Faithfulness in Forgotten Places

Faithfulness in Forgotten Places – “God delights not mainly in the greatness of the work, but in the faithfulness of the worker.”

How to Pray When You’re Feeling Anxious or Depressed

How to Pray When You’re Feeling Anxious or Depressed – David Murray provides counsel on praying through difficulties like anxiety and depression.

How Do I Glorify God in My Daily Life?

How Do I Glorify God in My Daily Life? – “Pain and pleasure are Satan’s strategies that can ruin our glorification of God.”

The Elusive Trait of Reasonableness

The Elusive Trait of Reasonableness – “We live in an increasingly polarized world. Everything is binary. Nuance is suspect. Taking time to understand another is tantamount to compromise. Entrenchment is seen as best.”

How Pro-Life Efforts Bring Hope to the Fearful

How Pro-Life Efforts Bring Hope to the Fearful – “Christians must be involved in pro-life ministry because we alone have a message of hope great enough to conquer all fear: the gospel of Jesus Christ.”

Faith-full and Grace-Full, or Fear-full and Spite-full?

Faith-full and Grace-Full, or Fear-full and Spite-full? – “Show us the difference between righteous indignation and unrighteous irritation. Convict us quickly when we lose sight of the occupied throne of heaven, resulting in meager faith and much fear.”

COVID-19 Is Disrupting Americans’ Engagement with Scripture

COVID-19 Is Disrupting Americans’ Engagement with Scripture – “A recent survey reveals how COVID-19’s disruption of in-person church attendance is directly impacting Scripture reading.”

We Can’t Roll the Dice on Religious Liberty: Nevada, the Supreme Court, and Churches

We Can’t Roll the Dice on Religious Liberty: Nevada, the Supreme Court, and Churches – “Religious liberty still matters in the midst of this pandemic.”

Something Wonderful in Mark Chapter 12

Something Wonderful in Mark Chapter 12 – “The God of the universe loves it when one of His children gets it right.”

There Is a Fountain Filled with Blood: Costly, Offensive, Beautiful Forgiveness

There Is a Fountain Filled with Blood: Costly, Offensive, Beautiful Forgiveness – “Christianity is different. It is not primarily a swimming pool to enjoy nor a hot tub to fix a midlife crisis. Christianity is about a pool filled with blood. It is graphic. It is gory. It is not a pristine pond found next to our manicured lawns. It is a crimson tide in which we must be submerged.”

When God Withholds Sleep: How to Handle Restless Nights

When God Withholds Sleep: How to Handle Restless Nights – “God has a purpose in our sleeplessness. He can use our weakness to make us dependent on him, showing us his love and care with each passing minute of the day. He can use our weariness to push us to lean on him as the all-sufficient, all-wise, and all-powerful God, and to know that when we are weak with sleeplessness, then we are strong in him.”

Making the Most of Time

Making the Most of Time – Here are a few insights.

5 Signs Sin Has a Powerful Grip on Your Life

5 Signs Sin Has a Powerful Grip on Your Life – “Take a minute to look through the following list. If you recognize any of these patterns in your life, be sure that you are in a dangerous condition of sin.”

The Apostle Paul’s Response to Our “Cancel Culture”

The Apostle Paul’s Response to Our “Cancel Culture” – “The gospel sends us into the world to love people as we have been loved, to love people who will sometimes offend us.”

Why Are There Fewer Miracles Today?

Why Are There Fewer Miracles Today? – “The link between the role of miracles in the Bible and the role of the Bible today enables us to explain the pattern of miracles today.”

With Kids Spending More Waking Hours on Screens than Ever, Here’s What Parents Need to Worry About

With Kids Spending More Waking Hours on Screens than Ever, Here’s What Parents Need to Worry About – Statistics show that kids have had a 500% increase in screen time since the pandemic began. “What I believe parents need to worry about isn’t how much time kids are spending cradling their devices during our current crisis. It’s whether their children are forming habits that will continue after the pandemic’s over.”

