Confrontation Makes Me Squirm*
*This is adapted from a series of emails to Life Group (small group) leaders as we read Cloud and Townsend’s Making Small Groups Work together. I cannot think of a subject that makes me much more uncomfortable than confrontation. I do not…
Healing in Our Life Groups*
*This is adapted from a series of emails to Life Group (small group) leaders as we read Cloud and Townsend’s Making Small Groups Work together. This is one of the things I’ve been hinting at—that in our groups there is a unique…
We Need One Another to Grow
This has been an interesting chapter* for me to think through, because I know that a lot of our Life Groups at Calvary are pretty homogeneous—particularly in age and experience. So thinking about being one another’s mentors probably isn’t the first thing…
Supporting and Strengthening: What Small Groups Are For
These reflections are adapted from emails I send to our Life Group leaders as part of ongoing small group leader training at our church. They are direct reflections on Cloud and Townsend’s Making Small Groups Work, a book we are reading through…
Forgiven People Confronting “Nice” Sins
There’s that great story in Luke 7 where the woman known as a sinner comes to Jesus. The Pharisees condemn her because she’s a “woman of the city.” And after she weeps at his feet and anoints them, Jesus says:…
Accountability, Growth, and Repair in Life Groups
*These reflections are adapted from emails I send to our Life Group leaders as part of ongoing small group leader training at our church. They are direct reflections on Cloud and Townsend’s Making Small Groups Work, a book we are reading through…
Prayer in Our Life Groups
Let’s help our Life Groups grow beyond scheduled, polite prayers into bold, specific, vulnerable, and sometimes spontaneous prayer—praying not only for needs, but for growth, holiness, neighbors, and even impossible things. I tend to take it as a given that our…
Discipline Without Losing Grace: Helping Life Groups Grow Well
Small groups don’t run on good vibes alone. Whether you’re leading a group or simply participating in one, part of what makes a group healthy is shared responsibility for how we use our time and care for one another. Life…
Connections in Life Groups
How are your Life Groups doing? More specifically: how are your groups doing at connecting with one another on a heart level? Cloud and Townsend ask whether our groups are connecting “on a heart-based level” (71), and I think that’s a helpful…
A Second Family: Reflections on Making Small Groups Work, Chapter 5
Cloud and Townsend open this chapter by saying, “An important aspect of any growth-producing group is that it provides a context for members to re-experience whatever they missed in life the first time around” (67). That line really stuck with me, because…
✨ Looking Ahead to 2026 at Calvary ✨
📌 2026 at a Glance Hey Calvary, As we begin to look ahead to 2026, I just want to pause and say this clearly: 2025 was a really good year. I’m proud of you and deeply encouraged by the ways God has been…
W.A.R.M. Welcome & Preparing to Say Goodbye, 3/18/25
Dear Calvary Church Family, It’s hard to believe, but today was our last full day in Sierra Leone. We will begin a ~31-hour journey home at noon (8am EST) Wednesday. Please pray, as we say goodbye to our in-country partners…
Happy Monday (and St. Patrick’s Day) from Sierra Leone! – 3/17/25
Dear Calvary Church Family, Hello brothers and sisters. I am praying for you all today that the joy of the Lord would be your strength, as you begin another week. We are in the midst of a short break from…
“Welcome Home!” The Hospitality of Sierra Leone, 3/13/25
Dear Calvary Church Family, “Welcome home!” This was the greeting Tom Cox and I received from a young man name Ephraim, when we saw him again for the first time since last year, as we arrived at our the hotel…
Sierra Leone Tuesday Update, 3/11/25
Dear Calvary Church Family, Thank you for your continued prayers for our trip here in Sierra Leone. The Lord continues to bless my colleague, Tom Cox, and I with a joy-filled partnership together, as well as significant growth in the…
Sierra Leone Weekend Update, 3/8/25
Dear Calvary Church Family, Weekend greetings from beautiful Freetown, Sierra Leone. The Lord has been kind to us in the midst of our travel and first full day of rest and ministry. Tom Cox and I arrived just after midnight…
The Sun is Setting on our Time in Sierra Leone
(Monday, Feb 19) Thank you for your continued prayers and encouragement, as the sun begins to set on our time in Sierra Leone. In approximately two hours, Tom and I will be on our way to 1st Presbyterian Church for our…
Grace at Raining Season Orphanage
Last night (Feb 15), I had the opportunity to teach a class of about 25 students on the subject of Worship in the Church. I continue to be impressed by the eager participation of the church leaders and members who…
Your Gifts Are a Blessing in Sierra Leone
This week has been filled with many demonstrations of God’s love and yours for the people here in Freetown. Over the past two days, we’ve visited the three Presbyterian (PCSL) church-run schools, as well as an orphanage co-founded and run…
Weekend Recap from Sierra Leone
Tom Cox and I are greatly enjoying the fellowship we have in Christ, as we partner together in this work. Here is a recap of some of the ministry opportunities of this past weekend. Saturday, February 10 We gathered for…
Update from Sierra Leone
As you have likely heard, Tom Cox and I arrived in Sierra Leone around 7pm local time (2pm EST) on Wednesday evening, after a largely uneventful journey that began at RDU airport 25 hours prior. We enjoyed the new modernized…