Grace East Blog

Our Last Service

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 21:25:00 -0800

After much deliberation and prayer, we've decided to close Grace East and rejoin Grace Chapel in Scottsdale.

Our last service will be on Sunday, January 22, at 11:30 AM. We'll end with a meal together.

It has been great worshipping with you and your families at Grace East for the past two years. I hope we can continue doing the same in Scottsdale.

Please contact me if you have any questions.

Andrew Casteel

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The Real Christmas Story

Tue, 20 Dec 2011 11:54:35 -0800

But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.

(Galatians 4:4-5)

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Advent Devotionals

Tue, 29 Nov 2011 13:58:00 -0800

The first Sunday of Advent was November 27. Visit these links to download free devotionals that will help you celebrate the arrival of our wonderful Savior.

Learn more about Advent and how to celebrate it here. Links to some Advent books can be found here.

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A Word To Parents

Tue, 15 Nov 2011 09:41:00 -0800

From a post by Julian Freeman:

We've all heard the expression about missing the forest for all the trees. It's easy to do in any area of life, but I've found it especially easy in parenting. At any given point in time there are so many issues that are pressing, so many different things you want to teach, and so many ways you want to express love for your children. How can you find time for it all?

The answer, to be sure, is 'You can't.' There just isn't enough time. No matter how much time I have with my kids, I find there's always more I'd like to say, teach, discipline, instruct, encourage, rebuke, etc. And at the same time I don't want to overwhelm them or frustrate them with too many words, too much instruction, too many demands. Fathers are specifically warned, after all, not to provoke their children to anger (Eph 6.4).

The key to this, as with so many things, is balance. I need to learn to not harp on every little thing I see in them, but to pick my spots, look for moments when little hearts are open and ready to receive instruction, and most of all, make sure I make the main thing the main thing--always.

Unfortunately, I fear that I do a bad job at that. I get so caught up in the presenting issues of the day-to-day that I sometimes lose sight of the big picture issues that my children so desperately need me to emphasize...

...There is very little to be proud about in parenting. The mistakes are many and the painstakingly obvious need for God's intervening grace humbles me continually. I've never been more aware of the fact that if my children will be saved, it will be all because of God's grace in spite of me, rather than because of me.

But there is hope. And the Lord loves to use broken, fallen, largely-pathetic humans for his good purposes: it's his way of ensuring that he gets all the glory. And I'm okay with that. I'm just thankful for mercy and hopeful for future grace.

Read his whole post here.

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Stats From Sunday's Sermon

Wed, 21 Sep 2011 14:58:06 -0700

Here are some statistics I wrote down during the sermon on Sunday.

33% of the world population claims to a be Christian of some sort.
40% of the world population is not Christian but has been evangelized (they have a way to hear the gospel in their location and language).
27% of the world population is unevangelized (they have not heard the gospel and currently have no way to hear the gospel in their location and language).
80% of missionaries go to areas that make up the 33% of the world population that is Christian.
17.5% of missionaries go to areas that make up the 40% of the world population that has been evangelized.
2.5% of missionaries go to areas that make up the 27% of the world population that is currently unevangelized.
For every $100 spent on foreign missions, 1 cent goes to works to reach the unevangelized.
There are over 750,000 international students from 180 nations studying in the U.S.
75% of these students will never enter the home of an American.

The global missions statistics can be checked here, here, and here.

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Do You Use Prayer As A Domestic Intercom Or A Wartime Walkie-Talkie?

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 14:20:07 -0700

By John Piper

I have often said that one of the reasons we feel so weak in our prayer lives is that we have tried to make a domestic intercom out of a wartime walkie-talkie. Prayer is not designed as an intercom between us and God to serve the domestic comforts of the saints. It's designed as a walkie-talkie for spiritual battlefields. It's the link between active soldiers and their command headquarters, with its unlimited firepower and air cover and strategic wisdom.

This is the picture that I think helps capture the spirit of prayer in Colossians 4:2–4:

Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving; and pray for us also, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison, that I may make it clear, as I ought to speak.

