At one time, I subscribed to five different Christian periodicals. Today, I only subscribe to one. It’s Searching Together. Searching Together began in 1972 with Norbert Ward as the founding editor. Jon Zens has been editor since 1978. Norbert made this statement in 1972, and we continue his sentiment: “[We] make no claim to be the voice of a movement or an organized denomination. We do not, on the other hand, claim to be a lone voice. We believe we... Read more

Today’s results come from all the readers of this blog. Here are the results along with my personal reactions. DEMOGRAPHICS * The majority readership of this blog is quite young. They are between the ages of 21 and 49. We also have people in their 50s and up and some who are younger than 21. * Most live in the USA. * Most are male, but many are female. * Most are married, but many are single. Some are separated.... Read more

“Be careful to do as the Lord your God has commanded you; you shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left.”  ~ Deuteronomy 5:32 Ever since I met the Lord some 30 years ago, I’ve been an evangelical. However, the term today has become so cluttered and muddied, and the “evangelical movement” has become so diluted and diverse, that it requires both definition and explanation. Back in 2012, I coined the term “beyond evangelical” which best... Read more

In the beginning, there was nothing at all. Nothing was short and nothing was tall. Nothing was big and nothing was small. In the beginning, there was nothing at all. God created us to enjoy and learn from stories, even from a young age. The Creator’s Toy Chest children’s book series brings beloved Bible stories to life for young children with vivid illustrations, youthful characters, and rhyming text perfect for reading aloud. With Seuss like quality, my friend Brett Blair has... Read more

The following post is a guest article by Ami Tori. Enjoy! — Reciprocity is one of the most important components of a strong, lasting relationship between two friends. Being a good friend means returning the favor when someone pays for your dinner, picks up your son from school, or invites you over for a party. In fact, reciprocity in friendship stems from the golden rule: treat others the way you want to be treated. If you want to be asked... Read more

Well, boys and girls, I ended my “Christ is ALL” podcast. I explain why and what has replaced the podcast on the 125th episode of the show, the final episode. (Moment of silence.) Interestingly, Jon Stewart ended his show a few days before I ended my podcast. I won’t write the “great minds” line here, but the word on the street is that Stewart heard a rumor that I was ending my show, and well, [fill in the blank]. Cough. If you’re... Read more

Jeffrey Harley is a friend of mine. He pastors an inner-city church in Philly and helps the poor, the marginalized, and some of the most difficult cases you and I will ever see in this life, serving as chaplain at a Christian rescue mission. Jeffrey is a member of The Deeper Christian Life Network and he attended MinistryMind 2017, where I got to spend quality time with him and a number of other ministers. (I call Jeffrey “Denzel” because he... Read more

New years are wonderful. They hand you a reset button so you can reengineer your life. I’ve lived through beautiful years, mediocre years, hellish years, and years that were beyond mention and worthy to be repressed. Granted, much of what happens to us is beyond our control. But we are in control of our reaction to what happens. A few years ago, I discovered a certain recipe for posturing myself for having a great year. In this blog post, I... Read more

I’ve been blogging here on The Deeper Journey (Patheos) since 2014 and on Beyond Evangelical since 2008. What follows are my most popular blog posts of all time. Check them out by clicking on each link. The Gospel of the Kingdom Series Bono on Jesus Alice Cooper on Jesus Elvis on Jesus John Lennon on Jesus 3 Shocking Quotes by Billy Graham The Most Ignored Sin Stop Looking for an Organic Church! The Swearing Christian: My 13 Cents Warning: The... Read more

Ben Witherington’s A Week in the Fall of Jerusalem is an informative historical peek into a tragedy that took place in A.D. 70. From the publisher: It’s A.D. 70. And amidst smoke, clamor, and terror, Jerusalem is falling to the Romans, its temple being destroyed. As Jews and Christians try to escape the city, we travel with some of them through an imagined week of flight and faith. A scribe makes his way into Galilee in search of records of... Read more