Oct 13
2023
Blessed to be a Blessing
What does evangelism look like? How do we know we are being faithful to the great commission when Jesus called us to go into all the world and make disciples?
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Make Your Pastor Happy
Hebrews 13 suggests that churches ought to care for the joy—the happiness—of their pastor. Why? Because a miserable pastor—a pastor who never knows the winds of encouragement in his sails but only the headwinds of opposition at his face—is rarely an effective one.
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Harvest’s Church Plant: River Presbyterian Church
Our goal is to see a healthy, Reformed church established in Northwest Grand Rapids that is committed to seeing disciples of Jesus made and matured as God’s Word is prayerfully applied to the lives of people.
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A Season of Transition
As I was meditating on Psalm 34 this past week, it struck me that, like so many of the Davidic psalms, it was written during a season of transition.
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Lessons Learned in Thailand
I arrived safely home from Thailand on Tuesday night and am working through jet lag. It was a great trip and I’m so thankful for the opportunity to go. It was engaging in ways I expected it would be – and transformative in ways I didn’t.
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The Gospel Mission Outside Our Building
The elders and I have been praying for the past year or so that the Lord would help us, as a church, to become more engaged in the gospel mission outside our building– both in our own community and around the world. I believe that the Lord is beginning to answer those prayers in wonderful ways.
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How does Christ’s resurrection benefit us?
The Heidelberg Catechism—that tested and proven instruction manual on Christian doctrine—has a helpful three-part answer for us.
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Power to Pray
What is happening when we pray? The king of heaven and earth, stoops down towards his beloved children, and listens to our cries. When we forget our relationship with the king of the universe our hearts become cynical.
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When “Faithful” Isn’t Enough
The Bible compels us, as the church of God, to be passionate about a faithfulness that produces fruitfulness! As Jesus told His disciples in John 15, they were to abide in Him, and ask Him for all that they needed - so that they might bear much fruit to the glory of God (John 15:7-8). Biblical faithfulness will passionately pursue “much fruit”.
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Reflections on WSCAL
I was in Escondido for Westminster Seminary in California board meetings. It’s such a privilege to serve on the board of the school that gave me so much. I learned church history, and systematic theology, Greek and Hebrew, and some basic training in how to counsel and preach. But the most important thing I gained at WSC was the sufficiency of the gospel for salvation of the lost and the sanctification of the found.
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Sep 7
2023
We're Back
Well, we’re back! For those of you we haven’t met yet, my name is Brennen Winter, and I am going to be Harvest’s full-time intern for the coming year. I am joined by my extraordinary wife, Tiffany, and our timid but lovable dog, Winchester (“Winnie”). We have many interests (just ask) and are so excited to be back in West Michigan and at Harvest in particular.
Aug 25
2023
A Parable From the Front Lawn
Being in loving and committed Christian community creates opportunities for people to give verbal recognition to the work that God has done in us. We are putting ourselves in positions where God can speak through his people to remind us: God is slowly and surely making us to look more like Christ. And hopefully we can do the same for others.
Aug 18
2023
Norfleet Call to Briarwood PCA
Aug 11
2023
Lenny's Welcome
A warm welcome can make the difference between someone moving toward Bible-based, Christ-centered community or drifting from it.
Aug 1
2023
Catch Them Doing Something Good
As you consider this triad of biblical categories—“saint, sufferer, and sinner”—which of these lenses tends to control the way you see and speak to God’s people around you? Each of these perspectives on our Christian experience is obviously important, but my sense is that—dare I say it?—our conversations with one another often suffer from a grave imbalance: “sinner” gets the most airtime, “sufferer” runs a distant second, and “saint” gets little to no mention at all.
Jul 21
2023
Let Me Tell You About My Brother
This past Monday my family (brothers and sisters) got together for Mom’s 83rd birthday. It was a perfect summer night for a back yard buffet – and one more chance to be with my brother Randy. A highlight of the evening was sharing stories and memories of Randy; things we particularly loved about him. It was a blessing to be able to do that with him there, to listen and join in. It was evident that Randy is a unique blessing to our family. Always has been.
Jul 7
2023
Pastoral Intern Update
The kindness of God has been made manifest in so many ways these last two years. We’ve come back to West Michigan, for a brief time, to be of service to the saints at Harvest.
Jun 30
2023
Home and Post-Vacation Blues
Many people experience PVB because they hate their job or their ‘normal’ life. That’s not the case for me at all. I love my work and I feel incredibly blessed in my normal life. It’s just not home – not in that deep sense. Normal life, in this present evil age with a not-yet-perfected self, is a life filled with stress, conflict, loss, fear, weariness, anxiety, etc. Normal work is filled with thorns and thistles – and something deep within me longs for beauty and for deep body and soul rest. That’s why I cry a little when I must leave the place where I experience a taste of it. It feels like leaving what I was made for.
Jun 22
2023
Summer Memory Challenge
Scripture memory, however, whether it be for adults or kids, is not something we do just for kicks or to gain some religious points. Scripture memory is about worship, holiness, ministry, and mission. L