Here's one way to picture what is going on here. Paul and Timothy (1:1) and Aristarchus (4:10) and Epaphras (4:12) are a unique team of storm troopers in the spiritual battle to recapture the hearts of men for God. They have made a strike at the enemy lines and met a tremendous counterforce. Paul and Aristarchus are prisoners of war. And it looks as though the enemy has a tactical victory in his pocket.

But Paul manages to smuggle a letter out of the prison camp to some fellow soldiers stationed to the rear—that's the Colossians. In the letter he asks them to get on their walkie-talkie, call command headquarters, and ask headquarters to fire a missile that will blast open a door in the prison wall and in the enemy's front line so that Paul and his squad can get on with their mission to release people from the power of Satan and bring them to God.

So the point that we are most interested in here is this: the soldiers to the rear with the walkie-talkie of prayer are very crucial in the frontline successes of evangelism. If they weren't, this text would be a sham.

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Why We Need Constant, Persistent, Sleepless, Overcoming Prayer

Sun, 04 Sep 2011 23:52:00 -0700

From How To Pray by R. A. Torrey

But why is this constant, persistent, sleepless, overcoming prayer so needful?

Because there is a Devil - He is cunning, he is mighty, he never rests, he is ever plotting the downfall of the child of God; and if the child of God relaxes in prayer, the devil will succeed in ensnaring him.
Prayer is God's appointed way for obtaining things, and the great secret of all lack in our experience, in our life and in our work is neglect of prayer.
Those men whom God set forth as a pattern of what He expected Christians to be - The Apostles - regarded prayer as the most important business of their lives.
Prayer occupied a very prominent place and played a very important part in the earthly life of our Lord.
Praying is the most important part of the present ministry of our risen Lord.
Prayer is the means that God has appointed for our receiving mercy, and obtaining grace to help in time of need.
Prayer in the name of Jesus Christ is the way Jesus Christ Himself has appointed for His disciples to obtain fullness of joy.
Prayer, in every care and anxiety and need of life, with thanksgiving, is the means that God has appointed for obtaining freedom from all anxiety, and the peace of God which passeth all understanding.
Prayer is the method that God Himself has appointed for our obtaining the Holy Spirit - If we would only spend more time in prayer, there would be more fullness of the Spirit's power in our work. Many and many a man who once worked unmistakably in the power of the Holy Spirit is now filling the air with empty shoutings, and beating it with his meaningless gesticulations, because he has let prayer be crowded out. We must spend much time on our knees before God, if we are to continue in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Prayer is the means that Christ has appointed whereby our hearts shall not become overcharged with surfeiting (overindulgence) and drunkenness and cares of this life, and so the day of Christ's return come upon us suddenly as a snare.
Because of what prayer accomplishes.

Prayer promotes our spiritual growth as almost nothing else, indeed as nothing else but Bible study; and true prayer and true Bible study go hand in hand - As I meet God in prayer and gaze into His face, I am changed into His own image from glory to glory.
Prayer brings power into our work - If we wish power for any work to which God calls us, be it preaching, teaching, personal work, or the rearing of our children, we can get it by earnest prayer.
Prayer avails for the conversion of others - By prayer the bitterest enemies of the Gospel have become its most valiant defenders, the greatest scoundrels the truest sons of God, and the vilest women the purest saints.
Prayer brings blessings to the church - Prayer will root out heresy, allay misunderstanding, sweep away jealousies and animosities, obliterate immoralities, and bring in the full tide of God's reviving grace.

10 Tips For Teaching Young Children About God

Wed, 24 Aug 2011 16:51:35 -0700

Teach all the time

Young children live in the moment. Help them to learn in the moment by making the most of opportunities as they arise. Talk about God in the day-to-day things you are doing.

Teach at a special time

Try to set aside a special time to read about God. Prepare for this time. If you are going to read the Bible, think about what you will read and how to simplify and explain it.

Questions and answers

Listen to your children's questions, and give quality time to answering them. But also ask them questions about what you've been trying to teach to check they have understood.

