by Anton Beetge | 30 Dec 2025 | Articles
What shall I render to the LORDfor all his benefits to me?I will lift up the cup of salvationand call on the name of the LORD,I will pay my vows to the LORDin the presence of all his people. Psalm 116:12–14 As we come to the end of another year, I find myself...
by Doug Van Meter | 26 Dec 2025 | Articles
It is midday on Christmas Day as I write, and I can’t stop thinking about that first one: the day that the Son of God became man—the incarnation. I am particularly thinking of Mary and all she experienced. I am thinking of a mother’s love and of a mother’s heartache....
by Doug Van Meter | 19 Dec 2025 | Articles
In 1666, Puritan pastor Thomas Watson lamented, “Many parents are careful to lay up portions for their children, but they do not lay up prayers for them.” He was pastorally burdened for parents who focus on the temporal rather than the eternal. I want to suggest that...
by Doug Van Meter | 12 Dec 2025 | Articles
Before taking a break for the holidays, I want to finish a brief series on what elder-led congregationalism looks like. Last week, we examined the congregation’s responsibilities for the what and the who of the gospel. Specifically, the congregation is biblically...
by Doug Van Meter | 5 Dec 2025 | Articles
Last week, I wrote about the responsibility of church members when it comes to affirming (or not affirming) a prospective elder, with particular reference to the eventual pastor-teacher transition to take place in our future. This week, I want to continue to address...
by Doug Van Meter | 28 Nov 2025 | Articles
At our recent elders’ intensive (in October), we discussed the matter of my pastoral transition, specifically who would replace me. There has been much discussion about this over the years and several ideas have been floated, debated, shot down, and replaced by other...
