John D. Witvliet

한국어    Español ¿Qué pasó con la segunda venida? 도대체 재림에 무슨 일이 생겼는가?   Q It has been years since I've heard a sermon or sung a song about Jesus' second coming. Why? How do we recover that? A

Drills and Scales as Building Blocks Every good soccer or basketball team does drills to practice basic skills. Every good pianist or saxophonist practices scales. Drills and scales are the building blocks of success any time our bodies and minds are involved in an activity we love. Scales and drills shape how human nerves and muscles work together seamlessly in real time. They get us ready to respond to whatever a game or musical performance brings our way. They make doing the right thing instinctive, like second nature.

한국어    Español La constancia, los valores litúrgicos permanentes, y la ayuda del Espíritu en medio de nuestras debilidades. 지속성, 지속적인 성품, 그리고 우리 연약함을 도우시는 성령님   Desiring to further express the diversity of the body of Christ and support a broader base of Reformed churches, RW is committed to taking a very small first step by making one article in each issue available in Korean, Spanish, and English. —JB

Portuguese Remembrance: An Incomplete Truth Every year, I ask my college and seminary students to tell me how they think 8 and 9 year olds in their congregation would summarize the point of the Lords’ Supper in a sentence. Invariably, the vast, vast majority say “the Supper is about remembering Jesus’ death.”

Q Why does Ascension Day matter? We don’t celebrate it anymore, and I need to give my congregation a better rationale for why we should. By the way, they don’t have patience for a treatise on the matter. I need short, pithy explanations. A

Q The term “praise team” seems so limiting. Isn’t there a better alternative? A

Q So often, church year seasons drive our worship planning process. But terms like “Advent” and “Epiphany” don’t communicate well. They end up being barriers to our audience—especially our audience of the unchurched. What can we do about that? A

Q Our church puts a lot of effort into making worship more meaningful for kids. While they are more engaged, it’s hard to tell if they are really benefitting from all this effort spiritually. How do we discern what is really formative, and what is just busy activity? A What a challenging and fruitful question—for people of all ages!

Q I love RW, but I attend a congregation with minimal resources, minimal talent, and minimal openness to creativity. It is my congregation and I don’t want to leave. But my frustration is growing. How can I manage the gap between my ideals and reality? Is there anything I can do to help expand our vision? Q

Q Thinking about Lent again makes me feel a bit fatigued, especially when I think about all the energy required to defend and promote all the disciplines of obedience that are so important during Lent. Our congregation resists all of that “spiritual protein.” How can I overcome my congregation’s resistance? A