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When Leadership Feels Heavy: Faithfulness in the Middle of It

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  by Bart Denny There are moments in ministry that feel full. Full of joy. Full of momentum. Full of visible fruit. And then there are moments that feel heavy. Not dramatic. Not headline-worthy. Just heavy. The kind of weight that comes from complicated situations, unclear facts, strained relationships, and decisions that don’t have easy answers. If you’ve led in the church for any length of time, you know this weight. It shows up when you’re trying to care for people who are hurting while also protecting the rest of the flock. It shows up when you’re holding pieces of a story, but not the whole picture. It shows up when you’re expected to lead with clarity in situations that feel anything but clear. And often, it shows up quietly. You still preach. You still smile. You still lead. But underneath, you’re carrying something heavy. The Reality We Don’t Always Talk About Spiritual leadership is not just about vision and teaching. It’s also about burden-b...
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Original Sin: Inherited Corruption or Inherited Guilt? (and Why It Matters)

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by Bart L. Denny, Ph.D., Th.M. Maybe you’ve heard the term “original sin.” You might be surprised to learn that there is considerable debate about precisely what the phrase “original sin” entails. Christians hear the term original sin and have differing conceptions of it. Reading the Bible, I have always understood original sin to mean what I more often heard described as a “sin nature,” an invariable propensity to sin inherited from our first father, Adam. Except for Jesus Christ, the God-man, all have sinned, and none can help but sin. All flavors of orthodox Christianity have accepted that humankind inherits a sinful nature and that no human can attain sinless perfection in this life. This sinful nature, because it has come down through Adam, might be considered “inherited corruption.” One of the consequences of this inherited corruption is the eventual physical death of all human beings. But I never recognized that this understanding of original sin, common among Baptists, Arminian...
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