Teach through your life

You are a living example (or visual aid) of someone who loves God. Set a faithful example of dependence on God and let them see you reading the Bible for yourself.

Be prayerful

Like adults, children need God's help to grow in Christ and they can learn to pray. So pray for them and pray simple prayers with them (e.g. "sorry God that we...", "thank you God for...", "God, please help...").

Be simple

Young children are not abstract thinkers so be literal and concrete. Use real examples where possible (eg. God made this flower). Use simple vocabulary that they can understand. Avoid jargon.

Be specific

Move from the specific (God loves Ben) to the general (God loves everyone). Use lots of familiar examples so that they can understand.

Repeat and repeat again

You might get tired of saying it, but remember young children thrive on repetition.

Be thankful

Approach God with thankfulness. Model to your children how we can thank God in various situations and what we can thank God for.

Be visual

Young children learn through their eyes as well as their ears. Use pictures, visual aids, picture books etc.

Tips provided by Stephanie Carmichael of Matthias Media

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Don't Just Feed Them On Sundays

Tue, 23 Aug 2011 16:23:00 -0700

This is from a short article by Fred Wolfe:

How could churches build fathers into the spiritual leaders their families desperately need? I suggest that we stop trying. Well, at least stop operating under the illusion that families don’t practice family worship. The reality of the situation is that families are already indeed worshipping together. The key question is not if they are worshipping, but what they are worshipping. Are they worshipping football games, television, video games, twitter, vacations, and any number of other idols that the father has erected or has allowed to exist in his home?

A father that believes in keeping his children with him on Sunday, but fills his family with idols throughout the week breeds inconsistency in his children. A man would not feed his children food on Sunday, and starve them during the work week. Family Integrated Church on Sunday may be nourishing, but a child will spiritually starve if that practice is not carried out throughout the week.

Read the rest here.

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Killing Sin

Tue, 19 Jul 2011 10:28:32 -0700

From The Practice of Mortification
by Sinclair Ferguson

Here [in Colossae] were relatively young Christians. They have had a wonderful experience of conversion to Christ from paganism. They had entered a gloriously new and liberating world of grace. Perhaps -- if we may read between the lines -- they had felt for a while as if they had been delivered, not only from sin's penalty but almost from its influence -- so marvelous was their new freedom. But then, of course, sin reared its ugly head again. Having experienced the "already" of grace they were now discovering the painful "not yet" of ongoing sanctification. Sounds familiar!

But as in our evangelical sub-culture of quick fixes for long-term problems, unless the Colossians had a firm grasp of Gospel principles, they were now at risk! For just at this point young Christians can be relatively easy prey to false teachers with new promises of a higher spiritual life. That was what Paul feared (Col. 2:8, 16). Holiness-producing methods were now in vogue (Col. 2:21-22) -- and they seemed to be deeply spiritual, just the thing for earnest young believers. But, in fact, "they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh" (Col. 2:23). Not new methods, but only an understanding of how the Gospel works, can provide an adequate foundation and pattern for dealing with sin. This is the theme of Colossians 3:1-17.

Paul's exposition provides us with practical guidance for mortifying sin. Sometimes it seems as if Paul gives exhortations ("Put to death...," 3:5) without giving "practical" help to answer our "how to?" questions. Often today, Christians go to Paul to tell them what to do and then to the local Christian bookstore to discover how to do it! Why this bifurcation? Probably because we do not linger long enough over what Paul is saying. We do not sink our thinking deeply into the Scriptures. For, characteristically, whenever Paul issues an exhortation he surrounds it with hints as to how we are to put it into practice.

This is certainly true here. Notice how this passage helps to answer our "how to?" questions.

1. Learn to admit sin for what it really is. Call a spade a spade -- call it "sexual immorality," not "I'm being tempted a little"; call it "impurity," not "I'm struggling with my thought life"; call it "evil desire, which is idolatry," not "I think I need to order my priorities a bit better." This pattern runs right through this whole section. How powerfully this unmasks self-deceit -- and helps us to unmask sin lurking in the hidden corners of
our hearts!

