My new workout buddy

I have a new workout buddy- David Platt. D-Platt is the pastor of the Church at Brook Hills that I attended in Birmingham. I LOVE his preaching and I love hearing him talk, but I guess even more I love hearing the Truth that he speaks. I figured his preaching would be more inspirational on the elliptical than any compilation of upbeat pop or rap music I could string together. I can't quite make it through an entire sermon on the elliptical...but that's something to work up to! (The sermon I picked today was 53 minutes...I stayed on for 37).

I strongly encourage you to check out D-Platt. Follow him on Twitter (@plattdavid) check out his sermons (http://www.brookhills.org/media/). I came from a Baptist church where people start making faces if the preachers crosses that 20 minute mark, but after attending the Church of Brook Hills, the sermon is just gettin' started at 20 minutes! I don't even notice an hour going by. I don't mean to put D-Platt on any kind of pedestal, but this guy knows his stuff, and he has a passion for the gospel that you can hear in his voice. He just preaches in a way that I had never heard before (and not the bad kool-aid kind of way either). It's good stuff.

Anyway, during my workout today I listened to the first sermon in his series on Ruth. I was around last summer when he preached it, but I just wanted to hear it again! These are a few quotes from D-Platt that I just love and thought I'd share:

"I pray that God will continually raise up Ruths all across this faith family- all across this church. Women who forsake earthly pleasure and worldly security and comfort and boldly, with adventurous faith, trust deeply in God. That do what makes no sense to the women of the world around them. Do that which seems to forsake all the good stuff this world has to offer and say, 'I will trust in You. Not just now, but for all of eternity.' Bold abandonment, devotion, humble devotion. This is the picture of Ruth."

"We struggle to see the greatness and goodness of God in the midst of suffering...Here's the truth- the promise for His people: In his sovereign design, brothers and sisters, in his sovereign design, God ordains sorrowful tragedy to set the stage for surprising triumph. That's the promise. "

"Sin from your past does not dispel hope for you future."

If you ever get hungry for some truth, first, consult the Bible, then go check out my buddy D-Platt. Beware: he isn't afraid to step on your toes. He will convict you. He will challenge you. He may even offend you, but that, I believe, is what Christians need and want. That kind of teaching keeps us coming back for more. That kind of teaching is what God uses to work in his people- to bring them closer to Him.