Theology

My parents are Christians. They love the Lord and, as essentially first-generation followers of Jesus, they did a good job of pointing me to Him. However, an official time of family worship was never a “thing” in our family–I honestly don’t think the thought crossed anyones mind. We did our own things for spiritual growth–Bible reading and private prayer–and we went to church together on Sundays. But we never cracked open the Word together or as a family worshipped outside of church. ...

I’ve been enjoying Wayne Grudem’s Politics – According to the Bible because I’m a generally unengaged and inactive political citizen in need of much reform. He discusses patriotism and how Christians should act in light of celebrating their nation–something I’ve wrestled with. Can I celebrate America while wanting to make disciples of all nations? I love America. I think it’s one of the greatest nations on the planet. We enjoy many freedoms, our enterprising nature has done boatloads of good for the world, we created the iPhone and we have the amazing convenience of Amazon Prime–and that’s just off the top of my head. ...

My wife Niki loves Jesus. Really loves him. Loves him more than me, officially, and lives her life boldly for him. I couldn’t be more grateful. But there are people in my life–friends, family members, acquaintances–who are Christians but who don’t have a significant other that has a true relationship with Jesus. Sometimes people are already married when they meet Jesus. This post is not for them.  Photo by Gregory Bodwell © This is a plea, a forewarning and a peek inside what you’ll be missing if you’re currently 1. walking with Jesus 2. dating a non-Christian and 3. considering marrying that non-Christian whom you likely love. The more I think about my relationship with the Lord, and with Niki, the more grateful I am that she walks closely with Jesus before everything else. If you think all you’ll be doing is disobeying God by marrying a non-Christian (and surely, as Paul reminds us in 2 Corinthians 6:14 [footnote]Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness?[/footnote] that should be reason enough to not sin), let me share with you what you won’t experience by marrying a non-Christian. ...

This is a long story about a dialogue between an accountant and a blogger. You can imagine that we don’t end up seeing eye to eye, but for the moral of the story in fewer than 1,300 words, stop picking the short-term over the long-term in your life. People do funny things. Businesses do too. We had our taxes prepared recently because we had a tax situation that was definitely beyond my self-preparing pay grade. [footnote]We lived overseas, moved back to Ohio, had to switch which local district we were paying taxes too and went from paying normal taxes to self-employment taxes because of our transition in our ministry. One of those things would have been enough.[/footnote] We had a cacophony of complexity to wrangle. So we hired an accountant. ...

Christmastime in America is completely nuts. There are holiday drinks, holiday movies, holiday albums. And by holiday, we mean Christmas. All of them birthed out of Christmas. Christmas has even spawned its own mini-celebrations of consumerism in Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Americans can get behind Christmas because no one is offended by a baby being born in Bethlehem 2,000 years ago. We can say things about Christmas like, It’s all about family… It’s about giving to people you love… It’s about being grateful for what you have and blessing the less fortunate… **We can lose the true Christmas message that God came into the world to save sinners because we can twist a humble birth into just about whatever we want. ** ...

Uniting theology and productivity is no easy task. Fortunately, Matt Perman marries the gospel and getting things done in a beautiful ceremony in What’s Best Next: How the Gospel Transforms the Way You Get Things Done. Usually, productivity is left to gurus and hackers, while theology is reserved for the super-spiritual and seminarians. What’s Best Next thoroughly dismantles the separation of the spiritual and the practical, and puts the gospel at the center of our work–no matter what we do. Matt Perman has written about productivity from a Christian perspective for years at whatsbestnext.com. He helped build John Piper’s Desiring God ministry, and he’s more than qualified to merge theology and productivity. His book is a treat through and through, and I’ll be referencing, re-reading, and recommending it for years to come.  [Note: This is one of my longest posts ever. If you trust my judgment, go buy What’s Best Next right now, at Amazon (affiliate) or WTS Books. Feel free to skim and scan this review to get a glimpse into why I loved the book.] The Aim Much is lacking in literature on work from a Christian perspective–and I’d argue even more so is missing on the way Christians should work. Matt’s goal in “What’s Best Next” is to fill in that gap of wanting literature. My aim in this book is to reshape the way you think about productivity and then present a practical approach to help you become more effective in your life with less stress and frustration, whatever you are doing. He wants to help equip us, inspire us and prepare us to serve God in all we do, through the how and why of our work. And he does just that. ...

