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No More Bible Bandaids #3
In this last article I want to suggest a possible conversation with Joel that takes seriously (1) an approach to Scripture as an unfolding redemptive story that centers on Jesus Christ and (2) an approach to Joel that takes into account his experience as a saint, sufferer, and sinner. I want to revisit a text I mentioned in the first article—1 Cor. 6:18—but use it in a multifaceted way. What might a snippet of conversation look like? Read more »
No More Bible Bandaids #2
In the last article I introduced the ministry situation of a youth group member—let’s call him Joel—who has begun to date and have sex with an unbeliever. And I advocated for an approach to the Bible that is sensitive to its nature as an unfolding story of God’s redemption centering on Jesus Christ. But how we read Scripture is only one side of the ministry equation. To apply the Bible to our contemporary lives we need to “read” (understand) people wisely as well. Here we follow the Bible’s lead because in it God speaks His redemptive word to his people as saints, sufferers, and sinners. Read more »
No More Bible Bandaids #1
You’ve just learned that a male member of your youth group has starting dating a non-Christian girl and they’ve had sex on at least one occasion. He had made a profession of faith as a young child and lived, until recently, as a faith-filled disciple of Christ. How will you minister to this student? What notes do you want to strike as you bring the truth of the gospel to bear on his life? How you move toward him depends on at least two things—your general approach to Scripture and your general approach to people. These two overarching aspects will shape the way you specifically minister to this teen. It’s important to be self-reflective about the ways we think about the Bible and about people if we are to be wise, compassionate, and gospel-centered in personal ministry. Let’s look at possible approaches to Scripture in this first article. Read more »
Reasons to Laugh, Each Day (and how it certainly beats anger)
I actually don’t know if laughter is therapeutic, and I can’t be sure if it is the secret to a happy marriage, but I know this – laughter is a sign of good character. I want to do it better. Read more »
“GPS Sanctification”
A few weeks ago my wife Jody and I took a trip to Fenwick Island, DE. We borrowed my brother-in-law’s GPS for the ride. Believe it or not, this was the first time that I used a GPS for car trip navigation. (And no, I don’t have a smart phone, a Kindle, or an iPad either, sad to say.) It was a little weird at first to have our location pinpointed at all times and see it graphically displayed on the screen, but I must confess, I loved it. Read more »
How Do You Respond to People Who Feel Shame?
Over the last several years I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about how to minister to people struggling with shame. As I’ve witnessed its power to crush the spirit, inflict suffering, and cultivate despair I’ve been driven to scripture seeking the Lord’s help to know how to love the victims of shame wisely. Read more »
The Emotional Life of the Mother of the Groom
We don’t often get to see the inner-workings of peoples’ hearts. Here is an encouraging exception. Read here about how one woman worked through her feelings to find God’s rest as she made plans for her son’s wedding. Read more »
How Love Comes from Hope
This is about lessons learned through a messy house and an absent wife. More on that in a just a minute. Read more »
Is God good?…and the Rental of a Power Washer
Christopher Hitchens’ provocatively titled book God is Not Great ruffled a lot of feathers in the Christian world. Yet I wonder if his title may not be so different from the title we often give our own story: God is Not Good or Not Good Enough. I find a key point of struggle in my own life and the lives of the people I talk to is that, in the mundane stresses of every day life, we find it hard to live as if God is truly good. Read more »
Priorities: Discerning the “Whatevers” From the Worthy in Biblical Counseling
“Whatever”...It is an attitude that says, “That isn’t important to me.”
Teens can say it, and they might be saying something foolish. Old people can say it, and they might be saying something wise. Full disclosure. I am an old person - AARP eligible, though still awaiting discounts on public transportation.
Old people, of course, can say “whatever” for wrong reasons, but the vantage point of older age can reveal to us what is worth getting upset about and what isn’t. “Whatever” is actually a very important part of wisdom: an ongoing task in life is to discern what is more important and what is less important. It is a tougher task than we think, and just when we decide what is and isn’t important we go through cultural shifts and might have to rearrange our priorities. Read more »