As a young Christian in my twenties, I used to cringe whenever someone talked about the fear of the Lord. To me, any kind of fear was bad. And I couldn’t escape thinking of all the times I was afraid of my own dad. How The Fear of My Dad Wrongly Shaped My Fear of… Continue reading What Is the Fear of the Lord? How Do We Know When We Have Too Little or Too Much?
Why Can’t Christians Love God? What The Modern Church Isn’t Teaching Us
Our walk with Jesus starts small and then it matures. Or at least that’s how it’s supposed to be. As the Apostle Paul writes, “when I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things.”… Continue reading Why Can’t Christians Love God? What The Modern Church Isn’t Teaching Us
How God Uses Our Suffering
When I was a young man in my 20’s, I ranted and railed against God because in my view, any God who was all loving, all powerful and all knowing would never allow suffering. My unspoken belief (however naive), was that being carefree and without pain was always good. While being beset by anguish and… Continue reading How God Uses Our Suffering
What Is Faith? How Do We Leverage Our Faith?
As a young Christian I always struggled with what it means to have faith. The problem was that no one would define it for me. And equally bad, no one would give me practical applications of how to exercise this faith. I remember being told things like “you need to step out on faith” or… Continue reading What Is Faith? How Do We Leverage Our Faith?
Are You Too Holy To Desire God’s Promises in the Here and Now? What’s the Difference between Being Selfish vs Acting in Your Own Self Interest?
Have you ever wondered if it’s selfish to ask God for things while you’re alive and can still enjoy them? Or what about being eager to follow God’s commands because deep down, you want an earthly reward? Is this OK or is this somehow unspiritual? As a young Christian with six figures in debt, no… Continue reading Are You Too Holy To Desire God’s Promises in the Here and Now? What’s the Difference between Being Selfish vs Acting in Your Own Self Interest?
Works v. Leveraging Your Faith
We often confuse works with leveraging our faith. Yes, both works and faith are intertwined with one another, and it’s easy to assume these are the same things. But they’re not. Off the bat, we can never do enough works. Indeed, there’s always something more we can strive for. Always something more we could have… Continue reading Works v. Leveraging Your Faith
Why Self Pity (Not Trying) Is Much Worse Than Failing
Below is a letter of encouragement to a Jesus filled friend who struggles with self pity and sometimes wonders if he should even try. Several times at the height of his self pity, the Lord had him come across a person who delights in Jesus even though the man was confined to a wheelchair. My… Continue reading Why Self Pity (Not Trying) Is Much Worse Than Failing
How To Put On The Full Armor of God
In Ephesians 6, we are commanded to “Put on the full armor of God” so we can take our stand against the devil’s schemes. We are reminded that this is not about politics. Our enemy is not people. “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against… Continue reading How To Put On The Full Armor of God
My Body My Choice: Yes for Me (But Not For Thee)
Now more than ever, our country is crying out that “It’s My Body: My Choice.” We hear it from the anti-vaxxers who detest Covid shots, we hear it from the pro-choice groups after the stunning reversal of Roe v. Wade, and we hear it from the free thinkers in San Francisco who want to legalize… Continue reading My Body My Choice: Yes for Me (But Not For Thee)
What’s Your Story? Is It Really All About You?
While many harp on the prosperity gospel, the fact is that no matter what we do, we’ll inevitably have despair, we will certainly face hardship, and we’re absolutely guaranteed to have suffering. We don’t have to pursue these things. Such trials will come naturally. This is what happened to all 12 disciples. This is what… Continue reading What’s Your Story? Is It Really All About You?