Am I Wasting My Life in a Secular Job?

Am I Wasting My Life in a Secular Job? – “Don’t assume that a change of location or a change of vocation will mean that you are more devoted to Christ.”

40 Years Married

40 Years Married – “Human beings, created in the image of God, reflect his glory as much as anything in creation can reflect him, which brings me back to marriage.”

How Would You Like to Be Remembered?

How Would You Like to Be Remembered? – How would God answer this question? “How would you like to be remembered?” We don’t need to speculate, because we have the answer in Exodus 34:5-9.

Everything Covid 19 Will Be The End Of

Everything Covid 19 Will Be The End Of – “Would you like to see the list and the articles to back each vanishing item on it? I’ve broken it down into five groupings. I hope you find this helpful.”

Pruning

Pruning – Covid-19 has been a time of pruning: “Could it be that this great pruning could result in better ways of living? Could it temper our consumer mentality? Could it bring back gratitude? Could it give us an appreciation for the simple graces of life that used to be buried under our ambition, our competition and our stuff?”

Healing for Our Grace Allergies

Healing for Our Grace Allergies – “Why we choose broken cisterns, dumb idols, and self-help over your love is sheer madness. Grace is for sinners; not for pretenders, posers, and performers.”

Don’t Look for Community in the Church. Be the community.

Don’t Look for Community in the Church. Be the community. – “True community is never found by looking for it. It can only be found by pursuing Christ. He understands loneliness better than we do.”

The Evangelistic Power of Listening and Asking

The Evangelistic Power of Listening and Asking – “Everyone has a story. Sometimes, we can have the privilege of hearing those stories, catching glimpses of how they fit into God’s bigger story if we start by listening.”

How Generous Is Your God?

How Generous Is Your God? – “The biblical story is a generosity story.”

Covid, Christians, & the Civil Magistrate

Covid, Christians, & the Civil Magistrate – “Rather than attempt to speak directly on the virus itself, what I would like to attempt to address is the way in which Christians respond to the ever-changing information and directives, especially those coming from the civil magistrate.”

On a Path I Never Would’ve Chosen

On a Path I Never Would’ve Chosen – “Are you on the path you never would’ve chosen? Take heart. With Christ as our Shepherd, each path He leads us down is perfect.”

Earthen Vessels

Earthen Vessels – “Simple earthen vessels. There they are. Wading through laws in Leviticus, I see them. In the details. Amid ritual regulations for priests, Levites, and the people of God.”

9 Things You Should Know About John Lewis (1940-2020)

9 Things You Should Know About John Lewis (1940-2020) – “Rep. John Lewis of Georgia’s 5th congressional district died last Friday at the age of 80. Here are nine things you should know about the courageous civil rights leader.”

When Step by Step is All We Have

When Step by Step is All We Have – “Masks, schedules, lunches, sports-the questions are endless, and unanswerable at this time. Never has there been so much uncertainty. This got me thinking of the song ‘Step by Step’ by Rich Mullins, one of my favorites.”

Don’t Quit the Everyday Work of Marriage

Don’t Quit the Everyday Work of Marriage – “If you are a sinner married to a sinner—and you are—then it is very dangerous and potentially destructive to allow yourself to coast as a couple.”

Uncommon Brothers: Why God’s Men Need Good Men

Uncommon Brothers: Why God’s Men Need Good Men – “Friendship, especially among men, is something we lament when absent and yet often take for granted when we have it. Good brothers are hard to find, and surprisingly easy to squander.”

Coronavirus, Conspiracy Theories, and the Ninth Commandment

Coronavirus, Conspiracy Theories, and the Ninth Commandment – “A better political theology can make us less vulnerable to lies.”

Search Engines Are Not Value Neutral

Search Engines Are Not Value Neutral – “There are several different ways their value judgments appear in the seemingly innocuous use of a search engine.”

Servants, Not Sheriffs

Servants, Not Sheriffs – “Supersize our mercy and forbearance for fellow broken sinners.”

