Virtues and vices sometimes feel very similar. Think about it. What’s the difference between being patient and passive, spontaneous and impulsive, or optimistic and naïve? There is a good bit of nuance in differentiating the alternate dispositions. Most people who are expressing the unhealthy disposition would tell you they’re expressing the positive one. We can ask the same question about the...
I don’t believe there’s a single verse in all twenty-two chapters of the book of Revelation that wasn’t intended to deeply encourage both the original recipients and every generation of God’s people. It’s a timeless book because its main character, Jesus Christ, is the same “yesterday, today, and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). It’s a timely book, because was it was written for believers who are alive...
You’ve probably heard the saying, “Love makes the world go ‘round.” But if that’s true, why is it so hard to find love? You may long to be loved, but you probably also struggle with wondering whether or not you are worth loving. You desire deep friendships but also struggle to love others who are different from you. Why is it so hard to love? Why is it so hard to be loved? Is the love we’re...
Here’s a heart-searching exercise: Imagine that you have passed away, and the pastor presiding at your funeral asks your adult grandchildren to give a testimony of the impact you had on their lives. What will your grandchildren say at the end of your life? What do you hope they will say? As grandparents, we want to make a difference in the lives of our grandchildren—a lasting difference—an impact...
No Christian parent wants a child to leave the faith or to drop church like a hot potato once they leave home, but it’s increasingly common for kids to do so. A five-year study completed by the Barna group in 2018 found that nearly 3 in 5 children raised in the church would leave after age fifteen, either for a long time or for good. When interviewed, the teens and young adults in the study cited...
