The Apostle Paul was a truth-teller. His explanations of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, along with his many practical applications regarding how believers are to live each day as redeemed followers of Christ stand today as elegant, profound, and timeless. God spoke through Paul. Therefore, every word of his two-thousand-year-old epistles addressed to the early…
When I was old enough to carry a hammer for my grandpa, who was a master carpenter, he would allow me on occasion, to “work” with him. He taught me the correct way to pull nails out of boards, use a saw, and how to follow instructions. Sometimes, when I thought he was not looking, I…
This week I began a new sermon series at AGC based on Matthew 12. If you take a quick survey of this chapter, you quickly find a list of accusations coming in rapid succession against the Lord Jesus. The single most effective way to take a leader down is to discredit and/or disqualify him. To…
Are you ready? In my former days as a military officer, I was part of a professional culture that greatly emphasized readiness. As a combat pilot, I was expected to live every day within a personal and professional posture that would enable a transition—in a timeline measured in hours—from sitting home watching college football to…
Last week marked a first for our family. With four kids, we’ve had our share of illnesses hit us. Last August, all of us at one point had COVID to various degrees of severity (the kids had what seemed like mild colds compared to Natasha and myself). We’ve dealt with fevers, headaches, growing pains, even…
When you read a title such as this, especially during our current economic challenges, you are most likely thinking of something related to petroleum products. That is not at all what I was referring to. I have had the pleasure of watching more cross-country running races through the years than I can count. At most…
Wars and rumors of war. Famine. The love of many waxed cold. Kingdom against kingdom, tribe against tribe. Men who are loves of themselves. Brother against brother. Wolves in sheep’s clothing. Sounds like something out of the Bible, doesn’t it? Well, it is out of the Bible, but it defines the world in which we…
Twenty years ago, John Piper wrote the book Brothers, We Are Not Professionals in which he pleaded with pastors to forsake thinking of pastoral ministry the way we would think of other full-time professions. Yes, the pastor’s day-to-day job includes a fair bit of administration. Yes, he must lead and organize a team of staff members….
I grew up in a reasonably competitive family. My children, on the other hand, grew up in an extremely competitive family. You might say that the parents have something to do with the level of competitiveness, and you would be correct. Both Lana and I are very competitive people. For me it depends on what…