Why Losing a Loved One Doesn’t Feel Real

Why Losing a Loved One Doesn’t Feel Real – It’s because that’s not how God intended things to work.

How Do I Wage War on My Self-Pity?

How Do I Wage War on My Self-Pity? – “Passivity in the pursuit of holiness is not what the Bible teaches.”

The Four R’s

The Four R’s – “The greatest problem is self-salvation. Other names for this are rule-redemption, law-liberation. The core idea is that we can be saved by our works, our obedience, our commandment-keeping. I can offer God enough obedience to persuade him to save me.”

Hubble, Pluto, and Reasons to Believe

Hubble, Pluto, and Reasons to Believe – “Earth’s crammed with heaven, and every common bush afire with God…” (Elizabeth Barrett Browning)

To the Friends Who Tell Me “No”

To the Friends Who Tell Me “No” – “Our culture is quick to assume that consistent and encouraging friendships must necessarily also be affirming. As I consider each of my closest friendships, however, I see clearly that this is not the case. My best and oldest friends are those who tell me ‘no.'”

The Fruit of the Spirit Are Ingredients of Happiness

The Fruit of the Spirit Are Ingredients of Happiness – “What’s our greatest source of joy? Paul pointed to the Holy Spirit: ‘The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control’ (Galatians 5:22-23).”

God’s Mission to Rescue a Prostitute

God’s Mission to Rescue a Prostitute – “Joshua didn’t need a strategy for Jericho—God would give him an extraordinary plan for the taking of the city. God orchestrated the sending of the spies to save Rahab and her family.”

Justice Is Coming: The Glory of Christ as Judge of the World

Justice Is Coming: The Glory of Christ as Judge of the World – “As the Christian gospel shows us the glory of Christ not only as sovereign and sacrifice, but also as final judge, we might identify at least five distinct aspects of this coming Justice.”

Spreading the Worst Infection

Spreading the Worst Infection – “This difficult time of Coronavirus provides an opportunity to consider what actions we are taking to avoid sin and to limit the impact of our sin upon others.” 

How to More Wisely Consume News

How to More Wisely Consume News – “As much as the media landscape is a minefield of misinformation, manipulative clickbait, and partisan rants, good journalism remains. Finding it requires intentionality and discipline.”

How to End the Worship Wars

How to End the Worship Wars – “The end of Moses’s war with the Egyptians can help us to end the worship wars among us.”

The Kingdom Only Triumphs Through The Unnoticed Faithfulness Of The Many

The Kingdom Only Triumphs Through The Unnoticed Faithfulness Of The Many – “Most of the acts that lead to the spread of the gospel, that will result in the gathering of a great multitude from every tribe and nation in eternity, will be unnoticed and unremarked in this life. However, they will not be hidden forever.”

Seven Lessons for Productivity

Seven Lessons for Productivity – “God is the great Creator-Maker, and he created humans in his image as secondary creator-makers.”

God’s Surprising Solution to our Greatest Problem

God’s Surprising Solution to our Greatest Problem – “When we are at our most helpless and hopeless, God is at his most helpful and hopeful.”

Engaging Our Emotions, Engaging With God

Engaging Our Emotions, Engaging With God – “Emotions are tricky. Everyone has them. Everyone struggles with them. Many struggle with how they feel more than anything else in their lives. Then there is the sea of other people’s emotions in which all of us swim. I suspect most of us consider emotions to be more of a liability than an asset.”

More Pastors Agree With Andy Stanley: No Worship Services Until 2021

More Pastors Agree With Andy Stanley: No Worship Services Until 2021 – “For much of the pandemic, church reopening plans have shifted month to month or week to week, depending on regulations and local outbreaks.”

Our Marcusan Moment

Our Marcusan Moment – “Today’s attacks on freedom of speech are remarkable for several reasons: they seem to represent more of a problem on the left than on the right; the cancellations apply not simply to the ideas to which the emerging cultural establishment objects but to any individual who dares to espouse them; and their power and scope is potentially terrifying.”

