One of the best gifts young people can give their communities is to smile, laugh, and have fun. It warms our hearts. Let me say this at the onset to get it over with. It was an abysmal football game;…
A Most Dangerous Game
Pretending that God must give an account to people, rather than the other way around, deadens the heart to the need for a Savior. Anyone who has ever tracked down the thief who ate the last row of Oreos knows…
What I am Yelling With My Heart When Taking Pictures
Here is what I am “yelling” at every sporting event – – if not verbally – – I am yelling with my heart. Kick-off is a few hours away in Stillman Valley. My batteries are charged: literally and figuratively. I…
Marilynne Robinson on a Similarity Between Jay Leno and Rush Limbaugh
Marilynne Robinson Robinson wonders if the reason people prefer Rush Limbaugh and “Jay Leno” (no longer a current example) is because they instruct viewers as to what it is “cool to think.” The present dominance of aspersion and ridicule in…
Job: Preaching Propositions
During our upcoming series on Job in the Fall, we will see that Christ alone is sufficient to sustain us through whatever suffering we may face. He is the only one who can truly see us through the inevitable pain…
Current Questions for the Study of Job
Which “Job” questions are most important for pastors when preaching Job? Are there any “Job questions” in the below list that aren’t important? Immersed in Job as I am, one notices a number of questions that come up in “evangelical”…
Ash Helps Us Move to the Heart of the Matter of Job
I continue to prayerfully reflect on the book of Job. Our Fall series on Job will begin at the Red Brick Church, D.V., on October 5. In preparation, I am interacting a great deal with Christopher Ash’s recent commentary published…
Biblical Wisdom for Your Social Network
The below selection of Proverbs will encourage and challenge you regarding how you communicate to your social networks – – whether it is through the new media or sitting around at the grain elevator on a rainy day talking to…
For My Children’s Sake, I Wish Our Whole Congregation Would Listen
I wouldn’t expect everyone from our church to read a new book by Barnabas Piper. There are so many books to read. But it would be great if many in our church would listen to this podcast of Barnabas being…
BB Guns, Brothers, and Biblical Imagery
This post is published with the modest expectation that readers have the capacity to recognize foolish behavior and determine not to follow the examples described. As I do qualify in the body of the narrative, I preemptively point out that,…