We can talk about prayer, teach about prayer, write about prayer, and even lead corporately in prayer – all without anyone knowing that personal prayer is sporadic at best. John, a leader in a church I assisted as a consultant, admitted to me what I’d heard before from seminary students and church leaders alike: “Dr.... Continue Reading

Theologians get real tight in their making of distinctions, and when I say I don’t believe in miracles today, I don’t believe in the tight kind of miracle in the very narrow sense where a miracle is defined as a work that occurs in the external perceivable world; an extraordinary work in the external perceivable... Continue Reading

All of us can be tempted in this direction when we are not given what we want and proceed immediately thereafter to throw out of our little prams whatever toys we happen to have. And what can one say about the consistent failure of the Christian twitterati, from the least to the greatest, to understand... Continue Reading

It gives personal pastoral access. A small church’s pastor knows the members’ names. He sees them in their homes and encounters them in places like the frozen yogurt shop. He is not too busy speaking at national conferences to attend to the needs of his little flock. He provides spiritual support in all situations from... Continue Reading

So if your church is considering college ministry, know that loving students isn’t always the easiest. They will probably eat you out of house and home without saying thank you, want to blare music at a much higher decibel than you would choose, and may even wreck your church van without reporting it. But they... Continue Reading

In the end, the church fathers teach us a very important truth. The NT canon we possess today is not due to the machinations of later church leaders, or to the political influence of Constantine, but due to the fact that these books imposed themselves on the church through their internal qualities.   How do... Continue Reading

Doyle, who is married with three children, said ex-gays are among the most discriminated against in the country, so his organization is committed to demanding equal protection. “Many people are just afraid to speak up and say this is ridiculous,” he said. “People are allowed to have an opinion that’s different without being labeled a... Continue Reading

Racial and cultural unity among believers are evidence of the gospel’s influence. To elevate one’s race or the politics of one’s race above the unity of Christ’s body is to denigrate the very gospel we all claim. Likewise, to pretend differences are unimportant and hurts imagined is to deny the very power of the gospel... Continue Reading

These systems were touted as a mechanism to provide school districts, state governments, and federal policymakers with more data to analyze trends in student achievement and improve educational efforts. While this might seem benign, notes my friend, we cannot ignore the sheer volume of data that will be collected and how that data might be... Continue Reading

So, yes, require an apology from your young child. Don’t let the fear of raising a liar keep you from training your children in the liturgy of repentance. Model what godly repentance looks like for them, train them faithfully in the language of forgiveness, and pray the Lord uses your words and example to bring... Continue Reading