We forget that Jesus is a fierce warrior. He is not only a gentle Shepherd who will talk about grace and mercy, but also a great and fierce warrior who will fight for us and keep us. I get this picture from David in the Old Testament. This sweet singer of Israel was also a […]
Deuteronomy 2:7-For the Lord your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He knows your going through this great wilderness. These forty years the Lord your God has been with you. You have lacked nothing.”‘ I am learning as a husband and father of three kids how to “check-in” and do […]
Out of all the conflicts you’ve had with others, what percentage of them were your fault? Perhaps, they didn’t amount to external conflicts, but you felt slighted, upset, angry or betrayed. But how much of them were your fault rather than the other person? 10%? 5%? 0%? I don’t think any of us would be so arrogant to […]
If you look at the Bible through the eyes of merit, you will come away very confused. And there is a very valuable lesson in it for us. I’m reading through 1 Samuel, where it describes how David rose to kingship after Saul abdicated his. David, in fleeing from the threat of Saul, goes to […]
3 John 5-6–Beloved, it is a faithful thing you do in all your efforts for these brothers, strangers as they are, 6 who testified to your love before the church. You will do well to send them on their journey in a manner worthy of God. In moving from Savannah, Georgia back to Washington, and […]
“Does Jesus put food on the table? What’s the point then?” A mother exclaimed to her believing daughter. This is an encounter I was told took place between a mother and her daughter who was getting serious in her commitment to Jesus. I wasn’t surprised. I’ve heard this many times even from those supposedly believing church […]
3 John 2–Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul. It might seem heartless or ungodly to not always want things to go well for someone, if what you see as “going well” in their mind is compromising […]
I’ve been reading the world news all this morning, and it’s depressing to do so. The nuclear problem with North Korea. The collapsed houses built on a dump in Sri Lanka. The political unrest that could be dangerous in Turkey… More viscerally, I hear of problems all around me that have no easy solution. People […]
All this week, I’ve been working at our new location (Trinity Baptist) to get it ready for Easter and thereafter. But I certainly haven’t been alone. As many as 30 students from Tacoma Baptist School, where I teach, have been helping us get ready. We have painted the entire upstairs hallways, three rooms, and completely […]
Deuteronomy 1:6-“The LORD our God said to us in Horeb, ‘You have stayed long enough at this mountain. If you compare the experience of “change”, versus the idea of things staying the same, change carries with it an excitement or newness, with the idea that change is what life is all about! So what […]