October 29, 2019
Jesus Came Out to the Lawn
“Dad, why do we have to do this? Why can’t we just sit inside the house?” My son was only eight years old at the time these words were uttered, and he didn’t want to meet new people on…
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October 22, 2019
Seven Practices for Missional Hospitality
The practice of hospitality is a mandate of scripture. Romans 12:13, Hebrews 13:2, and 1 Peter 4:9 all encourage us to “practice,” “show,” and “offer” hospitality. Opening your home to host gatherings like your missional community or a DNA…
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October 15, 2019
Good Things and Good News
“As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news! (Romans 10:15b)” How glorious a thought that God has invited us into His mission to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10) through the…
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October 1, 2019
The Vision of Every Church
For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit…
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September 26, 2019
Mission Resistance
Someone once said nothing reveals sin in the heart like calling people to mission. Opportunities for a missional community to serve and bless others often come into conflict with our schedules, preferences, convenience, or comfort. How we respond to…
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September 23, 2019
Adopted Child of God
This post is an excerpt from a leader preparation article in Gospel Basics for Kids. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we…
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September 10, 2019
Are Missional Communities Just a Passing Fad?
I remember when one of the leaders in the Soma Family of Churches asked me if I thought missional communities would be a passing trend. He wasn’t questioning the validity of them, but he did wonder if this was…
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September 4, 2019
The Risk of Disciple-Making
If God can remove walls through a bunch of people marching to the beat, what else will He do when the Bride of Christ remains faithful to Him and His disciple-making mission? Recently, as my wife and I laid…
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August 27, 2019
Gospel Clarity
The story from Mark’s gospel goes like this, “And Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi. And on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” And they told…
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August 15, 2019
A Whole New People and a Whole New World
This blog post is an excerpt from the introduction of our newest resource, an Everyday Discipleship Study on the book of Ephesians. This study launches Monday, August 19th but you can download the first chapter for free now!…
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August 6, 2019
Starting a Missional Community? Listen.
Being faithful isn’t a daily grind we have to strategize. “For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing.” John 5:20 This text is one of the most compelling parts of scripture. It’s…
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July 30, 2019
Loneliness is Poverty
Early Death In 2010, Holt-Lunstad published a study on social relationships and mortality rates. The team’s research verified “that people with fewer social relationships die earlier on average than those with more social relationships.” They measured the influence of…
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June 13, 2019
Declaring the Gospel
I’ve found that when we live our lives intentionally as display people, we get plenty of opportunities to talk about why we do it. Lives full of grace and love; schedules rearranged to make space to listen and serve;…
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June 12, 2019
Episode 82: Everyday Disciples in LA: Entertainment Industry
In this episode of the Saturate Podcast, Brad Watson talks with Hope, Austin, and Jared about living out the gospel in everyday life within the entertainment industry. They share insights on the power of the gospel, community, and mission as…
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June 6, 2019
Rethink the Ideal Missional Community
The way the Spirit leads us and uses us will vary, but we can all participate in gospel communities on mission. When our missional community was just Mirela and me, mission was pretty simple. We shopped, ate, and recreated locally within…
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May 16, 2019
Gospel Saturation in Mexico
Seems like the perfect place to get carjacked or kidnapped”, I thought while driving down the street. In the distance, dozens of apartment buildings pierced the skyline. A single street to get in or out. It’s the area of…
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May 9, 2019
Preaching the Gospel to One Another
Regular encouragement from our brothers and sister is a vital weapon against the onslaught of lies and unbelief with which we are assaulted. A Timely Question in a Tough Moment I can’t remember exactly why I was so angry, but I…
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May 1, 2019
Episode 076: Everyday Intentionality: Speak
In this episode of the Saturate Podcast, Brad Watson talks with Kevin Platt of Missio Dei in Arizona on the BLESS rhythm: Speak. How do we intentionally declare good news in all of life? One of the fundamental realities is…
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April 25, 2019
Missional Community Life as Newlyweds
Living missionally in marriage causes us to remember that marriage was meant to express God’s character and grace in everyday life. As we prepared for marriage, Schuyler and I went through premarital counseling. Every meeting we had with the…
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April 24, 2019
Episode 075: Everyday Intentionality: Sabbath
In this episode of the Saturate Podcast, Brad and Mirela Watson talk about intentionally resting to enjoy God and the missional power of taking a day off with a focus on being with God and enjoying his world.
