Blog
Have friends or even family ever deserted you because of difficulties you faced while standing for the truth? They’ve been ashamed or embarrassed to be associated with you. And it cost you. If you have, you can allow Paul’s healing words to come alive in you and be a...
Paul wrote to Timothy, a young leader overseeing multiple churches in Asia Minor, instructing that in every place of worship, men and women should pray with hands lifted to God, with a pure heart, free from frustration, anger, and controversy (see 1 Timothy 2:8-9)....
Paul’s story is my story. I, too, was captured by incredible grace. My primary purpose is to be filled with God’s love. My prayer is that Jesus can use me as a pattern for others who would believe in Him for eternal life. Paul begins his letter to Timothy and...
We have seen three attempts on the life of President Trump, fueled by deranged thinking. It is not surprising that some mentally unstable person would be willing to attempt an assassination, believing the President is so evil that he deserves death. They see their...
One summer in our college years, Jan and I worked as lifeguards at different locations. We were trained how to approach a drowning person so they would not take us down with them. We were of no use to anyone if we didn’t personally train, practice, and prepare. Jan...
A persecuted faith does not fade away. It grows stronger. The persecuted Church demonstrates that reality under oppressive regimes like Nigeria and Iran, among others. Under the United States Constitution and Bill of Rights, we carry the heritage of a godly justice...
This morning, as Jan and I prayed for our nation and for the nations of the world, the Lord spoke. He said we need to pray for His intervention, not the short-sighted conclusions we think need to happen. Those short-sighted conclusions apply at personal, social,...
I remember the day I led my Dad to the Lord. I was awakened in the early hours of the morning with a strong sense of urgency to get to his hospital bed. At eighty-one years of age, Dad was still sharp of mind and healthy. Suddenly, for no apparent reason, within...
As I look out at our small orchard of fig, cherry, apple, nectarine, and peach trees in our front yard, I can see the first buds of fruit forming. Each tree has a different process of maturation and fruit bearing. The first appearance of a coming harvest is now taking...
Years ago, on a flight from Los Angeles to Seattle, I had a window seat as we flew over the Pacific Northwest. As we crossed Springfield, Oregon, a place where our family once lived, I looked down and could see familiar landmarks—the streets, parks, shopping malls,...
A question surfaced in Paul’s writings: Who can be saved? I’ve heard several podcasts and interviews this year discussing Israel, her relationship with the Church, and her place in modern history. In one discussion on social media, there was a halting comment...
Continuing on from my previous post about a Gospel of grace, Paul wrote a warning to the churches in central Turkey. Speaking with apostolic authority, he pronounces judgment on Jewish preachers who were perverting the Gospel of grace. They were mingling grace with...
It’s not pleasant to buck an evil world system that also includes a religious system, It is uncomfortable to face the mixture of half-truths that have infiltrated and compromised the Church by that same system. It’s not easy to face our own propensity to live from our...
At this time in my life, I am struck even more by this writing of Paul’s: “As for me, may I never boast about anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of that cross, my interest in this world has been crucified, and the world’s interest in me has...
I’ve never wanted to be prideful. Yet, I laugh because even that desire hides a point of pride. In fact, I’m full of it! And I am grateful when the Lord points out all the many facets. Here is a big one. I never want to be or appear to be weak. I’m the protector of my...