Resurrected Saints and Matthew’s Weirdest Passage

Resurrected Saints and Matthew’s Weirdest Passage – “The tombs also were opened. And many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised, and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many. (Matt. 27:52–53)”

10 Things You Should Know about Prayer

10 Things You Should Know about Prayer – “Our Father loves to hear our voices. Nothing is too small to bring to him.”

Praying Together — No Laughing Matter

Praying Together — No Laughing Matter – “There are three good reasons why a young couple should be praying together before marriage, and even before their engagement.”

The World Needs More Faithful Men

The World Needs More Faithful Men – “Our faithfulness here, even in little, is no little matter. In the unremarkable moments of life, God is shaping his fickle sons into the image of his Faithful One (Revelation 19:11). Every day, he forgives our lingering faithlessness, and every day conforms us to Christ’s faithfulness.”

An Antidote for Amnesia

An Antidote for Amnesia – “We can forget God’s sovereign salvation.”

Ministering to Wounded and Straying Sheep in a Pandemic

Ministering to Wounded and Straying Sheep in a Pandemic – How can church leaders and concerned members care well for one another in these times?

When the Cultural Climate Gets Political, How Does the Church Stay Missional?

When the Cultural Climate Gets Political, How Does the Church Stay Missional? – “America is caught up (and has been for quite some time) in a culture war of the kind of nation it will be or become.”

We are Contributors, Not Consumers

We are Contributors, Not Consumers – “We are connoisseurs of religion. Like a wine critic who judges the balance, depth, complexity, and finish of a vintage, we swirl our experience of a church in our glass and judge its balance of ministries, the depth of its teaching, the complexity of its offerings, and how it makes us feel at its finish. We are consumers. Very well-trained consumers.”

Resuming Breakneck Speed

Resuming Breakneck Speed – “Life out of balance—that's what life was before the Coronavirus slowed us all down.”

Even this, Lord Jesus?

Even this, Lord Jesus? – “We do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.” (Hebrews 4:15, ESV).

A Name You Can’t Forget

A Name You Can’t Forget – We may be forgetful with a lot of names but we can’t ever forget the name of the Lord.

What Does Freedom from the Love of Money Look Like?

What Does Freedom from the Love of Money Look Like? – “The least of Jesus is worthy of the best of us.”

The Gospel, The Church, And Racial Injustice

The Gospel, The Church, And Racial Injustice – Paul Tripp weighs in from a unique perspective: “Change is needed, and change requires action, and action requires compassion, and compassion requires information.”

Sipping Poison Won’t Make You Wise

Sipping Poison Won’t Make You Wise – “The wisest person isn’t always the most experienced.”

Take the Time

Take the Time – “The psalmist asks. Pleads. Pursues. Seeks after God.  Spends time in prayer and meditation on His Word.” This is a meditation on Psalm 119.

10 Reasons We Should Still Take the Coronavirus Seriously

10 Reasons We Should Still Take the Coronavirus Seriously – “Leaders’ missteps have created mistrust, but we still have to fight a pandemic.”

The Jesus Movement Followed 1968. What Will Follow 2020?

The Jesus Movement Followed 1968. What Will Follow 2020? – 1968 was an extremely tumultuous year but, as Donald Whitney points out, “in retrospect, it’s encouraging to realize that rumbling beneath it all, the Jesus Movement was gathering momentum as a work of God’s power that would flourish across the country in the years immediately following.”

Why the Church Needs a Family Reunion

Why the Church Needs a Family Reunion – “So how will we respond to this moment? How will we walk forward in the light of love, for our king’s glory?”

How to More Wisely Consume News

How to More Wisely Consume News – “It’s helpful to assess media sources through a grid of biblical virtues.”

To Anyone Who Has Lost a Child

To Anyone Who Has Lost a Child – “Leaving the hospital with empty arms. Putting an empty car seat into the trunk. Walking into an empty nursery. It’s not supposed to be this way.”

