As an exercise in discernment, this series critiques the teaching associated with the Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP), Advanced Training Institute International (ATI), and specifically their founder, Bill Gothard. His teaching includes a myriad of distortions and this post addresses examples under the fourth of six main areas (listed at the end of Part 1): A misuse of “the … Read More
Getting Our Apologetic Against Pornography Right
For twenty-five years, many of us have laughed through or in spite of Joey and Chandler’s regular consumption of porn on Friends. And today, former Baywatch babe and Playmate, Pamela Anderson, is a “strange” outlier because, now that she’s gotten rich and famous off of being objectified—yet, seeming to have learned the hard way, she speaks out about pornography as “corrosive” … Read More
Why I’m a Christian
My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe the … Read More
Why I Believe in a Loving Creator
Let the godly sing for joy to the LORD;it is fitting for the pure to praise him…The LORD merely spoke,and the heavens were created.He breathed the word,and all the stars were born.He assigned the sea its boundariesand locked the oceans in vast reservoirs.Let the whole world fear the LORD,and let everyone stand in awe of him.For when he spoke, the world … Read More
Together for Change in 2019
As you prepare for the new year, look through the list below and choose three favorites. Consider asking someone close to you to do the same. Then share your top three with each other, answering the following questions and concluding your time in prayer: Why are these your favorites? What implications do they have for 2019? How will you do … Read More
The God Who is With Us and Beside Us
For many of us, the meaning of Jesus’ name Emmanuel, God with us, is one of our favorite parts of the Christmas story. That the incarnate Son of the God, the Maker of the Universe, would come to earth in flesh to dwell (John 1:14)—literally “tabernacle”—with us both blows our minds and melts our hearts. In reading Ian Provan’s Seriously … Read More
My Favorite Eugene Peterson Quotes
On Monday, October 24th, Eugene Peterson, pastor, professor, and author of The Message and numerous other books died at the age of eighty-five. He left a rich, reflective, earthy, and grace-filled legacy. Below are the insights from his writings that I’ve appreciated or have influenced me the most. At the beginning, I’ve also included one passage from The Message because … Read More
The Strange Familiarity of God’s Mysterious Ways
We can make our plans, but the LORD determines our steps. (Prov. 16:9, NLT) In late 2015, I was in a discouraged place. God was providing for every financial need our family had, yet he seemed bent on frustrating MY plans. I had been in the process of trying to transfer my credentials to the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC) and … Read More
For Those Who Struggle with Depression
…O LORD my Lord. Act on my behalf for your name’s sake; because your steadfast love is good, deliver me. For I am poor and needy, and my heart is pierced within me. I am gone like a shadow at evening… (Psa. 109:21-23a, NRSV) A nothingness permeates my soul. My smile is forced and hollow. I can say nothing, write … Read More
The Best Christian Books I’ve Ever Read
These lists in no way represent the “best” Christian reading there is. Nor are they meant to be comprehensive. There are tons of great books—even classics like Augustine’s Confessions—that I haven’t, should, and hope to read. What follows represents only those distinctively Christian books I have found to be the most helpful to date. It’s my hope that one or … Read More