Posts from 2018
Jesus the Living Water: PART 1
For some, the most difficult part of evangelism and soul winning in our culture today is simply peaking someone’s interest towards a conversation about Christ. Sometimes we can go weeks, months, and even years before ever establishing a level of interest about the Gospel or about Christ with our co-workers, friends, neighbors, and family. We all KNOW this should not be the case, but regretfully… it is. It has become much easier to talk to them about work, sports, politics,…
Show Them Christ
You’ve been there haven’t you? You may be there right now. You might be at the place where you know someone who is lost, or you know someone needs to reach out. It may be that co-worker you’ve been just inches away from bringing up Jesus to. It may be a friend or a family member that you are so close to mentioning Jesus to. You might even find yourself saying… “I am not a minister, I have not had…
In the Maker’s Eyes
I have not had the blessing of raising a child and I am for sure not planning to do so soon, but I have been one before and have had experience with close friend’s children in the past. When you think about children’s art, or your art from when you were a child (and frankly, my art to this day), to be honest… it is horrible. Most times, it is an indistinguishable conglomeration of lines and shapes and crayon strokes…
The Blessing of Proclaiming
During this past quarter on Wednesday nights, I have had the immense opportunity to teach a course on personal evangelism in my office. The class has been one of the most enriching experiences I have ever had in ministry to date. The incredible roster of genuine evangelistically minded and hearted people has been an inspiration to me. At the beginning of the quarter, I challenged each student to select three individuals that they had an influence with whether that be…
The Heart of an Evangelist
Of all the people in the New Testament, there is only one person ascribed the name, “The Evangelist.” In the book of Acts, we read of a man named Philip, a man who wound up working in Caesarea. Before that, Philip was one of the seven chosen in Acts 6 as one of the men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit, and full of wisdom according to verse 3. Many believe this was the first institution of deacons…
THE BLESSING OF PRAYER
I once heard a story about a young boy’s family who went to his grandmother’s house for dinner. Once the food was placed on the table, the boy quickly fixed his plate and began to eat. His mother said, “We haven’t asked God to bless the food yet. You know that at home we always say a prayer before we eat.” The boy replied, “But we don’t have to say a prayer here. This is grandma’s house. She knows how…
THE BLESSING OF PREDESTINATION
A man arrived at the gates of heaven and noticed that there were two lines. One had a sign labeled “Predestined,” and the other, “free will.” He headed over to the predestined line first, and while waiting, an angel came up to him and asked, ”Why are you in this line?” The man said, “Because I chose it. ”The angel replied, “Well, if you ‘chose’ it, then you should be in the free will line.” So the man obediently wandered…
The Greatest Conundrum Facing the Gospel Today
If someone were to sit down and begin writing a list of the greatest problems facing the Gospel today they would end up with a pretty extensive list. Division, confusion, hate, false teaching, comfort-zones, divisiveness, bias, and apathy are some, just to name a few, of the conundrums that the Gospel and those who proclaim it face on a daily basis. No doubt these are some troubling factors contributing to the issues, but they are not the greatest issue. The…
WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT POLITICS? (PART 3)
With politics taking center stage in our society due to a divisive Supreme Court confirmation and pending midterm elections, maybe it is time we consider what the Bible has to say about political matters. For the record, this will not be an investigation or critique of political ideologies, platforms, or parties; instead, it will be a three week study of some key biblical principles affecting the Christian’s relationship with the government. Two weeks ago, we observed the relationship between God…
THE PATH TO GLORY – PART FIVE
So, you want to bring glory to God? Isn’t it a wonderful thought? Isn’t it almost unbelievable that imperfect, sinful people could bring glory to our Creator, Sustainer, and Savior? And yet, we have studied a passage of Scripture over the past few weeks that has shown us a clear “path” that leads to doing just that. And here we are, at the end of this study of Philippians 1:9-11, to examine the final step in this important and amazing…
THE PATH TO GLORY – PART FOUR
In the world of sports, the phrase “respect the process” is often used to remind people that there is no “magic wand” or “easy button” that can create a winning team. It takes hard work, discipline, and lots of “behind-the-scenes” effort to be successful, and anyone who thinks otherwise is most likely nothing more than a “consumer” with a lack of understanding about the dynamics and inner workings of these organizations. The process is important. The process is the path…
WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT POLITICS? (PART 2)
With politics taking center stage in our society due to a divisive Supreme Court confirmation and pending midterm elections, maybe it is time we consider what the Bible has to say about political matters. For the record, this will not be an investigation or critique of political ideologies, platforms, or parties; instead, it will be a three week study of some key biblical principles affecting the Christian’s relationship with the government. In last week’s article we observed the relationship between…