When Developing Character, Seek to Be a “Faithful Man to be Found”
At its core, the Year of Listening Up is about developing character. It’s an annual project that’s an outgrowth of a book I wrote for my daughters, largely centered on the same ambition. Since Edwards made developing character a primary goal of his life, it made great...
Intentionally Seeking Your Personal Discipleship in Christ
I’ve gained a new understanding of personal discipleship with Christ over the last year or so. Maybe not so much new as it is better, deeper, or more refined. On a basic level, personal discipleship is simply learning to be more like Christ. A simple concept, yes, but...
Have Prayerful Confidence that God Works in You and in the World
When it comes to prayerful confidence, most think in the context of God’s willingness to answer. However, we must keep mindful of our own actions and intentions. To that end, I can’t count the times I’ve failed to make a prayer I told someone I would. Or the times...
What’s The Point of Studying Scripture? Can’t I Just be Spiritual?
When it comes to studying Scripture, you get out of it what you put into it. Jonathan Edwards clearly put much more into it than most could ever aspire. That should not dissuade us common folk, though. Our only real competition is ourselves. When running the race to...
Heavenly Reward and Our Greater Capacities for Happiness
We often speak of a heavenly reward. It’s usually said in relation to the phrase “you can’t take it with you.” The “it” in this case is all the stuff we acquire in life. Our homes, cars, clothes, gadgets, toys… even our money. This stuff is stuff we...
Authentic Love – Reckless? Inefficient? Messy? It’s Simply Love.
What does authentic love look like? It’s a question I’m often pondering. Never really landed on an answer, until now. You know it when I see it. Every now and then, God sends a perfect illustration. It’s sometimes like the missing puzzle piece that’s key...
Why We Must Strive for a Healthy Perspective of Shame
I don’t know how it goes in other countries, but the U.S. culture certainly has an interesting relationship with the concept of shame. On the one hand, it seems that nobody has any shame. In addition, people are constantly thrusting themselves into attention seeking...
Book Review – Keep Christianity Weird: Embracing the Discipline of Being Different by Michael Frost
Being different usually comes with a negative connotation. However, there are times where we must not just endure being different, we must embrace being different. In Keep Christianity Weird: Embracing the Discipline of Being Different, Michael Frost argues it’s the...
The Reality of Spiritual Warfare and The Battle for Your Heart
Spiritual warfare. It’s a term that conjures all sorts of visual representations. And it probably varies greatly by culture. I can’t claim to be all that knowledgeable about it, and I have kept my life mostly ignorant of the concept. I like to live in my little bubble...
God in Culture – a Book Review of Kingdom Citizen by Tony Evans
In Kingdom Citizen: Your Role in Rebuilding a Broken Nation, Tony Evans presents a compelling case for renewed emphasis on the relationship of God in culture. Moreover, he shows how, in our misguided pursuit of buildings and turnkey programs, we have forgotten a call...