1. This article is written by guest contributor, Christopher J. Richmann.
  2. Like the serpent on the pole, God still puts real-life things up for us to look to for salvation.
  3. We can interpret "be the Church" as either law or gospel.
  4. Sometimes, we get prayer dementia. We can’t remember what we were going to pray for, we can’t put the words together, and, frustrated, there is nothing we can do but sigh and groan.
  5. A “good death” and “good life” are not accomplished through personal striving but are grasped by faith in the promises of God.
  6. God gives his church a story that helps to make sense of this life.
  7. It would serve us well to embrace the beauty of our diversity within the unity of the body of Christ.
  8. We must also address the stigma surrounding addiction within so many churches.
  9. It is of the utmost importance that pastors teach their congregation that through faith in Jesus Christ, they are fortified against the machinations of the adversary.
  10. God comes to us through the flesh and blood and spirit of Christ precisely where he promised to be manifest to us and for us.
  11. I’ve experienced firsthand the promise that God never leaves a congregation empty-handed.
  12. A pastor is sent to proclaim the unconditional grace of God, reminding us again and again that it is our Heavenly Father who reaches out to us in love through his Christ-won forgiveness, and not the other way around.