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Conference Recap: Fellowship, Inspiration, and New Connections
I just got back from the conference and wanted to give a quick report while it was fresh in my mind. This is a brief summary of what happened but if you’re curious about some more details (including pics and videos!) check out my channel on the TACO Discord. Day 1: Arrival and Initial…
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The Biggest Frustration & Hurdle to Leap as a Digital Ministry
Digital ministries are beset with a myriad of challenges. Ever-changing technology, high-level skillsets, creative thinking, long hours, fighting algorithms, making high-quality, competitive content, counselling and community building through text, following up with vulnerable viewers, and more… but when I think about the most difficult thing I’ve had to face in my two years in…
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2022 XN Year in Review: From Foundation to Framework
Introduction Like many others, 2022 was a year of ups and downs for me and my ministry work. It began with the sudden death of my second-born son which led to a series of difficult months, but throughout them all, my local church and online communities were there with support and encouragement for my…
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9 Ways to Build Your Confidence
Everyone who creates has times when they struggle with motivation and confidence – sometimes so debilitating that it causes them to stop creating altogether! Whether you are a Twitch Streamer, YouTuber, Digital Artist, Musician, Cook, or any other type of creative, here are 9 practical ways to boost your confidence so you can get…
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A Very Personal Video – Why Streaming is So Important to Me
In this very personal video, Al (XtianNinja) Descheneau shares his heart, story, and reason for working so hard to bring the gospel to people who can only be reached through online ministry. You will learn why he has such a special concern for the lost, lonely, and disenfranchised on Twitch and what you can…
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Hey, Christian Content Creators! Check out The T.A.C.O. Network!!!
What is T.A.C.O. and how do we serve content creators and consumers all over the world? The Alliance for Creative Outreach (TACO) Serves the lost by creating a welcoming community that unites and equips a network of world-changing Christian content creators across multiple platforms. https://taconetwork.org/ https://www.twitch.tv/thetaconetwork I Need Your Support I’m doing this full-time…
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The Difference Between Devotions and Bible Study
There is a huge difference in approach between your personal devotional time and doing a personal Bible study, and knowing that difference is going to change everything about how you connect with God. XtianNinja explains the difference and then gives an example of what it looks like. Podcast Version: https://anchor.fm/xtianninja/episodes/The-Difference-Between-Devotions-and-Bible-Study-e1lak0r I Need Your Support…
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How long do you need to wait between sinning and praying?
What does it mean that we are “Free in Christ”? How free? Does that mean we can do whatever we want? Is there anything we can do to lose that freedom? How long do you have to wait between sinning and praying? Podcast Version: https://anchor.fm/xtianninja/episodes/How-long-do-you-need-to-wait-between-sinning-and-praying-e1l57e9 I Need Your Support I’m doing this full-time and…
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How to be MAXIMUM Christian!
What’s the secret to living for God – for REAL? What steps do we need to take in order to discover God’s plan for our lives and how to live it out in an effective and fruitful way? This message might help. Podcast Version: https://anchor.fm/xtianninja/episodes/How-to-be-MAXIMUM-Christian-e1kltm3 I Need Your Support I’m doing this full-time and…
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Christians: God Is NOT ANGRY at you when you sin!
