Since the beginning of time humans have speculated about the end of time. I won’t be debating whether or not the rapture will take place or when it might happen or what the Tribulation might entail. What I’m about to describe is why I’m not really looking for it while so many others are screaming from the top of their lungs that such an occurrence is undoubtedly at hand.

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When do I go and when do I stay? When do I step out and when do I stand still? When do I sit and when do I heel? Sometimes I wish God treated me like His nice little house dog. Every time He spoke, I would act. “Roll over. Get off the couch. Sit. Jump. Don’t make on the carpet!” If God would simply treat me like His pet poodle and order my every move, life would be easy and stress free. But unfortunately, God doesn’t always speak. Sometimes He’s all too silent.

When I think God should be shouting orders at me, I often hear nothing. And other times when I’m not even listening for His voice, He speaks and stops me dead in my tracks. But I can never quite tell exactly when He’s going to speak and when He’s going to remain silent. Continue Reading →

Does God laugh? Is there any chance that God has a sense of humor? I am 100% certain the answer is YES. So the next question is, “What makes God laugh?” I think I have a few guesses…

For the past year I’ve been promoting a curriculum called The Quest For Holiness. In the month of September our churches around the world, in many languages, will be studying this material. Yesterday I noticed the front page of the curriculum sitting on my desk. It’s an introductory letter from yours truly explaining the material. I signed my name at the bottom of the page and placed my title under my name:

But when I glanced again, I was horrified to the core. Continue Reading →

I’m a firm believer in community. I harp on it quite often within the church. But my wife scoffs at me because I have a hard time practicing what I preach. She’s an extrovert, so connecting within groups energizes her. I’m an introvert, so community can at times be challenging. Pouring into others and connecting with unfamiliar faces takes an immense amount of energy so I have to work hard at it.

In fact, often times we expend way more energy than needed in Christian community because we put on a show. Everyone has to dress just right, speak just right, smell just right, and give just the right amount in the offering. Church can easily (and often does) become a place where no one truly sees anyone for who they really are. One common practice has always highlighted this for me: Continue Reading →

I’ve spent the last month working on my book. The few mental writing energies I possess have been thrust wholeheartedly into the first full edit required by my publisher. The release date for “Stuff I Hate About God” (October 1^st!) will soon be here! Some of my mental energies have also been focused on my failing septic tank, but that story is for another blog. I have a friend who is a germaphobe to the fullest extent. But in what seems to be divine retribution and irony, he has countless horrifying public bathroom stories. One is so horrifying he refuses to speak of it no matter how hard we prod. I’m starting to think some of my septic stories should fall into the same unspeakable category.

Anyway (great segue, eh?) in the midst of writing and rewriting my book, I realized a couple things about my writing style. Here’s  5 things I’ve learned while rewriting my book. Hopefully they’ll help you, as well.
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This is my first book review. And I’m THRILLED to be doing it on the new book from Tyndale called “Prototype: What Happens When You Discover You’re More Like Jesus Than You Think?” by Jonathan Martin.

The book covers exactly what the title implies: Jesus was/is our prototype for a whole new way of being human. There’s one quote that sums up the heart of the message: “When God called Jesus ‘my beloved,’ Jesus did something truly remarkable—He believed Him.” Continue Reading →

I recently attended the Evangelical Press Association’s yearly conference. I hadn’t been in a few years. It reminded me that my very first EPA conference inspired me to begin writing. Until that point, I’d only written for my job; never for pleasure. But a class taught by Mark Galli (editor of Christianity Today) inspired me to begin writing for fun. Lo and behold, about 6 years later, my just-for-fun writing led me to a book deal. So, thanks Mark! And thanks EPA! This is the first piece I wrote after that EPA conference. In fact, I wrote it on the plane ride home. It’s funny to see how my writing has evolved since this first article. Enjoy. Continue Reading →