A New Thing
“Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. Isaiah 43:18-19 These words were originally applied to the...
Another View On Pastoral Burnout
The verdict is in and it now seems that being in pastoral ministry is harmful to your health. In an online article entitled, “Taking a Break from the Lord’s Work” Paul Vitello describes the dangers inherent in modern pastoral ministry: “The findings have surfaced...
A New Species
The night of my conversion, as I walked out of the building where the church service I had just attended was held and looked out at the familiar skyline of Miami, Florida, I uttered a statement from my newly born-again lips: “Everything looks new.” I had no...
The Cure for False Conversion: Repentance
Recently, it happened again. Eating a meal with a fellow pastor, I mentioned my belief that the most important theological issue facing the Church today is that of false conversion. The pastor’s reaction was classic. He just looked at me with a blank stare as if to...
Are You Kidding? Covenant Church Membership
Recently, and with little forethought, a word fell out my lips when speaking with a friend. What was this word that unguardedly fell from my lips? It was covenant and I was using it, not in the traditional sense of those covenants God has made with the human race...
Counseling or Counselor?
There’s far too much counseling going on in the church today. I don’t mean there is not a place for church pastors and elders to provide counsel when appropriate for those church members who need it. That is certainly an important part of pastoral ministry...
The Great Offense
“And he said, ‘This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.’ After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him” John 6:65-66 The sixth chapter of John contains an in-depth teaching of the Lord...
The Demise of Cultural Christianity
In the 1980’s, by a fluke invitation, I sat in the East Room of the White House along with 300 of the top Evangelical leaders at that time. President Ronald Reagan had invited us there to thank us for the unwavering support Evangelicals had given him for his...
The Shack: An Evangelical Opportunity
The recent release of the full length movie version of William Young’s best seller The Shack has the Christian community up in arms and with good reason. The movie, which follows closely the book, takes great theological liberties. Besides the fact that two of the...