2. See sin for what your sin really is in God's presence. "On account of these the wrath of God is coming" (3:6). The masters of the spiritual life spoke of dragging our lusts (kicking and screaming, though they be) to the cross, to a wrath-bearing Christ. My sin leads to -- not lasting pleasure -- but holy divine displeasure. See the true nature of your sin in the light of its punishment. Too easily do we think that sin is less serious in Christians than it is in non-believers: "It's forgiven, isn't it?" Not if we continue in it (1 John 3:9)! Take a heaven's-eye view of sin and feel the shame of that in which you once walked (Col. 3:7; see also Rom. 6:21).

3. Recognize the inconsistency of your sin. You put off the "old man," and have put on the "new man" (3:9-10). You are no longer the "old man." The identity you had "in Adam" is gone. The old man was "crucified with him [Christ] in order that the body of sin [probably "life in the body dominated by sin"] might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin" (Rom. 6:6). New men live new lives. Anything less than this is a contradiction of who I am "in Christ."

4. Put sin to death (Col. 3:5). It is as "simple" as that. Refuse it, starve it, and reject it. You cannot "mortify" sin without the pain of the kill. There is no
other way!

But notice that Paul sets this in a very important, broader context. The negative task of putting sin to death will not be accomplished in isolation from the positive call of the Gospel to "put on" the Lord Jesus Christ (Rom. 13:14). Paul spells this out in Colossians 3:12-17. Sweeping the house clean simply leaves us open to a further invasion of sin. But when we understand the "glorious exchange" principle of the Gospel of grace, then we will begin to make some real advance in holiness. As sinful desires and habits are not only rejected, but exchanged for Christ-like graces (3:12) and actions (3:13); as we are clothed in Christ's character and His graces are held together by love (v. 14), not only in our private life but also in the church fellowship (vv. 12-16), Christ's name and glory are manifested and exalted in and among us (3:17).

Read the entire article here.

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A Big Announcement

Thu, 14 Jul 2011 10:55:40 -0700

Starting August 7 Grace East will meet on Sunday mornings at 11:30

When we started Grace East, we picked Saturday nights because it was the best available time for us to meet (we could rent church facilities inexpensively, Matthew could lead worship, and Pastors Richard and Becky could attend). Now, 17 months and three locations later, we have an opportunity to move to Sunday mornings. I believe this is good for Grace East for a few reasons.

Research has shown that the unchurched are more likely to attend church on Sunday mornings than any other time.
More scheduling conflicts seem to occur on Saturday nights than on Sunday mornings (think of the weddings and parties you've missed to attend church, or that you had to miss church to attend).
Meeting in the morning will give us more time to fellowship and eat together, before and after the service.

Starting at 11:30 AM will allow Matthew to lead worship at Grace Chapel in Scottsdale and then quickly (but safely) drive to Mesa to lead worship for us. Pastors Richard and Becky will also be able to attend Grace East and Pastor Richard will still be involved in the preaching at our service.

July 30 will be our last meeting on Saturday night. Our first Sunday meeting will be on August 7, at 11:30 AM. We will celebrate the move with a potluck immediately following the service.

Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

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Thoughts On Family Worship

Thu, 30 Jun 2011 15:34:53 -0700

By Jerry Owen

I get asked regularly about what we do for “family worship.” Among Christians who love the faith and their kids, family worship becomes a topic of interest. My initial response is always ambivalent, encouraged on the one hand that someone wants to have a family culture that includes the Bible and devotion in the home, and slightly concerned because the common issues that plague “family worship” are considerable. For those considering implementing some version of family worship, here are some remarks that I hope are helpful.

