Many of us are finding ourselves engaged in conversations about the crisis in Israel, therefore, I thought it might be useful to offer some pastoral advice as to what you might wish to say in that situation. Your first couple of sentences should…

“How are the kids?” I get asked some version of that question pretty much every day and I find it surprisingly difficult to answer. In part that is because I have 5 children and on any given day a couple of them are probably doing very well and at…

To be a good preacher you have to believe in your bones that all Scripture is inspired by God and useful; you have to believe that the Word of God will never return void, and if you believe that then you will want to base your sermon in the text and…

Every year around this time I am asked some version of this question: should I (or should my child) get baptized at camp? It would be difficult to defend an absolute prohibition of baptisms performed outside the confines of the gathered church given…

Mother’s Day is the most nerve-wracking day of the year for many pastors. If they do a sermon on mothering or the importance of being a mom they will be criticized for not keeping the focus on Jesus and bowing to the pressure of the “Hallmark…

As the father of 5 children born between the years of 1997 and 2011 I eagerly devoured Jean Twenge’s earlier book called iGen: Why Today’s Super Connected Kids Are Growing Up Less Religious, More Tolerant, Less Happy – And Completely Unprepared For…

A pastor I know recently prayed to the Lord for guidance. He was eager to be useful, he was aware that time was short, and his desire was to be faithful and fruitful in the King’s service. He was also becoming aware of his physical limitations. There…

The first human cases of COVID-19 occurred in China in December 2019, mostly among those who had visited the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in the city of Wuhan. The first known death was reported on January 11th 2020, and by January 21st…

There are women prophets mentioned in both the Old and New Testaments. In 2 Kings 22 when King Josiah wanted to know how soon the judgment of God was likely to fall upon the people, and if there was anything he could do to delay the experience, he…

Within egalitarian circles this is a very easy question to answer. Egalitarians generally believe that men and women are equal in all respects and that gender differences are largely relativized by the grace of the Gospel. Therefore, whatever men do…

The Bible was written by particular people, in a particular culture at a particular time, and yet, Christians also believe that it was written by the Holy Spirit of God. Believing both of these things simultaneously requires us to exercise wisdom and…

Getting off to a good start matters. If you fall behind on your goals right off the bat, they begin to look and feel unattainable. To help you start strong and build early momentum on your Bible Reading Plan for 2023 I have assembled a number of…