Sometimes God has the reputation of being angry all the time – and a lot of people who grew up in the church were told that when they do something wrong God is disappointed and will come down on them hard if they don’t behave. Is that true? Podcast Version: https://anchor.fm/xtianninja/episodes/Christians-God-Is-NOT-ANGRY-at-you-when-you-sin-e1jogau I Need Your…
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When God Asks the Impossible
Sometimes life throws stuff at us that we just can’t handle. Illness, relationship issues, responsibilities, big needs, cause all of us to shrink back and ask ourselves, “Why would God bring this into my life?”. There are a lot of people who have faced the same situation. What are we to do? Podcast Version:…
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Is AWANA a “Christian Nationalist Child Indoctrination Cult”
@Ex-Fundie Diaries released a video outlining how the AWANA Clubs program isn’t just a fun church group, but a nefarious “Christian Nationalist Child Indoctrination Cult”. Is she right? What defines a cult? What’s up with all the weird stuff that goes on at AWANA anyway? XtianNinja, a pastor and former AWANA leader (and clubber)…
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You Shouldn’t Trust Yourself Most of the Time (Daily Devo)
Most of the time we believe the thoughts that bounce around our heads, thinking that our beliefs, opinions, perspectives, and ideas are right and best. Mature people know that’s not true and have realized that we really can’t trust our own hearts and minds. Podcast Version: https://anchor.fm/xtianninja/episodes/You-Shouldnt-Trust-Yourself-Most-of-the-Time-e1ihgn8 I split my YouTube channels, so if…
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“I HATE Easter and I love Christians” Tweet is Ridiculous! Twitch Pastor Reacts
Jo Luehmann tweeted out a pretty intense message declaring her love of Christians, but hatred for the Christian gospel. It just so happened that Logos’ Verse of the Day hit this topic perfectly. So, let’s talk about that through the lens of 1 Corinthians 15:19-20. Podcast Version: https://anchor.fm/xtianninja/episodes/I-HATE-Easter-and-I-love-Christians-Tweet-is-Ridiculous–Twitch-Pastor-Reacts-e1hgbeu I Need Your Support I’m doing…
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Does Everything Really “Work Out For the Good”?
Christians often quote Romans 8:28 (“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” to each other as a way to bring encouragement to someone going through a tough time. So, why then does it come as such cold…
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Cursing Figs & Flipping Tables: Passion Week Monday
What do a dead fig tree and overturned tables have to do with worship? And what does it mean for us today? Podcast Version: https://anchor.fm/xtianninja/episodes/Cursing-Figs–Flipping-Tables-Passion-Week-Monday-e1h3psl I’m doing this full-time and the only way I can keep it up is through support from folks like you – so please consider supporting me on Patreon. There…
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Why Does It Seem Like God Leaves People in Agony? – Psalm 22 – Daily Devo
As Jesus hung on the cross He cried out “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Does God do that? Does he leave people during their worst times? What did Jesus mean? Every day on my Twitch channel’s we start the stream with a devotional from Logos’ Verse of the Day. It’s…
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Where to Turn When Everything is Going Against You – Daily Devo – Psalm 119:114
Where can you turn when everything seems to be going against you? Where can you hide when you need peace and security? How do you recover when you’ve been lied to and hurt? Your Hiding Place and Shield. Every day on my Twitch channel’s we start the stream with a devotional from Logos’ Verse…
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Not the Bee FULL Interview! + Big Changes Coming to XtianNinja OM
In this week’s episode, I’m excited to share some amazing things happening with XtianNinja Online Missions and then something a little different – a talk-show interview I did when I was a guest on the Not the Bee Unofficial Podcast, where I share about – well – a little of everything (including my hatred…
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Standing on the Shoulders of Giants, How Christians Can Deal with Anxiety, Walking Between The Lions (PP 6.3)
In this week’s episode I share an interesting idea about how we all stand on the shoulders of giants, an interesting article about how Christians can deal with anxiety, and continue our interesting study of Pilgrims Progress by exploring more of the sixth chapter when Christian meets the lions. Interesting Links:– Article: https://tabletalkmagazine.com/article/2021/05/living-faithfully-with-anxiety/ – Pilgrim’s…
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Bible Word Studies: The Pleasure and Peril (Carnivore Theology: Ep. 101A)
Steve’s away so Chad and Al get their nerd on with some talk about the pleasures and perils of Bible Word Studies. Podcast Audio: How Can You Help Carnivore Theology? 1. Pray for us! 2. Buy some cool stuff from our new Merch Store! 3. Record a question in your voice on our SpeakPipe page! (We love this the most!) Or…
