A great reason to praise God aloud is the privilege of being chosen in love. Why did God choose us? Because he loved us. Paul describes God’s loving election of us in terms of giving God great praise. Ephesians 1: 3-5… even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be... Continue Reading

Joy and sorrow are so closely related that they both produce tears. And in God’s great story, the deepest losses produce for us the prospect of the deepest joy and contentment. This makes no sense in the world’s eyes, but this is the nature of the gospel.   To be grateful is to be appreciative... Continue Reading

So if this is the way we received Christ Jesus the Lord, Paul’s reasoning is that this is the way we continue in him. And that’s why we must abound in thanksgiving. Any growing, any maturing, any deepening, is all a work of grace and not owing to any special ability or spiritual level I... Continue Reading

Laura has been God’s second-greatest gift to me. So, on this anniversary day, November 16, 2019, If I were not a Calvinist, I guess I would say, “I’m a lucky man.” However, since I am one who believes God decrees whatsoever comes to pass, I suppose I need to give glory and honor to my Heavenly... Continue Reading

I retired from the local church pastorate this year. That has required a mental adjustment. On the one hand, I no longer have the early hours and long days of pastoral care and planning. On the other hand, I am still called to be a steward of my time and servant of my Lord Jesus,... Continue Reading

Our churches, seminaries, and other institutions should do all they can to enable young men like Dan to accomplish their goals, to step into those places in academia where these intellectual battles are taking place. J. Gresham Machen spoke about this more than 100 years ago: “The church is waiting for men of another type. Men... Continue Reading

Like the picture of Dorian Grey, our souls would decay in the sugary sweetness of earthly delights, while the world would look on in wonder at our picture perfect life. At first, our choice for pleasure would be accompanied by our claim that we desire to magnify the goodness of the Lord, but as our... Continue Reading

We’re so desperate to be a part of the inner ring that when they approach and ask you to bend a rule, look the other way for just a moment, or participate in their well-intentioned but off-the-books plan, you’ll compromise your principles as the price of admission. The problem, Lewis explains, only compounds itself as... Continue Reading

When we succumb to the cacophony of doom predictions we hear in the news and read online and are otherwise bombarded with, we are being worldly. Fortunately Scripture tells us how to fight this kind of worldly thinking by being transformed by the renewing of your mind. And the way to that renewal is to... Continue Reading

We serve a King who has power and authority, whose care extends even to the birds of the air (Luke 12:24). Nothing we experience is outside of his plan. He was not only with me, but he was with Ben each moment of each day, and no matter how hard I tried, and how much... Continue Reading