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If you know my wife at all, you’d know that she’s obsessive about being a great parent.  In fact, I call her the “Mommy-ologist” because she’s always got at least 2 parenting books on her at any given moment.  (I’m not kidding.  It’s almost ridiculous).  In fact, I don’t think we’ve gone on a vacation…

Over the years, a lot of people get confused about the Bible’s teachings on tithes and first-fruits. Part of this is because, there are actually three different types of tithes – which is distinct and separate from the idea of first-fruits. With over 2300 verses on giving, it’s easy to get confused. But to simply…

Do you know the area of your greatest ministry impact? Here at Substance, we often talk about “starter ministries” vs. “long-term ministries.” Starter ministries are designed to help you get plugged in and find your people here. Then, once you’ve got your community and are ready to dive deeper, we’ll set you up with your…

Throughout the middle ages people believed in a theological concept called purgatory…a place between heaven and hell where certain people could pay for their sins. Of course, most scholars don’t believe the concept even exists in the Bible (which I agree with). Some credit Pope Gregory the 1st (late 6th century) as the originator. But…

Welcome to the Church Bylaws Landing Page! Leading a church should be joyful. Yes, there are many courageous decisions that need to be made. But no one needs the “side-ways energy” that bad bylaws create. Bad bylaws cause good people to behave badly. So, here are a few resources to help you rethink your leadership…

Have you ever had a day from hell? I’ve had a few of them. There’s the time I got locked out of my running car in the middle of a dangerous neighborhood during a snowstorm. And I had to wait outside with no jacket for six hours. Then, there was the day I had to fly…

Welcome to My Personality Workshop Landing Page! Once you get to know Carolyn and me, we are Personality Test Junkies: From Strengthsfinders to Love Languages, we do them all. Yet, our personal favorites are the Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and the Enneagram. Now, there’s a lot of people who feel the Enneagram has “cultic roots.”…

Being a parent with young kids can be one of the most chaotic seasons of life. And if that’s you right now, don’t give up! It only gets better. To make things even more difficult for my wife and me, we made the decision to plant a church (while having 3 kids under the age…

Who in the world is the “Anti-Christ?” What is the “Mark of the Beast?” And does any of this have any basis in the Bible? Over the years, Christians have used these doctrines to create all sorts of interesting conspiracies. And if you browse the web, you’re certain to find a good number of cults…

We are less two weeks away from our official Sunday morning launch of our West Twin Cities Campus! Over a quarter million people will hear about Substance in the next couple weeks. And here’s how you can be a part of this! A little over a year ago, we sent out 400 Substance hardcores to…