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Our Testimonies (Carnivore Theology: Ep. 75)
Chad and Steve tell the stories of how they came to faith. After our last episode which teaches how to give a testimony it only seemed right for us to give our own. Podcast Audio How Can You Help Carnivore Theology? 1. Pray for us! 2. Subscribe and rate us on iTunes and watch us on…
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Life Sucks Then You Die
Please open up to Habakkuk 2, and as you get there let me give you a quick reminder of what we’ve covered so far. Quick Review Habakkuk is a book that show us a conversation between God and one of his prophets about the incredibly sinful things he’s seeing around him. His whole nation…
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Is Halloween Evil (and Should Christians Participate)? (Carnivore Theology: Ep. 49)
Halloween is coming up soon, so the CT guys perform a skit and take on the perennial question of whether a Christian should participate in Halloween or not. We didn’t realize how heated the discussion was going to get! Podcast Audio: Behind the Scenes Video: How Can You Help Carnivore Theology? 1. Ask us…
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The Importance of “We”
Podcast Audio: “I Need a New Seven-Hundred-and-Ten” A man walks into a car dealership. He’s not fond of being there, because he knows that some of these places are famous for ripping people off, so his plan is to not let on that he has no idea what he’s talking about. He gets into…
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Just for Fun: A Fake Intro to a (hopefully) Soon to be Real Podcast
A fellow pastor (Chad Graham), a good friend of mine (Steve Bastian) and I are in the process of putting together a new podcast/vodcast where we spend some time chatting about big questions and current events. So, just for fun, I put together an intro for him. He liked it so much that we agreed to…
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Christian Integrity: Keep Your Vows
Here’s the Audio for this sermon: For the past while we’ve been studying the characteristics of a person and a Christian of integrity. We’re asking the question, “what does it mean to look and act like a Christian, and a Christian church?” It all starts with the first verse, the question that is asked…
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Pastoral Prayer: Against Sin
It is a good day when you give us a glimpse into ourselves Sin is our greatest evil, but you are our greatest good Each of us has cause to loathe ourselves, to not seek self-honour, because when we look at ourselves, by ourselves, we realize that we are glorying in rubbish. Our country,…
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How to Plan a Spiritual Retreat
In my previous post, “How to Make a Strategic Withdrawal During Busy Times“, I said that I would be happy to help anyone that needs help during the planning stages. I realized after a reader took me up on that offer that it might be more helpful to post it here. If you haven’t read the…
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Echo The Voice of God – A Mother’s Day Sermon
[If you are part of my church — SPOILER ALERT — this is Sunday’s sermon! I’m sending this out into the world early to help folks who are looking for a little Mother’s Day inspiration. This isn’t just for mom’s though, it is a message for everyone with children in their lives — the…
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Interview with a Christian Hypnotist
I really enjoy having conversations with people who think differently than I do. Not only do I learn a lot by listening to their worldview, but many have become my friends. These friendships help me grow as a disciple because they help me discover my assumptions, prejudices, and places where I lack knowledge or…
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Intentional Discipleship: A Warning
[Click here for the video.] We’re in the home stretch of The Foundations Series. We’ve certainly covered a lot of ground in the past 9 weeks, and it is my prayer that it has been helpful and has given you a new understanding of the Christian faith, Christ’s church, your responsibilities as a believer,…
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Growing At Church: 8 Ways to Lean On Your Leaders
It is my deep desire to help you pursue your faith, fall in love with Jesus and His church, serve and make your church the place where you expect great things to happen. What happens in the Christian Church is what is going to last for eternity. What we do together is what we…
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What’s In A Name?
I’m a HUGE fan of the AWANA program and have been blessed with the opportunity to speak a couple of times. Last night I gave a talk called “What’s In a Name?” to a group of kids aged 5-12 and their leaders. It’s an adaptation of the sermon I gave on Sunday, but I…
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The Foundations: What is a Church?
