Created for Companionship Have you ever seen a mother or even a father cry on their child’s wedding day? Some parents feel downcast when their son or daughter moves out of their home for the first time to go and attend college. Some spouses are saddened when their partner leaves for a work trip lasting […]

Howard Hendricks challenged educators when he wrote, “The best learners are participators; they’re not merely watching the action from the outside, but are deeply engrossed in it, involved to the hilt.”[1] When it came time for our church plant to determine what our women’s Bible studies would look like, Hendricks’s idea became our guiding aim. […]

The Question Beneath the Brokenness Brokenness in this world is apparent. While it grieves my heart to see the effects of sin, I can look at the corruption and distortion in culture with an understanding of what caused it and can look forward in hopeful expectation to the restoration of all creation. My struggle comes […]

Sheep, the Herd, and the Shepherd Humans are repeatedly compared to sheep in Scripture. If you know anything about sheep, you understand this is not a flattering analogy. Watch a few sheep videos and you’ll quickly see why. Like sheep, we tend to stray (Isa. 53:6). We can be “harassed and helpless” (Matt. 9:36). We […]

My wife cooks healthy meals that nourish me day after day. Once I asked how she prepares them. She answered simply: start with good ingredients and use sauces that enhance the meal rather than cover it. That answer lingered with me as I thought about my role as a preacher of God’s Word. What do […]

What Is Acedia? I’ve spent much of my Christian life wondering what’s wrong with me—more than I care to admit. Why is it that I not only fail to want the things of God, but sometimes feel a strong urge to resist or even reject them? Some years ago, I learned there’s a name for […]

A few years ago, I spoke with a college senior about his recent conversion from Evangelicalism to Catholicism. One of the reasons he gave was the reverence he witnessed during Mass. Many other young adults share his sentiment and have acted similarly.[1] Their departure offers a helpful critique of what is lacking in many churches […]

I grew up as a pastor’s kid. Every week, you would find me at church, and at the age of eight, I confessed my sin, realized my need for forgiveness, and gave my life to Christ. Like many believers, I grew up saying that Jesus is my Lord and Savior. I knew He had saved […]

For most Christians in America, the use of marijuana has been a nonstarter, mainly because it was against the law. But in the last few decades, the move to legalize weed has gained steam. Today, marijuana is still considered a Schedule I illegal substance by the federal government, though twenty-four states and the District of […]

In 2 Timothy, Paul gives Timothy more than 30 imperatives to guide his ministry to the church at Ephesus—highlighting just how comprehensive the work of pastoral ministry truly is. An overview of some of these imperatives demonstrates this: Share in suffering for the gospel (1:8; 2:3; 2:5) Guard the good deposit entrusted to you (1:14) […]