Five Priorities of A Worshipping Church

Five Priorities of A Worshipping Church – “But what if the normal we once experienced was inadequate and God is using this moment to jar us from complacency?”

None Can Stay His Hand: The Certain Triumph of the Gospel

None Can Stay His Hand: The Certain Triumph of the Gospel – “His kingdom is everlasting. None can hold him back. None can stay his hand.”

4 Principles for Talking to Your Kids about Sex

4 Principles for Talking to Your Kids about Sex – “As a parent, how comfortable are you talking with your children about sex? Not so much? Why is that? God created sex to bless us—why is it so hard to talk about?”

The Power of Weakness

The Power of Weakness – “We admire powerful people. We’re attracted to powerful people. We want to be with powerful people. We want to be powerful people. Here’s the problem with that. God is attracted to powerless people.”

Why We Shouldn’t Speak Flippantly or Joke About Hell

Why We Shouldn’t Speak Flippantly or Joke About Hell – “Language matters. Every word counts. What you say, how you say it, and the implication behind what you mean should be taken into account before uttering a word.”

What Is Sheol? Exploring the Afterlife in the Old Testament

What Is Sheol? Exploring the Afterlife in the Old Testament – “The biblical picture of Sheol in much of the Old Testament is rather shady, both in terms of the lack of specificity and in terms of actual descriptions of the place. The biblical writers don’t usually go into exorbitant detail about Sheol or its inhabitants.”

Hoarding Hope

Hoarding Hope – “It is not right to hoard what has been freely given to us.”

5 Myths about Hell

5 Myths about Hell – These are common and the author addresses them well.

God Becomes the Sacrifice

God Becomes the Sacrifice – “What does this reveal about God and His salvation?”

For the Christian who HATES being told to wear a mask. (Video)

For the Christian who HATES being told to wear a mask. (Video) – We don’t wear them because we like them. We wear them as Christian testimony to our love for Christ and one another.

What Does ‘Unequally Yoked’ Mean in 2 Corinthians 6?

What Does ‘Unequally Yoked’ Mean in 2 Corinthians 6? – “Opinions proliferate about what it means to be unequally yoked. Does it pertain to marrying or dating non-believers? Is Paul thinking of business partnerships? What does Paul have in mind when he exhorts believers to not be unequally yoked?”

Seven questions about “Once Saved Always Safe”

Seven questions about “Once Saved Always Safe” – “After being saved, coming to know Christ and being genuinely forgiven and accepted and transformed by the Holy Spirit of God into something far different from what you were, you cannot undo that.”

Are Churches “A Major Source of Coronavirus Cases?”

Are Churches “A Major Source of Coronavirus Cases?” – “The true story of churches and coronavirus is their willingness to shutter their services for a time; to move online; to create and implement health and safety guidelines; to open with caution; to reduce seating capacity; to modify elements of their services; even to adhere to guidelines that are stricter for churches than for other sectors or industries.”

Time for a New Normal

Time for a New Normal – “Returning to normal after such a historic moment would be nothing short of missing one of the greatest opportunities of our lifetime.”

Those Who Grieve Need to Speak. Are You Ready to Listen?

Those Who Grieve Need to Speak. Are You Ready to Listen? – “There are two sides to weeping with those who weep. First, there must be brothers and sisters in Christ who are ready to listen. And second, the one who grieves must be ready to allow some brothers or sisters into their sorrow.”

‘No One Understands!’ Lessons for Lonely Sufferers

‘No One Understands!’ Lessons for Lonely Sufferers – “Trauma is hard to face, but, by God’s grace, we don’t have to face it alone.”

Your Defense Against Satan

Your Defense Against Satan – “As we turn again to Ephesians 6, Paul wants the pastor to see by faith what God sees in his people. He wants you, the people, to see yourselves for what you truly are: soldiers who’ve been enlisted in Christ’s army.”

The Mission Field I Never Expected

The Mission Field I Never Expected – “This touching memoir by two parents recounts the highs and lows of raising children with specials needs, ultimately directing readers to the God who promises us peace and joy, even in the midst of trials.”