For some, a “church” is simply a building. If you punch the word “church” into Google images that’s what you get – pictures of beautiful buildings. You’ve probably been asked the question, “Do you go to church?”, as though “church” was a destination to reach, or an address to be found. If it was the middle…
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From Shrove Tuesday to Mardi Gras
My nephew was asked to put together a report on Mardi Gras which reminded me of a reflection piece I had written that might be of help to him, and hopefully you too. Throwing the Baby Out With the Bath Water The traditional Christian season of Lent starts on February 13 this year. Christians…
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The Five Solas: Sola Scriptura
(This is a follow-up post to The Foundations: The True Gospel) Sola Scriptura, or Scripture Alone, is the principal and belief that The Bible is the supreme authority in all spiritual matters. It is the acknowledgement that the Bible contains the very Words of God. They are not, as 2 Peter 1:16 puts it,…
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The Foundations: An Introduction to Intentional Discipleship
A Daunting Task I have a deep and abiding passion for discipleship, which is probably why this series is has been hard to write – because I want to get it right. I don’t want to leave out anything important. I want to give you everything you need to be forgiven, know God, and…
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What to Do with Bad News
In light of current events I put together this handout to give to my church tomorrow. I thought it might be helpful to give you some things to do when you hear or experience bad news. This is by no means a comprehensive guide, but is what is on my heart to share right…
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Jesus, Cold & Wet
I don’t know why this never occurred to me before, but it wasn’t always hot and sunny while Jesus walked the earth. Maybe I’ve seen too many pictures of Jesus standing in a sunbeam or walking along a desert road, but it never really crossed my mind that Jesus would have been cold. I tried to…
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Going Dark
I went dark recently — in a bunch of ways. I bought some dark coffee — Starbucks Christmas Blend (super yummy!) and Muskoka Roastery’s Black Bear (which is so dark it’s like drinking ink… delicious, delicious, ink. It even seems to argue with the milk saying, “No, we won’t be turning mocha-coloured today. We’re shooting for…
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Review of "Twelve Unlikely Heroes" by John MacArthur
This is my first official book review, so I would love some feedback. Twelve Unlikely Heroes How God Commissioned Unexpected People in the Bible and What He Wants to Do with You By John MacArthur Summary If there’s one the success of The Avengers movie taught us, it’s that we love heroes — and the bigger,…
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Giving & Receiving Criticism
“You can please some of the people, some of the time”, they say. I would add, “and some of the people who aren’t pleased have no problems telling you why.” Criticism is something we all have to deal with, isn’t it? None of us are perfect, and yet it surprises people when someone makes…
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We All Need A Good Church
I just paused my sermon prep for a moment so I could post this to the blog. I’m currently writing a sermon on The Powerful Witness of Unity in the Church and remembered that I had written in a Facebook Post earlier in the week. The two didn’t really connect in my mind until…
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Own Your "Why?" – A Christian Response to Halloween
Own Your “Why?” Some time ago I came up with a phrase that I try to live by and give away as much as possible — “Own your ‘Why?’” What it means is that when you do something (anything), make sure that you own up to your motives and reasons for doing it. Don’t…
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I'm Now an Official Book Blogger!
Even though blogging has its downsides (carpal tunnel and trucker butt), there are some pretty great benefits to being a blogger. Check these out: 1. All the coffee I make I get to drink… after I offer my wife a cup. 2. A chair that goes up, down, round and round, and also reclines! 3.…
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Christian View of Suicide
During the “Ask The Pastor” meetings on Wednesday nights at the church I serve, many questions come up that I don’t have the time or equipment to be able to give a full answer to. I believe there are many who have similar concerns and questions, so for a little while I’m going to…
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Christian Conflict Management Tools
I have some friends that are in a difficult place, trying to help some people they know reconcile hurting relationships. I offered to give them some helpful articles and tools, and believe that they may be able to help others. Some Articles: 1. Conflict Provides Opportunities 2. Peace-breakers, Peace-fakers, and Peacemakers 3. Four Promises of Forgiveness 4. How…
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Christian Meditation: Stopping & Listening
Meditation is a multifaceted and religiously loaded term. There are many Christians today who shy away from practicing meditation because they aren’t sure that it’s “allowed”. Let me assure you it is, and it is the key to developing a deep life and focus on God’s priorities for you. Christian meditation only has two…
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The Story of Robin
I spoke on Meditation this week, beginning with a story of a man named Robin. Do you see yourself in his story? Robin wakes up once again to the beeping of the alarm clock, and hits snooze one more to see if he can squeeze out nine more minutes of sleep from his…