Mark Clifton, Mark Hallock, and Dan Hurst discuss some ways to help inject new life into the weekly worship gathering.

Some Highlights:

1. Make sure the gathering is truly God-centered, not man-centered.
2. Help people feel the weight and joy of worshiping God, not shallow and joyless.
3. Let theological conviction shape every component, not pragmatism.
4. Preach the Word with precision, passion, and application, not sloppy, dull, and impractical.
5. Celebrate the Lord’s Supper consistently with intentionality, not as an afterthought.
6. Do what you can with excellence, not what you can’t and not half-way.
7. Keep it simple, not unnecessarily complex.
8. Choose songs that are singable and sound in doctrine, not simply what is popular.
9. Encourage congregational singing, not disengaged observing.
10. Make sacrificial giving a worship opportunity, not something to be avoided.
11. Regularly cast vision for how our worship of God must fuel the mission of God to make disciples, never assuming people drift toward the mission.

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Mark Clifton, Mark Hallock, and Dan Hurst discuss some of the benefits and pitfalls of using artificial intelligence in sermon preparation.

Potential Benefits:

• Time efficiency
• Access to a large amount of research and language resources

Potential Pitfalls:

• Risk of shallow theology
• Pastoral integrity
• Laziness

Resources Related to This Episode:

• John Piper’s AI Prayer

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Mark Clifton, Mark Hallock, and Dan Hurst discuss different ways to effectively preach with a manuscript.

Some Highlights:

• Two cons of manuscript preaching:
  • Your delivery can be too wooden.
  • You can miss what the Spirit is doing in the worship gathering
• A manuscript can provide clarity and coherence.
• Even in a manuscript, leave room for what Hallock calls “rant time.”

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Mark Clifton, Mark Hallock, and Dan Hurst discuss how to effectively preach without notes.

Some Highlights:

• No notes DOES NOT mean no study
• Some of the potential pitfalls of preaching with no notes
• The importance of thinking through your introduction and closing
• You must know how you’re going to “land the plane”

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Mark Clifton, Mark Hallock, and Dan Hurst discuss some current trends that pastors need to be aware of for their churches and communities.

Some Highlights:

• More social media issues
• Changing family dynamics
• Increasing cultural headwinds

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Mark Clifton, Mark Hallock, and Dan Hurst discuss some current trends that pastors need to be aware of—both within their churches and throughout their communities.

Some Highlights:

• Mental health issues
• Senior life
• The current political environment
• Changing public schools
• Social media issues

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Mark Clifton, Mark Hallock, and Dan Hurst share some reasons why churches are moving from multiple worship services with different worship styles to a single worship style.

Some Highlights:

1. Multiple worship styles created an “us-versus-them” mentality.
2. The church did not have the resources to do multiple styles with quality.
3. The church moved from multiple services to one service.
4. The millennial generation has influenced many churches.
5. Worship wars are waning.
6. Multiple generations are becoming more accustomed to different types of church music and worship styles.

Resources Related to This Episode:

• “Six Reasons Some Churches are Moving Back to One Worship Style” by Kenny Lamm

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Mark Clifton, Mark Hallock, and Dan Hurst discuss an article from Sam Rainer on some simple and creative ways to love your local community.

Some Highlights:

1. Don’t go home.
2. Join the fun.
3. Live with your people.
4. Stop complaining.
5. Stay active.
6. Join a civic organization.
7. Try something new on a regular basis.

Resources Related to This Episode:

• “Seven Ways to Love Your Community” by Sam Rainer

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Mark Clifton, Mark Hallock, and Dan Hurst share more reasons why we need to learn from the Puritans, based on an article from Jeff Robinson.

Some Highlights:

• Because they saw all of life as being lived coram deo—before the face of God
• Because they were highly decorated soldiers on the spiritual battlefield
• Because they were skilled physicians of the souls
• Because they understood contentment in Christ as the key to genuine happiness

Resources Related to This Episode:

• “Eight Reasons Why We Need the Puritans” by Jeff Robinson
• Little Pilgrim’s Progress: From John Bunyan’s Classic by Helen Taylor and Joanne Brubaker
• Following God Fully: An Introduction to the Puritans by Michael Reeves and Joel Beeke
• The Godly Man’s Picture by Thomas Watson

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Mark Clifton, Mark Hallock, and Dan Hurst share some reasons why we need to learn from the Puritans, based on an article from Jeff Robinson.

Some Highlights:

• Because they were mature and we are not
• Because they understood the deep sinfulness of the human heart
• Because they knew their best life was later
• Because they viewed the family as a little church

Resources Related to This Episode:

• “Eight Reasons Why We Need the Puritans” by Jeff Robinson
• A Quest for Godliness: The Puritan Vision of the Christian Life by J.I. Packer

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