Was That Worship?

Was That Worship? – “For many evangelicals, it seems goosebumps are the litmus test as to whether a song is anointed, but an emotional reaction can be misleading.” 

People Who Sound Like Hell

People Who Sound Like Hell - “Bitterness, blaming, griping, and demanding. Those are the sounds of hell.”

Trust the Tester when He Tests Your Trust

Trust the Tester when He Tests Your Trust – “Let’s look at how God tested Abraham’s faith in Genesis 22:1-5 to help us endure and succeed in our own tests.”

The High Stakes of a Hard Heart

The High Stakes of a Hard Heart – “No one wakes up with a sudden urge to divorce, or embezzle, or murder. Those urges start out with seemingly small, selfish acts. The selfishness grows like a snowball in the corners of our hearts where no one sees.”

Churches, Coronavirus, and the New York Times

Churches, Coronavirus, and the New York Times – “A few churches have made some bad decisions and this has led to community spread. However, even in these cases, your chance of catching the virus at church is—based on the data in the story—remarkably low.”

What Does a Christian Need to Grow?

What Does a Christian Need to Grow? – There are a lot of resources but...“What are the things that the Lord has given to us that are needed for us to grow?”

Jesus Proclaims His Purpose

Jesus Proclaims His Purpose – “Although we may long for and relish Jesus’ miracles, we must always long for Jesus and his real purpose more.”

Why We Need a Solid Foundation for Navigating the Ethics of Big Tech

Why We Need a Solid Foundation for Navigating the Ethics of Big Tech – “People from across the political spectrum are rightfully concerned about how these tools are being used but lack a common ethical framework to engage these weighty, and often thorny, issues with wisdom.”

A Biblical Perspective on the Chaos

A Biblical Perspective on the Chaos – 5 Reminders for Those Who are Tired, Stressed, and Anxious.

My Great Daily Challenge As a Christian

My Great Daily Challenge As a Christian – “The great daily challenge is, on the face of it, so very simple: to think like a Christian, to speak like a Christian, to act like a Christian. It is to think in ways that reflect a renewed mind, a mind that sees the world as it truly is and a mind that is determined to think God’s thoughts after him.”

Four Reflections on Sin

Four Reflections on Sin – Sin attacks each of us in unique ways. Here are four key observations.

Is Loving Money Really That Evil?

Is Loving Money Really That Evil? – “There are three reasons why loving money is indeed a root of all kinds of evils: contentment, identity, and worship.”

How to Flourish Amid Moral Chaos and Outrage

How to Flourish Amid Moral Chaos and Outrage – “We’re in crisis. Currently this includes health, cultural, racial, and economic realities. We struggle to distinguish good from evil. Our moral discernment barometer oscillates like a metronome.”

9 Things You Should Know About the U.S. Supreme Court

9 Things You Should Know About the U.S. Supreme Court – “Later this week, the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to release several potentially blockbuster decisions covering such issues as birth control, ministerial exceptions, and religious rights. Here are nine things you should know about the most important court in the federal judiciary.”

The Danger of an Open Bible

The Danger of an Open Bible – “Let's examine our own Bible reading and study for doubt, division and dissection. And let's learn together to read the Bible the way Jesus taught us.”

God’s Shelter in the Gathering Storm

God’s Shelter in the Gathering Storm – “Genesis 21:8-14 has a sobering yet encouraging message for us. It reminds us of the inevitability of persecutors, but also of the invincibility of the persecuted.”

4 Ways Not to Be a Jerk Online

4 Ways Not to Be a Jerk Online – Your Christian testimony is on display in your online life. Do people see Jesus?

Your Seat in Church Is a Seat in Heaven

Your Seat in Church Is a Seat in Heaven – “Worship with the church brings us into heaven itself. Like an embassy building in a foreign nation, whose foundation rests on soil that actually belongs to its mother country, the local church gathered for worship is an outpost of heaven on earth.”

