Daily Archives: January 18, 2012

Never Not Faithful: Sermon Series Through Daniel

A sermon series through one of my favorite books, Daniel!

It’s now completely posted with Part Five!

Daniel and the King’s Meat – Super Vs. Natural

Daniel 1. Choosing God when it’s tough. 1 of 5. “The Gateway Drug Theory, the But Vs. So-Then Christian, what Lecrae said about Jesus the Rebel, and lessons from Angels In The Outfield.” August 19th, 2011.


Daniel and the King’s Dream – God Is The Intervention

Daniel 2. God’s working hand as we work through Him. 2 of 5. “How to properly spot the bench press, The Unreasonable Demands, when to Act and when to Ask God, and the Greatest Intervention.” August 29th, 2011


Daniel’s Three Friends – Who Do Your Work For? I Work For God

Daniel 3. Faith in the fire. 3 of 5. “When the Real You comes screaming out of your civilized mask, the toys versus the fire in Toy Story 3, and having an Even-If Faith because we have an Even-If God.” Sept. 2nd, 2011


Daniel and the Two Kings – Good Pride, Bad Pride

Daniel 4-5. Losing control is a good thing. 4 of 5. “The Messy Unnecessary Argument, turning into a cow when you’re having a cow, and the future version of yourself warning you today.” September 16th, 2011.


Daniel and The Lion’s Den – Power In The Pit

Daniel 6. What to do with opposition. 5 of 5. “When to roll hard against some clowns, the story of Jesus found in Daniel, the crazy lady screaming at prayer group, and how God flexes His fruits in opposition.” January 13th, 2012





Pastors I Watch: James MacDonald

I am a certified sermon junkie: I probably watch and listen to a dozen hours of sermons per week.
This will be a ten or twelve part blog series of my favorite preachers. Please note that I don’t necessarily endorse all of them or everything they say.
Pictures are taken from random Google searches.
To see the other blog posts in this series, click here.

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James MacDonald
Lead Pastor of Bible Harvest Chapel in Rolling Meadows, Illinois

The first time I heard Pastor James MacDonald preach was in my sermon prep class in 2010. Dr. Greg Heisler, my wonderful preaching professor, showed him as an example of superb exegetical preaching: that you didn’t have to sacrifice style for substance or the other way around. The message was from the Southeastern Seminary Chapel, April 17th 2008, which I later purchased from their archives. It was an incredible sermon. I remember my mouth was open almost the whole time. He was aggressive, convicting, biblical, real, and hilarious. Since I’ve bought that sermon, I still watch it every few months to re-energize back into ministry.

I began regularly downloading his podcast and buying his other resources, including books and DVDs from his teaching ministry Walk In The Word. Though I don’t agree with every word he says — what preacher do we ever fully agree with? — Pastor James is about as legit as they get. He goes straight from the text, word for word, exegeting the exact meaning, but unlike a commentary manages to captivate you right into Scripture. He is microscopic in his preaching and this proves to be his strength. Many preachers try to throw a wide net on a broad topic hoping to catch it all, but Dr. James is content for each sermon to dig deep into one small aspect of the multi-faceted Bible. Over time, that sort of laser-sight preaching illuminates more than packing it all in one.

Continue reading →

Quote: Heart


“It is good to learn early on that suffering and God are no contradiction, but much more a necessary unity… I think God is closer to suffering than to happiness, and to find God in this manner gives peace and rest, and a strong and courageous heart.”

— Dietrich Bonhoeffer