What good could drawing a red “X” on my hand possibly do? How could that help? How could it make a difference?  According to the End It Movement, an awareness group and coalition of anti-slavery organizations, there are 27 million slaves in the world. More in sheer number than any other time in human history. Forty percent of those slaves are sex slaves. That reality knots my stomach. I’ve read stories of slaves stolen for forced sex, forced labor and even organ harvesting. It’s nauseating and heartbreaking. So how does me posting a picture of an X to Instagram and Twitter make any impact? I wrestled with the idea. I didn’t want to be a slacktivist–posting a picture with a trendy icon or a link to a website just because everyone else (in my circles) was. I’ve thought a lot about how to tackle a problem with a massive, global scale. Human trafficking. Extreme poverty. Unreached people groups. Issues that all deserve our attention. But how do I make a difference without knowing how to be actively involved? Kevin DeYoung says in Crazy Busy, We won’t all care about every issue in the same way, but there are some issues we should all care about, some issues that should at least prick our hearts and prompt us to pray. Not giving a rip about sex slaves is not an option for the Christian. I’ve just dipped my toe into the cesspool of human trafficking. I don’t have all the answers, and honestly I’m just trying to learn and help others do the same as we fight one of the greatest injustices in our world today. Any problem buried this deep in sin requires a multi-faceted solution to fix. I believe that solution travels four concentric circles, all working together to find a solution. Promotion, personal choices, partnering, and prayer. Here’s how I see pandemic issues being tackled, specifically in the context of human trafficking. ...

It’s practically a requirement to write major posts for major holidays. I’m not sure who collects the unwritten rules of the blogosphere, but I know for certain that one of those rules is that bloggers must write posts about their overwhelming gratitude and thankful hearts on Thanksgiving. I’ve expressed my gratitude here before. Instead of a traditional gratitude post, I thought I’d share a revolutionary thought I’ve been learning from John Piper in his book Future Grace. Gratitude doesn’t function properly when it is forced to look forward. We can’t express gratitude in the future. We can express it for the past. And we can let that gratitude direct our hearts for what’s to come, but gratitude is a distinctly past-oriented emotion. ...

I’ve mentioned to a number of friends what a significant impact the book A Praying Life by Paul Miller has had on me in the last three months. It’s now the book I recommend and give away the most often. God used it in significant ways to change me and draw me to Jesus. I’ve tried prayer systems that I’ve concocted that I haven’t stuck with. I’ve wanted to be a better pray-er, but I often felt helpless and defeated. Miller suggested a simple system of 3×5 note cards with a person’s name on each card alongside a few requests and a specific verse of scripture. That simple system has worked for me, and I reference the cards multiple times per week. Here are my cards, based mostly on Miller’s suggestions: 13 family cards (a combination of individuals and extended sides of the family) 1 marriage card (for close friends of ours who are married, all listed on one card) 1 work card (things I’m praying would be true in our work) 1 repentance card (with 5 things/sins I’m praying God would stomp out in my life) 2 ministry cards (for ministries we support, and one specifically for Slovenia) 1 dream card (things I’m trusting The Lord for in my life that are fully impossible without him) 1 top 10 list (of people I’m praying would come to know Jesus) Twenty cards that take around 15 minutes to pray through, with a number of specific requests on each. It’s been a delight to see the Lord already answering a number of those prayers in the last three months. This way of praying alone makes the book worth the read. But wait! There’s more. Here are a few of my favorite quotes that have significantly changed my thinking. ...

In Revelation 3:16, Jesus says he spits lukewarm followers out of his mouth. That seems a bit more serious than a passive frustration or minor annoyance. Why so harsh, Jesus? I think there are a few reasons. As far as credentials go, I feel particularly qualified to speak to this issue because I’m still a recovering hypocrite and former lukewarm “follower” of Jesus. This isn’t meant to condemn, simply to clarify what I think it means to follow Jesus. Lukewarm followers aren’t really following You can’t follow a leader you don’t trust enough to listen to. You can’t make Jesus your Savior without making him your Lord. If you aren’t walking closely with Jesus, you’ll quickly lose your way. We most follow closely behind him, walking in his steps. They run his name through the mud Saying you’re a Christian and living contrary to how Jesus called us to live it gives Jesus a bad name. It’s like working for Coke but drinking Pepsi. What does that say about your taste for Jesus? ...