1. Family Worship Isn’t Required by the Bible

This is not the same thing as saying parents shouldn’t read the Bible, pray and talk about God with their children. Of course they should. And it’s helpful if this is regular, methodical, and often. But some of the healthiest Christian families I know never had “family worship” formally conducted. They would read and discuss the Bible at meal and other times for particular seasons, sing and pray before going to bed etc, but these things were not done primarily in one sitting, not in what we would typically call family worship. I know there are lazy parents, particularly fathers, who don’t make time to regularly read and teach the Bible to their kids, and I know my point here will be used by them to justify and continue their laziness. This is what gracious biblical standards always do, and in response legalists try to curb sin by adding rules.

2. Family Worship, If Done, Is Not the Most Important Spiritual Thing You Do

All of our devotion–unceasing prayer, dedicated times of prayer, singing, serving, eating and drinking to the glory of God–should prepare us to worship Him in Spirit and truth with His people together. That is the most important thing we do.

3. Family Worship Should Be Delightful for Everyone

My biggest concern for parents are gung-ho on family worship is the tendency for it to be very “serious” and therefore unengaging and often no fun for the kids. . . .If your kids hate it, then change it. If they don’t enjoy it, fix it. They will have certain things to grow into, but our job as parents is to make the growing pains less, not more, and to be sure they are still growing.

These are just excerpts from each of the three points. Read the entire post here.

(via Justin Taylor)

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A Hip Hop Overview of the Book of Colossians

Tue, 21 Jun 2011 12:48:55 -0700

Click here to learn more about the album that breaks down all 13 of Paul's letters.

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Songs From Colossians

Thu, 09 Jun 2011 12:34:00 -0700

Matthew Casteel has written some great songs that will help you and your family sing, memorize, and meditate on verses from the book of Colossians (which happens to be the book we are studying for the next couple of months).

Click here to listen to the songs.

What other verses from Colossians would you like put to music?

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Cool Videos For Kids From Answers in Genesis

Wed, 08 Jun 2011 13:26:13 -0700

http://www.answersingenesis.org/kids/videos

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A Vision For Grace East

Thu, 02 Jun 2011 13:27:45 -0700

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Dazzle Them With The Gospel

Tue, 24 May 2011 15:29:00 -0700

The one thing that our children really need is the gospel of grace. They need to be absolutely dazzled by the kind of love that would suffer the way Christ suffered, forgive the way he forgives, and bless the way he blesses. Martin Luther wrote that it is grace that brings us forgiveness of sins, which produces peace of conscience. The words are simple; but during temptation, “to be convinced in our hearts that we have forgiveness of sins and peace with God by grace alone is the hardest thing.”

Living and parenting in grace is not the easy road. In fact, it is much harder to rest in his promise of grace than it is to make a list and try to live by it. Some parents may think that giving grace to their children equates to giving themselves a pass. Just the opposite is true. Giving grace to children is an exercise of faith, and faith is always more difficult than works. It flows out of humility, a character trait that none of us comes by naturally. That’s why most people miss it and why works, not faith, is the stumbling block of the cross. You are not slacking off when you tell them of his dazzling love. You are doing the hardest thing.

So go ahead. Freely dazzle your babies with the cross of Christ. Give them grace when they succeed and grace when they fail. Show them how much he loves little children, like you.

Elyse Fitzpatrick, Give Them Grace: Dazzling Your Kids with the Love of Jesus

(via Tony Reinke)

Click here to watch an interview with Elyse Fitzpatrick about the book.

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Another Quote From Kevin DeYoung's Post On Parenting

Wed, 11 May 2011 14:25:00 -0700

There are plenty of ways to screw up our kids, but whether they color during church, for example, is not one of them. There is not a straight line from doodling in the service as a toddler to doing meth as a teenager.

Read the rest here.

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Parenting Theories Meet The Real World

Wed, 11 May 2011 14:17:21 -0700

By Kevin DeYoung

There are already scores of books on parenting, many of them quite good. I’ve read several of them and have learned much. I really do believe in gospel-powered parenting and shepherding my child’s heart. I want conversations like this:

Me: What’s the matter son?
Child: I want that toy and he won’t give it to me!
Me: Why do you want the toy?
Child: Because it will be fun to play with.
Me: Do you think he is having fun playing with the toy right now?
Child: Yes.
Me: Would it make him sad to take the toy away?
Child: I guess so.
Me: And do you like to make your brother sad?
Child: No.
Me: You know, Jesus tells us to love our neighbor as ourselves. That means loving your brother the way he would want to be loved. Since Jesus loves us so much, we have every reason to love others–even your brother. Would you like to love him by letting him play with the toy for awhile?
Child: Yes I would daddy.