The Church Should Not Be Homogenised

The Church Should Not Be Homogenised – “The church worldwide is a worldwide body with people from a vast range of linguistic, social and ethnic backgrounds. We are the most diverse group in the world. Interestingly, at no point does the New Testament try to erase this diversity. 

Black Lives Matter: Affirm the Sentence, Not the Movement

Black Lives Matter: Affirm the Sentence, Not the Movement – “Words matter, especially when words are at the center of controversy and conflict.”

The Mistake Liberal Churches Make Which We Must Not

The Mistake Liberal Churches Make Which We Must Not – “Modern churches may indeed overestimate mankind, but God doesn’t have that problem. He knows us.”

The Church Doesn’t Need Online Watchmen

The Church Doesn’t Need Online Watchmen – “For those tempted to be divisive, it’s no wonder the online world is so appealing. It lacks the structures of accountability that hold the real world and the church together. Even though cyberspace isn’t really a place, though, the consequences of what takes place there are real.”

Against Every Accusation

Against Every Accusation – “The devil is not only a liar who seeks to deceive us, a tempter who seeks to ensnare us, and a murderer who seeks to kill us. He is an accuser who seeks to condemn us.”

4 Reasons to Preach the Psalms to Ourselves

4 Reasons to Preach the Psalms to Ourselves – “I’ve found hope for our troubled times in the psalms of Scripture. Let encourage you in the same way. Here are four reasons to preach the psalms to yourself (and your church) in difficult days.”

Humble Yourself and Fast: God’s Unpleasant Gift for Lancing Pride

Humble Yourself and Fast: God’s Unpleasant Gift for Lancing Pride – “Fasting is an act of self-humbling by declaring our need to God, and by showing us afresh how weak we really are — as we experience the anxiety and irritability that come with an empty stomach.”

Is the Sabbath Command Still Relevant?

Is the Sabbath Command Still Relevant? – “The sabbath is not simply a rest from labor, but it is a rest unto the Lord. We can lie in the bed all day on Sunday and not keep the sabbath holy … because we have neither turned our attention to the Lord nor been thankful for His salvation!”

Sharp Tongues And Angry Tweets

Sharp Tongues And Angry Tweets – “Perhaps it’s all the social isolation, the anxiety about the future, or the charged political climate, but I suspect it’s easier to lose our cool these days. Or maybe it’s a perpetual problem made a little bit worse.”

Gentleness: The Christlikeness God is Trying To Produce in Us

Gentleness:  The Christlikeness God is Trying To Produce in Us – “If the fruit of the Spirit is gentleness–and it is–then is it not true that whenever a follower of Jesus is anything but gentle and kind, we may conclude from their actions that they are not Spirit-filled?”

Pray to See the Church as God Does

Pray to See the Church as God Does – “If we could see the church as she really is, perhaps nine-tenths of our criticism would die. We would find ourselves standing in silent wonder at this family of God, body of the Lord, temple of the Spirit, and bride of Christ — awed not only by its beauty, but that we should be part of it.”

Pray for the Church

Pray for the Church – This prayer is worth reading and worth praying for your church.

Cheap Knockoffs

Cheap Knockoffs – Five Christian heresies that made the modern world.

Five Lessons I Learned From a COVID-19 Spike at Our Church

Five Lessons I Learned From a COVID-19 Spike at Our Church – These experiences are being felt by churches nationwide and appear to be the path we’ll travel for the next several months.

The Fear of the Lord . . . For Today?

The Fear of the Lord . . . For Today? – “The basic idea is that the Lord is with us and he is also over us. He is the great and Holy God and is to be feared. This is a good fear because whatever we fear controls us. When we fear the Lord, we are controlled by him and his words. In short, we do what he says.”

Proud to Be an American?

Proud to Be an American? – “As we celebrate the Fourth of July, it is a good time to reflect on the proper perspective a Christian should have on his or her nation. In particular, now is the perfect time to reflect on the proper perspective an American Christian should have on the United States of America.”

