Two decades of pastoral ministry has taught me that a prevailing theme of Christian life is the faulty thinking that we relate to God as though he is a disappointed father.​

This is the story of the hopeful, dreadful time between sin’s entrance and Christ’s conquest.

The life of faith is difficult. But there is a joy waiting for us beyond all comparison.

God’s character is as honest as we can be in our prayers. Our quest may feel endless but our God is not. 

The abundance of God comes in part in this life, but in fullness only later. 

While reading your Bible every day, praying, and fasting do not necessitate spiritual growth, neglecting them is like never going to the gym in the first place.

When the perfect comes, the partial, half-measures of today will pass away, and no one will miss them.​

I am not against you, friend. I’m against the golden calf that I’ve seen built in your midst.

Here are just three of my favorite anecdotes touching on the surprising power of grace.

Mimi is a good reminder, to me at least, to curb my ambition and instead simply, faithfully seek Christ.

When we engage in what the Bible calls foolishness—choosing sin over obedience—we engage in a practical kind of atheism.

Often, in lieu of your local church becoming the best contextualized version of itself, God is fashioning its parts into a whole that looks more like Him.

Pastor's Kid, your dad devotes his time and talent to faithfully steering the church toward Christ. As his son or daughter, don’t detract from that mission. Be a catalyst.

Jesus went willingly into the weakness of flesh, to make himself like us so he could save us.

Jesus' torn flesh and spilt blood was for the embarrassing—those like you and me.

If you hear this, it won't be from Jesus.

Don’t set yourself up to play with something that will grow to something that can kill and maim you.

Living in the present, with a forgiven past, and secured future, will definitely lead to a happier life.

As one who is entrusted with a leadership position, I find it profitable to read of others who have led.

We have died to sin in his death and are now alive to God in his resurrection.

On first looking into Spurgeon’s sermons, I have found joy and awe in the work of Spurgeon, the man, but also in the work of Spurgeon’s God.

We don’t always see what the Vinedresser is doing beneath the surface, but we can rest assured that it’s always for our growth.

A classical Christian understanding of God’s immutability would maintain that God cannot – and need not! – change even by a divine decision to alter himself. 

There is only one who instructs the rain to fall on Holland. There is only one who know the number of Netherland hairs. There is only one who administers days to Amsterdam. There is only one who is truly sovereign.

At the height of my foray into theological worlds unknown, I met a traveler. Her name was Mrs. Billie Jo.

This may come as news to you, and if so, I am sorry that it has taken this long for someone to tell you, but you are not the center of the universe.

Our God is a treasure to be enjoyed, worshiped, and obeyed. 

Philosophy can show us the extent to which Scripture answers life’s ultimate questions.

You get the story wrong if you don’t see Jesus as the center and the goal. But when you get it right, you understand, as Stephen did, that suffering makes sense.

Both beats in our ears make promises, promises of fulfillment and of satisfaction. But only one has the power to keep and deliver on its promises. 

My current struggles weigh as much as a feather while the weight of God’s glory is incalculable.

Seven theological and practical reminders to help you sleep like someone whose God is actually alive.

The Bible teaches three facts of life: God is good. God is all-powerful. Terrible things happen.

The ministry of reconciliation continually provides a clear, unobstructed avenue to grace to all of those who need to hear the gospel, which includes all of us!

Ashamed friend: look to the shamed one on the cross and know his shame was for you. His shame was so that you might not be ashamed, that his welcome would overcome the world’s rejection.

The more we orient our lives around Him, the more His Spirit shapes and even transforms our plans. 

We should be so dependent on God that our first ingrained action should be to pray to Him when times get tough or even when we start a new day. 

Eventually, if we actually believe what we believe, obedience will be the tell-tale sign that follows us.

Pride can only bring bondage and discontentment because you do not have the power to compel the world to affirm you on your terms.  ​

This is where I am - covered by water and desperate for God’s help every moment to truly believe this flood is a gift.

We walk around incomplete or empty, longing to once again be complete in God.

Aren’t we left here in this in-between time to point others to the Lamb of God? 

Wear your shield, Christian, and cry mightily unto God, that by his Spirit you may endure to the end.

We couldn’t reach up on the top shelf to get God, so God places himself on the bottom shelf—right within our reach—in the person of Jesus Christ, the carpenter from Nazareth.

My problem? I tend to think God forgives like I do. 

Faith is not about impersonal plans, unfolding programs, or divine principles. Faith is heartfelt trust in the person of Christ.

We are not to expect that God will give us everything we choose to ask for. We know that we sometimes ask, and do not receive, because we ask amiss. 

Apart from a broken spirit that sees how much we need Christ first and foremost, these betterments are futile.

The best this world offers is incomplete. 

Nothing can provide a better picture of the relationship between believers to Christ than marriage. It explains why loving submission and sacrificial authority is so important.