Join the discussion as we reflect on the important matters of faith, life, family, and culture. Deep Thinking, Deep Believing, Engaging Faith.
In “The Valley of Vision,” under the prayer entitled “Journeying On,” the prayer begins: “Lord of the cloud and fire, I am a stranger, with a stranger’s indifference; My hands hold a pilgrim’s staff, My march is Zionward, My eyes are toward the coming of the Lord, My heart is in thy hands without reserve…” Read more about A Stranger’s Indifference: Cultivating a lack of interest in this world[…]
The guys and gals who write the books on church growth and “ministry success” need not congratulate themselves too much, as good as their work can be. Certainly, there is much to learn from anyone and we should all be open and willing to learn from even the most unlikely sources. With that being said, Read more about Who Should Write the Church-Growth Books? Understanding the Role of Seasons in God’s Work & in the ministry of Billy Graham[…]
What I want to communicate here is one idea, namely, “Read Your Bible Most When You’re Hurting the Most.” Have you always wanted to understand the Bible better? Is there a longing in your soul to really take in, deeply, the insights of Scripture? Additionally, is there a desire to have solid hope in the Read more about Read your Bible most when you are hurting the most[…]
Pastor John Ortberg once asked author Dallas Willard what he needed to do to be “spiritually healthy,” and Willard replied, “You must ruthlessly eliminate hurry from your life” (source). But what does it mean to “be in a hurry”? What does “being hurried” actually mean? I’m trying to evaluate whether “hurriedness” is a state of Read more about “Ruthlessly Eliminate Hurry”=Spiritual Health[…]
For whom, exactly, is the so-called “problem of evil” a greater problem? Obviously, we all have to deal with pain and suffering and grief and death and loss in this world, so, in one sense, the problem of evil is everyone’s problem due to its universal impact. Traditionally, the problem of evil is brought up Read more about The Real Problem with the Problem of Evil[…]
When we sin it is akin to taking many years of my time, and many millions of my own money (hypothetically!) to build a building that I have planned on constructing for decades. Once the building is fully completed after much effort and much toil and many resources expended, let us imagine that I then Read more about The Cunning Nature and Destructive Results of Sin[…]
THE HERMENEUTIC OF SUFFERING Have you ever wanted to understand the Bible more, or wished that you knew more of the Bible than you do? “Hermeneutics” is a term that points us towards the science of properly interpreting scripture. There are principles to interpret anything whether it be a book, music, or a cinema genre, Read more about The Shovel Of Suffering[…]
What is your reaction (& my reaction!), as a Christian, to those with whom we strongly disagree? Particularly, how do we respond to a fellow Christian with whom we have a very sharp disagreement? I want to share with you my notes from a sermon on 1 John 2:7-11, but I’ll only cite verses 9-11 Read more about Loving Someone I Hate[…]