I try that. Really I do. But here’s what actually happens:

Me: What’s the matter son?
Child: I want that toy and he won’t give it to me!
Me: Why do you want the toy?
Child: I don’t know.
Me: What’s going on in your heart when you desire that toy?
Child: I don’t know.
Me: Think about it son. Use your brain. Don’t you know something?
Child: I guess I just want the toy.
Me: Obviously. But why?
Child: I don’t know.
Me: Fine. [Mental note: abandon "why" questions and skip straight to leading questions.] Do you think he is having fun playing with the toy right now?
Child: No.
Me: Really?! He’s not having fun? Then why does he want that toy in the first place?
Child: Because he’s mean.
Me: Have you ever considered that maybe you are being mean by trying to rip the toy from his quivering little hands?
Child: I don’t know.
Me: What do you know?
Child: I don’t know!
Me: Nevermind. [I wonder how my brilliant child can know absolutely nothing at this moment.] Well, I think taking the toy from him will make your brother sad. Do you like to make him sad?
Child: I don’t know.
Me: [Audible sigh.]
Child: He makes me sad all the time!
Me: Well, I’m getting sad right now with your attitude! [Pause, think, what would Paul Tripp do? Thinking . . . .thinking . . . .man, I can't stop thinking of that mustache. This isn't working. Let's just go right to the Jesus part.] You know, Jesus wants us to love each other.
Child: I don’t know.
Me: I didn’t ask you a question!
Child: [Pause.] Can I have some fruit snacks?
Me: No, you can’t have fruit snacks. We are talking about the gospel. Jesus loves us and died for us. He wants you to love your brother too.
Child: So?
Me: So give him the toy back!

Then I lunge for the toy and the child runs away. I tell him to come back here this instant and threaten to throw the toy in the trash. I recommit myself to turning down speaking engagements on parenting.

I worry that many young parents are a) too adamant about the particulars of their parenting or b) too sure that every decision will set their kids on an unalterable trajectory to heaven or hell. It’s like my secretary at the church once told me: “Most moms and dads think they are either the best or the worst parents around, and both are wrong.” Could it be we’ve made parenting too complicated? Isn’t the most important thing not what we do but who we are as parents? They will see our character before they remember our exact rules regarding television and twinkies.

I could be wrong. My kids are still young. Maybe this no-theory is a theory of its own. I just know that the longer I parent the more I want to focus on doing a few things really well, and not get too passionate about all the rest. I want to spend time with my kids, teach them the Bible, take them to church, laugh with them, cry with them, discipline them when they disobey, say sorry when I mess up, and pray like crazy. I want them to look back and think, “I’m not sure what my parents were doing or if they even knew what they’re were doing. But I always knew my parents loved me and I knew they loved Jesus.” Maybe it’s not that complicated after all.

Read the rest here.

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Satan Doesn't Mind

Mon, 09 May 2011 12:03:00 -0700

Pastor, Satan doesn’t mind if you preach on the decrees of God with fervor and passion, reconciling all the tensions between sovereignty and freedom, as long as you don’t preach the gospel. Homeschooling mom, Satan doesn’t mind if your children can recite the catechism and translate the “Battle Hymn of the Republic” from English to Latin, as long as they don’t hear the gospel. Churches, Satan doesn’t care if your people vote for pro-life candidates, stay married, have sex with whom they’re supposed to, and tear up at all the praise choruses, as long as they don’t see the only power that cancels condemnation—the gospel of Christ crucified. Satan so fears that gospel, he was willing to surrender his entire empire just to stave it off. He still is.

Russell Moore, from Tempted and Tried: Temptation and the Triumph of Christ

(via Joe Thorn)

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