Through a set of divinely arranged circumstances, years ago I drove home a university professor I’d just met from a theatre parking lot. When we met again several months later, two hours before he came to Christ, he said, “I can’t get past the idea that someone could live a selfish, no-good life, then repent on his death bed and go to Heaven. It just sounds too easy, too cheap.” I challenged his underlying assumption, that we can earn Heaven. We discussed... Read more
I’ve heard people say, “We don’t need more head knowledge in the church today; we need heart knowledge.” But the problem is not that we know too much! By learning with humility and wisdom, the truth in our heads will also be in our hearts. As Lois Tverberg writes in Walking in the Dust of Rabbi Jesus, “The longest 12 inches that your faith has to move is from your head to your heart. And once your faith makes that move, it naturally... Read more
Someone sent me this question: I was asked a question about saving money. Can you help me answer it? “And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And... Read more
Lots of people believe everyone will go to Heaven or that Hell doesn’t exist. Where do people get these ideas? Our theology tends to come from sources we trust. Some people, instead of trusting Scripture, believe a hodgepodge of pop psychology and pop religion, with a little New Age philosophy thrown in. And some people think they trust Scripture, but don’t bother to read and know it well enough to recognize truth (or heresy) when they see or hear it.... Read more
Over the years, the most popular character in my novel Deadline has been a Down syndrome boy named Little Finn. He also appears in my novel Dominion. In Deadline, I also portray another Down syndrome child teaching people in Heaven, with a startling depth of insight. Here’s that scene from the novel, when the character Finney encounters this remarkable young teacher: The angel Zyor led Finney into a great hall that opened into an expansive meadow. It was disorienting, because the hall, gigantic as... Read more
Two years ago, the arrival of our Double Doodle puppy, Gracie, brought new energy and joy into our home, during a very difficult season of our lives. Together, Nanci and I thanked God for His goodness and how He reveals Himself in His creation. Every time Gracie made us laugh, which was many times a day, together we saw the delightfulness of her Creator and ours. Here’s Gracie coming home for the first time. You will notice Nanci’s personalized welcome!... Read more
Grieving a loved one’s death is a long, often lonely, always painful process. Four key players stand out in my continued healing journey through grief. First is my firm belief in the promises of Jesus about our eternal future. They are blood-bought, meaning our resurrection is guaranteed. Nanci and I spent so much time talking about the world to come, and she would walk me through her afterlife bucket list. We would talk of adventures together on God’s New Earth... Read more
Early in February, I visited First Baptist Church in Leesburg, Florida, where I spoke on the subject of my book The Treasure Principle. As I mentioned when I shared the Q&A I also did there, I absolutely loved being there at this church. I spent a lot of time with Pastor Cliff and his wife Suzy—such wonderful people, as are so many others I met. Years ago, I often spoke about giving and making eternal investments, but it’s been a while since I... Read more
In your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. (Psalm 16:11, ESV). In writing my book Heaven, I collected and read 150 books on the subject, and I’ve read many more since—nearly every book about Heaven I have ever been able to locate. I underlined particularly significant portions of many of these, but only a small amount of the most interesting material made it into that or my other books on the subject, including In Light... Read more
Less than six months after holding the hand of my beloved wife, Nanci, as she left this world, I read Robert Wolgemuth’s Finish Line manuscript, which included his account of his last moments with his wife Bobbie. Robert writes with an eternal perspective and a fatherly tenderness and understanding, reaching out his hand to you, the reader. I believe you will be touched and encouraged by this warm and insightful book. Here’s more about it: Facing your ultimate death can be scary,... Read more
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