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April 16, 2019
Gospel Advance in Russia
It's super encouraging to read about how Christians are persevering in Russia under oppression - their boldness for the gospel and in prioritizing training for their missional communities in the face of violence and arrest. K.G. came to Soma…
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April 10, 2019
Episode 074: Everyday Intentionality: Eat
In this episode of the Saturate Podcast, Brad and Mirela Watson talk about living everyday with intentional focus around meals. They share practical experience and their story of growing in this area as the front line of…
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April 3, 2019
Episode 073: Everyday Intentionality: Listen
In this episode of the Saturate Podcast, Brad and Mirela Watson talk about living with intentionality around the rhythm of listening. Why does listening to others make such a big difference? What does that look like? How can…
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April 2, 2019
What Do I Say?
“Hey, I listened to your podcast.” My fictional podcast had been released for weeks, and I could count on my fingers how many local friends had listened to it. This had been a sensitive source of tears, anger, and…
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March 27, 2019
Episode 072: Everyday Intentionality: Bless
In this episode of the Saturate Podcast, Brad and Mirela Watson talk about living life with gospel intentionality and why it is hard to think of others as a way of life and how to practically make blessing…
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March 26, 2019
Accepting Ordinary Invitations
My wife Bethany and I are suckers for weird artsy puppet shows, so of course we were pumped to see that Fort Worth’s Amphibian Theater was producing just that with Geppetto: Extraordinary Extremities. We grabbed a few friends and…
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March 21, 2019
Episode 071: Intentional Rhythms of Life
In this episode of the Saturate Podcast, Brad Watson introduces our newest series on daily gospel rhythms. He talks about the importance of the truth of the gospel and our identity and then outlines how the gospel connects…
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March 14, 2019
Where the Immigrant, Asylum Seeker, and the Refugee Belong
Context The work of every pastor, no matter their context, is to faithfully shepherd God’s people, equipping them to be faithful to the biblical story. This article is the result of three pastors wrestling with the implications of the…
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March 12, 2019
Eating to Remember
Growing in Gospel Fluency If you and others around you are going to grow in gospel fluency, you need consistent immersion in a gospel-speaking community. This needs to be much more than a weekly gathering of the church where the…
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February 26, 2019
Seasons of Mission
As Missional Communities are planted, it is important to understand mission as an ancient work empowered by the Holy Spirit. God has been doing this “work” throughout redemptive history and calls each new generation to join Him. Mission can be…
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February 19, 2019
Elevating the Poor
Becoming a friend to the poor requires a recognition of the ways that Jesus invited us to sit with Him and be elevated with Him, even though we could never deserve it. Throughout the story of the Bible, it…
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February 14, 2019
Where Do I Go from Here?
Your missional community walked through the Field Guide laying the foundation for being the church and you then made a covenant filled with practical next steps to grow up into faithfulness and obedience . . . but what’s next? …
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February 7, 2019
Moving Toward Mission without Division
This is an excerpt from a live Question + Response session in our newly launched Missional Church Transition Starter. How do you continue to move your church into the missional mindset when thirty percent of your church doesn’t want to…
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January 14, 2019
Why Missional Community Pilot Groups?
This is an excerpt from our newly released, Pilot Group Guide. This resource is available through the Missional Church Transition Starter. If you are a church of missional communities that is growing numerically through Sunday attendance or…
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January 8, 2019
Enduring Trials Well
Measuring Suffering The aching desire for a spouse, the pain of losing a friend, the uncertainty of finding a job...these things all produce pain. Why is it, though, that we tend to compare our suffering to the next person,…
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December 18, 2018
From Jaded to Jeweled
A guy who has hung around on the outskirts of our missional community sent a message asking for gas money this week. He said he missed us, but he has been going to another local church. My gut reaction…
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