Behind Closed Doors
And they came to Capernaum. And when he was in the house he asked them, “What were you discussing on the way?” Mark 9:33, ESV The Bible is full of simple life lessons, isn’t it? The story Mark recounts in …
The Disciplemaker Team
Christ and the Calendar
I care deeply about discipleship, and the calendar is one of the original discipleship tools found in the Old Testament. It’s not quite as simple as that short answer, however. It’s been my experience that when Evangelicals speak of spiritual …
Describe Your Family Table
A few years ago my wife and I were physically and nutritionally depleted. It was obvious our souls were not far behind. We had several emotional breakdowns and deep moments of discussion and prayer. After identifying our burnout, we knew …
What Calendar did Jesus Use?
I had to write about the Jewish and Christian calendars. Why? The short answer is that I care deeply about discipleship, and the calendar is one of the original discipleship tools found in the Old Testament. It’s not quite as simple …
Does the Bible Really Say That?
When I was a young Christian, the Holy Spirit put in my heart such a yearning for Scripture that I began reading through the New Testament every week. By the end of my second week, I was astonished at what …
6 Steps to Prevent Misquoting Scripture
Don’t just think you are quoting the Bible, know you are. These six guidelines will help you teach with accuracy—and fill in the gaps with contextual understanding. Don’t assume that you know what a passage means based on how others …
Don’t Start Something; Join Something
We are too quick to want to start movements and too slow to join them. We live in a culture of advocacy. We are overwhelmed by causes banding together to fight deep injustices. It’s in our faces and our social …
May I See Your I.D. Please?
See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are! But the people who belong to this world don’t recognize that we are God’s children because they don’t know him. …
Presence Requires Absence
To be able to be present with people in this chaotic world you need to embrace times of absence. We need to put away our phones, put away our to-do lists and deadlines. We must be intentional about being still …
Prayer: From Duty to Delight
The school bus pulls heavily away from our house, and I turn from the door. Through the house I go, switching off lights and turning down the radio that plays constantly to the menagerie in my son’s room. Then I pull …