896220766671072008-08-13T10:10:00.003-04:002008-08-13T10:23:23.298-04:00

     One of the things we're hoping to accomplish through our 5-10 minute Bible study time at home, is to help teach Chase respect for God's Word so that he'll adapt better to a Worship Gathering in a church setting (or Bible study for that matter).  Of course, it's not the primary goal...but it is one of the benefits of our time.     As much as I love teaching and preaching the Word,

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-55987826560774699652008-08-10T22:00:00.001-04:002008-08-13T10:07:10.033-04:00

     Our first official night of Family Devotions, we tackled a bit of Ephesians 4:11-16.  We've seen our share of interesting ministry assignments as a family.  As I have recently transitioned from primarily local church ministry/service to a parachurch assignment, I've had to get to the core of what my "calling" is.     Here's what I'm thinking...My calling is like your calling; they're the

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-55860670685517555632008-07-27T16:37:00.003-04:002008-07-27T16:39:29.313-04:00

I miss my family when I travelI miss my wife and my two boys when I'm goneThough I love what I do and know it's rightI'm trying to catch an early flight home.

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-83906802496363036712008-07-14T11:53:00.004-04:002008-07-14T12:04:34.250-04:00

While I'm not one that says would define passion as another term for over-emotionalism, I do feel like passion manifests in different ways.  Just because I'm passionate about my wife doesn't mean I'm "all over her" in public places - there's no question of passion, just different manifestations in different settings.  My passion for evangelism and equipping others to share the Gospel cannot

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-82741478016825296952008-07-08T10:00:00.006-04:002008-07-08T10:34:46.268-04:00

 What a God!

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-53729928773870327272008-07-07T07:46:00.004-04:002008-07-07T08:54:05.479-04:00

Yesterday afternoon, my wife and I had the privilege of attending a "graduation" ceremony of sorts for a friend of ours who had successfully completed 9 months of a Teen Challenge program. It was a fitting cap to a great weekend for our family of celebrating freedom.Saturday, we were out and about at our local Megalomart (Target).  As we were about to enter the store, we picked up a conversation

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-23615963126602106012008-06-13T14:26:00.001-04:002008-06-13T14:27:02.974-04:00

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-77581192502112731452008-06-08T14:14:00.002-04:002008-06-08T14:17:00.562-04:00

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15045681.post-71465867542676293272008-06-01T17:54:00.002-04:002008-06-01T18:03:06.830-04:00

I was privileged to worship with the Church at Burleson in TX this morning. The pastor did a great job unpacking the dangers of the ride of pride in the lives of believers. I thought I'd pass along just a few "people" he's met that were on their own ride of pride.1. Velma Vanity 2. Eddie Education - speaks more of his degrees than his relationship with Christ3. Anna Accomplishment - wall

Chad A. Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02902677623773283353noreply@blogger.com0