My name was empty, depressed, and lost. Now it is found and chosen. ...Keep Reading

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Looking back on my years of rejecting Christ, I offer these suggestions to help you reach out to your wayward child so that they, too, would wake up to Christ's amazing power to save even the worst of us. ...Keep Reading

One of the most loving things a brother or sister in Christ can do for you is to tell you when you are wrong or when you are sinning. Whether a gentle correction, a loving rebuke, or formal church discipline, Paul broke it down for us very well in 2 Timothy 3:16-42. All of these forms though when done in the right way are a gift to our souls and a blessing of love. All corrections and rebukes should be carefully thought out and delivered in a loving way with the intent of addressing sins and correcting behavior destructive to our souls. ...Keep Reading

I finished my survey of the use of the gospel in the New Testament. Starting tomorrow, I'm interested to see how the use of the law in the New Testament relates to evangelism. I've written 92 since my writing leave began....Keep Reading

Page count as of today stands at 309. I spent a good bit of my time looking how Paul uses the gospel in Romans, Ephesians, and Philippians. It is telling and encouraging how the apostle to the Gentiles, the one set apart for the gospel of God, ends his letter to the Ephesians by asking them not once, but twice, to pray for his boldness. Pray "also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak" (Ephesians 6:19...Keep Reading

The Christmas story has a dark twist. When the wise men refuse to let King Herod know where the newborn Messiah was born, Herod lashes in anger. "Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men" (Matthew 2:16 ESV). Herod viewed the birth of God's holy Son as a threat to his kingdom, status, and way of life. So, he sought to kill the child by killing all the children in Bethlehem. Jesus came to save a world that viewed children as expendable. ...Keep Reading

Dissertation Writing Leave Day 4: Today was my day off from writing. I finished memorizing Ephesians 1. One of the many things that has stood out to me as I've memorized this chapter is how Christ-centered God is. As you look over Ephesians , see how many times you can spot "in Christ," "in him," "in the Beloved," and "in the Lord Jesus." Behold the glory that is in Christ:...Keep Reading

Dissertation Writing Leave Day 3: Began my look at Paul's use of the gospel in his letters. Of the 76 times gospel appears in the New Testament, 60 of the uses are Paul. In which of his letters do you think he referenced the gospel the most? It's a tie between Romans and Philippians....Keep Reading

Second day of my writing leave: My dissertation is sitting at 255 pages. Today I spent time looking at how Mark uses the word gospel. It was interesting to note how only Matthew and Mark use the word gospel (but never define it). The word gospel is absent from the gospels of Luke and John. I was also very encouraged to read a sermon by Clement of Alexandria, who died in AD 215. Listen to how he pleads: ...Keep Reading