Alone means “to the exclusion of all others or all else.” [1] If a billionaire revealed to you the secret location of a vault holding millions of dollars and gave you a key saying, “This key alone will unlock your fortune,” you would not want to lose that one irreplaceable key. Oops equals no fortune. At the same time, if the billionaire gave you one of 50 keys and forewarned you that the other 49 went to other people, you may want to snap to it to ensure you get at least some of the...
Multitudes of people in America and across the world lust for miracles. They badly want to see God’s power manifested in poignant and astonishing ways. So many excitedly flock to notables like Benny Hinn, Kenneth Copeland, Todd White, Todd Bentley, and Bill Johnson. Sometimes the lust for miracles is so strong people reject God’s sovereignty, providence, and gracious provision in hardship and rely on miracles for hope, comfort, and blessing. Several years ago, a little girl from Bethel...
What was your experience with your earthly father? Some people had wonderful experiences. Their dads were loving, encouraging, and supportive. Though no father is perfect, many have fond memories of their dads. But not everyone had a loving, encouraging, and supportive father. Some people didn’t know their fathers. Maybe their fathers abandoned them. Others had their fathers around but felt as if their fathers didn’t really love or support them. Sadly, some people had alcoholic, aloof...
I took German in 9th and 10th grade. I thought it would exempt me from taking a foreign language in college, but Grove City College, my alma mater, required three years of a foreign language. I had fallen short. I ended up taking two full years of French. I wish I’d taken Spanish. Anyway, at Grove City College we had dinners called “language tables.” Students and their language professors ate together and spoke foreign languages. I had to go and was quickly lost in simple French...
I recently listened to a short online interview of an author who wrote a book on Universalism. The author shared a story about meeting with a man from his church who was trying to convince their pastor of Christian Universalism. He was rightly concerned for this man, and it was a personal story. What is Christian Universalism, and is it in your church? I think the term Christian Universalism has been used since the early 19th century. It is the belief that every single person without...
We get scared and anxious about many things in this life. Maybe you don’t know how you’ll pay the bills. Maybe your son is rebellious, and you’re worried about the state of his soul. Maybe you can’t seem to please those few people. Maybe your loved one is really sick. Maybe Russia will invade Ukraine and start WWIII. The fear and anxiety list gets pretty long when you start thinking about all the threatening possibilities around you. Sometimes we get so scared and anxious about life...
It was a snowy night, and the roads were slick. A driver lost control and ran into our fence. Car versus fence. Our fence lost. The driver drove away apparently unconcerned about paying for our fence. The hit and run left us with the bill. A year or two later, would you believe that another section of our fence, a much bigger portion, was destroyed in an accident involving a head-on collision between a teenager driving an SUV and a tractor-trailer truck. I think only the teenager had minor...
I heard a pastor say one time in response to how he was hurt by others, “I would never do that.” What a statement to make. His statement stuck with me. He would never hurt people like that. Did he mean to suggest that he was above certain sins, fully sanctified in those areas, that he was the standard of righteousness? I doubt it. But he implied it. More than anything else, I think his emotion and pain led him to speak an irresponsible word. Our sin runs much deeper than we realize. We...
Are wearing masks for prolonged periods of time concealing the image of God in the face of human beings? Some Christians argue yes. Are they right? What does it mean for human beings to be created in the image of God? Do we see God’s divine image in our eyes, noses, mouth, complexion, and so forth? Is wearing sunglasses ungodly because we are veiling the glory of God in our eyes? I’m not asking whether masks are helpful or not, nor am I addressing the many concerns with being forced by the...
Besetting sins are such a struggle. Besetting sins are those sins that are particularly enticing for us, particularly persistent. They are often quite unsettling because we can’t seem to shake them. It seems we make little to no progress at all. Of course, we struggle against all kinds of sins every day, but some sins seem to be particularly troubling. Pride. Selfishness. Lust. Anger. The fear of man. Doubt. What are some of your besetting sins? Do you feel beaten down? Are you...