A Mid-Year Bible-Reading Checkup (Don’t Give Up!)

A Mid-Year Bible-Reading Checkup (Don’t Give Up!) – If you started with the best of intentions in January and stalled out somewhere along the way, don’t wait for January of next year. Today is a great day to begin again. Here are some suggestions.

4 Reasons to Wear a Mask, Even if You Hate It

4 Reasons to Wear a Mask, Even if You Hate It – “When I look at Scripture I don’t see a mandate about masks, of course, but I see an invitation—to do at least four things.”

How Much Patriotism Is Too Much Patriotism?

How Much Patriotism Is Too Much Patriotism? – “Never feel more attached to your fatherland or your tribe or your family than you do to the people of Christ.”

Why Wearing Masks Is a Vital Way to Love Our Neighbor

Why Wearing Masks Is a Vital Way to Love Our Neighbor – Jim Denison shares responses to mask criticisms.

The 6 Most Common Sins and How to Fight Them

The 6 Most Common Sins and How to Fight Them – You may not even be aware that some of these are sins.

Signs Money is Turning into Your Idol

Signs Money is Turning into Your Idol – Is cash your king?

Does Science Really Disprove God?

Does Science Really Disprove God? – “Given all that we know today — given what science has told us — how can you be so confident about your atheism?”

Compelling Reasons to Trust a 2,000-Year-Old Bible

Compelling Reasons to Trust a 2,000-Year-Old Bible – It’s easy to find good reasons.

The Challenges and Joys of Families Worshipping Together

The Challenges and Joys of Families Worshipping Together – This season in church life may help restore a healthy biblical view of family worship.

Prayer Will Win the Nations

Prayer Will Win the Nations – Three Ways to Pray for Missionaries.

Lies Christians Believe About Themselves

Lies Christians Believe About Themselves – “Although we are adopted, cleansed, given a new name, a new identity, a new Spirit, we can still think like orphans, feel like orphans, behave like orphans.”

Pastors, Covid, and Criticism

Pastors, Covid, and Criticism – “Covid 19 has presented particular challenges, and fundamental changes to the rhythms and realities of weekly ministry. Now, they have the task of seeking to understand and apply biblical judgement to public health issues, and they most likely feel a sense of personal and pastoral uncertainty about how things might progress.”

The Mighty Multiplier

The Mighty Multiplier – In the story of Abram we find that God doesn’t ask for our help but He does ask for our faith.

With Liberty and Justice for All

With Liberty and Justice for All – “We do not have to believe we are as bad as we’ve ever been to acknowledge that we aren’t what we can be.”

How Can I Be Free from Materialism?

How Can I Be Free from Materialism? – “The reason the American church is weak is because we are at home in this Disneyland.”

Supreme Court: Religious Liberty Is Winning—and the Pro-Life Cause Is Losing

Supreme Court: Religious Liberty Is Winning—and the Pro-Life Cause Is Losing – “The court issued rulings this week on important cases involving restrictions on abortion and on religious liberty.”

Look at a River, Learn About God

Look at a River, Learn About God – “A river is a classic example of how God’s creation helps us understand truth about him.”

Services Shaped Like an Hourglass

Services Shaped Like an Hourglass – We begin “wide,” progress to “narrow,” and then return to “wide.”

You’re Not Alone in the Cave

You’re Not Alone in the Cave – “I think it’s fair to say that the presence of Psalm 88 in the Bible was a key factor in my reviving confidence that God had not socially distanced himself from me or his broken world.”

4 Reasons to Wear a Mask, Even if You Hate It

4 Reasons to Wear a Mask, Even if You Hate It – “What if our view on masks were shaped more by our Christian identity than our American political identity?”

Why Some Christian Leaders Don’t Post About Current Events on Social Media

Why Some Christian Leaders Don’t Post About Current Events on Social Media – “They are silent not because they don’t care, but because they humbly feel as if this particular topic is out of their lane, and it’s best to learn from others and allow the authority figures in the niche to do the speaking as opposed to themselves.”