TwelveTwelve: The Leader Blog of North Wake Church

Photo by Laura Nyhuis on Unsplash Read:  John 1:14 Adapted from Paul David Tripp, Come Let Us Adore Him.  p. 9-11. It is a mind-boggling, hard to grasp, awesome story unlike any other story ever told.  But  what makes this story so wonderful and so important is not that its plot is way beyond anything you would've ever conceived.  What makes this story vital to know and understand is that it is not a well-crafted fantasy.  The thing that should make you stop in your tracks, activate your heart and mind, and fall to your knees is that this

This time of the year, Americans get together with family and friends to feast and reflect.  Over this American Thanksgiving Holiday, my wife and I will be gathering with some of North Wake’s Far Flung Families, friends living and working for God’s kingdom all over the world. It’ll be our first time missing a gathering with family around poultry, fall vegetables, and pie. Like many families, we take time at Thanksgiving to discuss ways we’re thankful to God, especially His goodness. If the point were simply to reflect on the past year, it would become easy to be depressed. Our family is probably like yours: we’ve experienced loss and lots of tears.

Read:  John 20:21-22 I was sitting at a table with an old friend who leads a large and thriving church.  "We try to make everything easy for the members of our church," he said to me.  "We encourage them to get to know people in our community, whether in their neighborhood or office or anywhere else.  Then all they have to do is invite those people to church.  At church, those people will hear relevant, gifted communicators in a warm, attractive, and appealing environment where their children can be a part of top-of-the-line programs." He concluded, "If our members will

44 He said to them, “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.” 45 Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. 46 He told them, “This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, 47 and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things. 49 I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with

Read Matthew 28:19-20 Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age. (CSB) There are two words that struck me while I was meditating on this passage. The first is the word everything, as in, ‘Teach them to observe/obey everything I have commanded you…’ EVERYTHING! How often we get caught up in one or two of Jesus’ commands but neglect the

Why do we "Make Disciples?" It started, in a sense, with the Great Commission given by Jesus shortly before He returned to Heaven: Now the eleven disciples [the original apostles, before Paul] went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy

Persecution. Jesus said that His followers should expect it (John 15:20; 2 Tim. 3:12) and that those who experience it are blessed (Matt. 5:10–12). In our First World society, persecution may mean mocking, slander, or alienation from friends and family. However, the church extends far beyond our circles to include dozens of countries around the world. In much of the Majority World, Christians are experiencing persecution in the form of harassment, beatings, and even martyrdom. The Risk of Belief Over the past fifteen years, my work has been primarily focused on evangelism, disciple-making, and church planting in places where those

I considered not turning in a blog this time. The topic just did not ring out to me. Church planting. Yeah, ok. What’s there to say? I looked for help. I asked my daughter what she would write about this. “Uh…that it’s good?” I asked my husband what he would write, he said, “That it’s not a plant (ha ha).” You can tell this is not a frequent topic of deep conversation in our house. I’m a North Waker. I believe in planting churches. I think most, if not all, North Wakers do. North Wake itself is a church

Read the Book of Colossians When I meet someone new, I typically try to have a conversation that gets straight at their roots. Sometimes it’s because I’m trying to find a good angle for sharing the gospel, but sometimes it’s just fun to see how someone ticks! You see, everyone is like a plant or a tree. When we interact with each other, we tend to present our best fruit and flowers and leave the thorns or dead branches out of the picture.  But at the bottom of most plants is a root system that dives down into the