Blog
False messiahs and false prophets will arise at the end of the age, but they will also appear in times of great cultural transition leading up to those final days. The most dangerous attitude to have in those uncertain times is the assumptions we form that are not in...
As we live a life of faith, we can experience times when our prayers go unanswered. It can happen because we are being protected from the results of an immature prayer that can put us in a place of danger that we cannot yet see. Being out of God’s timing can also...
I once read there are four phases of development in a Church movement – Man, Movement, Monument, and Mausoleum. A group of followers will initially be formed and ignited by a person of faith. That original faith will gain momentum and become a movement. After a season...
The greatest loneliness is not to be single. It is to be married to someone who does not share the same spiritual oneness with God that you experience. As impossible as it can seem, especially in moments of deep discouragement, never forget that you are already...
When the Lord began to speak to me about the reformation currently taking place, He said it would be a reformation that began with a sound – the sound of truth spoken in love. As I pondered the subject, I watched a video that gave me an image of what this reformation...
I used to wonder why Jesus did not provide clear answers to some of the questions people asked Him in Scripture – questions that seemed divisive in their composition. I think He leaves some things unanswered because it creates a relational tension as we pursue answers...
I read a sad social media interchange between a church leader and the people responding to something he posted. The comment he made appeared flippant and out of tune with God’s heart. I assume it is a comment he now regrets making, maybe not in content but in his...
Once, I was asked by another believer if I would consider a debate. I said, “No.” When asked why I replied, “Because one of us would walk away being considered the winner.” I was pressed further and shared, “When the world looks at the Church I want them to see...
One of the most beautiful things about love is choice. If you remove choice from either side of a relationship it is no longer love. I remember the day I asked Jan to marry me. I asked and she said yes. I offered love and she accepted. I did not take Jan by force...
The old dead oak tree stood on the hill above me, a bark-less memory of another life. This old gray wooden statue held his head high among the young oaks still generations away from the gray of death. They were prospering in the insulated virility of their...
As a young cop, I had to learn about the judicious use of firearms. In my training, there was a term called, “Pray and Spray.” Pray and Spray means that when a threat appears that could cause death or great bodily harm, the undisciplined person will start praying and...
I have stood before the church door in Wittenberg, Germany where Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses five hundred years ago. Luther's act sparked the Protestant Reformation. The Wittenberg Door represents how reformation can begin in the Church with a single act of...
In a television interview today, I said to my interviewer, "Some of those labeled as 'forsaking the assembling' of the Church have not walked away from God. They have simply forsaken the model of the Church we have presented to them." Be careful making flippant...
As a young rookie cop, I listened with a blend of anticipation and joy when the old-timers told their stories. I remember one story about a young man with a bad attitude who drove by one of the old-timers. When he passed the cop, the young man extended his hand out...
Have you noticed that events like an eclipse, events known beforehand never measure up to the apocalyptic warnings issued prior to their arrival? It is the surprise events of life that catch us off guard. Those events actually change life as we know it. The unexpected...