Recently I shared this on Facebook: In all my hardest times, God has been there. He’s been faithful to me when I had to resign as a pastor, had issues with church leaders, went through lawsuits and public scorn, was restricted to minimum wage, and faced disease and depression and the deaths of close friends and family members, including the death of my beloved wife and best friend, Nanci. I don’t understand why everything has happened, but I have seen a... Read more
One of the things I love most about our ministry is that our staff take the time to minister and talk to people who contact us. One of our EPM staff, Amy Schafer, shared about a wonderful conversation she had with a customer who called to order Heaven booklets: She has one booklet already that she was able to read daily to her mother who had Alzheimer’s, and it was such a comfort and always brought peace to her mom (and her).... Read more
In addressing the issue of abortion in the case of rape in my prolife books, I pose a series of questions to readers: What if you found that your spouse or adopted child was fathered by a rapist? Would it change your view of their worth? Would you love them any less? If not, why should we view the innocent unborn child any differently? Rape is so horrible that we easily transfer our horror to the wrong object. We must not... Read more
Charles Spurgeon said, “By perseverance, the snail reached the ark.” This beautiful art illustrating Spurgeon’s words was created by Eden Kell, 15-year-old daughter of author and pastor Garrett Kell: I’ve been following Garrett’s updates on Eden on her CaringBridge page. Precious Eden suffered a serious and unexplained seizure in December and has been in the PICU. It has been, and continues to be, a long haul for the Kell family. Please join me in praying for them and for Eden’s recovery.... Read more
Over the years I’ve frequently been told that life issues are not what the church of Jesus Christ is to be about. A seminary student at my church once told me something I’ve often heard in one form or another: “Issues like abortion are just a distraction from the main thing.” “What’s the main thing?” I asked. “The Great Commission,” he said. “Winning people to Christ. That’s what we’re supposed to do. Everything else is a distraction.” What that... Read more
If I had any doubts about whether people are genuinely interested in learning about and applying God’s perspective on finances, they ended late in 2001 when my little book The Treasure Principle: Discovering the Secret of Joyful Giving was published. It immediately went through eight printings and sold more than 200,000 copies within ten months. Amazed observers asked, “Are people really that interested in giving?” The answer is yes. The Treasure Principle addresses only one aspect of stewardship, but we desperately need... Read more
A friend asked me, This was in my Bible study: “‘Christianity’ is more easily perceived by what you do than what you believe.” It really made me think. What are your thoughts on this statement? I’ve been studying Paul’s life, and was reading in Acts 23-24. It was diving deeper into “The Way” that is used in chapter 24 to describe Christianity. That’s a great question. I said decades ago in one of my first books (back in the 80s!)... Read more
Millennials may inherit over $68 trillion from previous generations by 2030. According to Newsweek, some experts believe this “could be the largest transfer of wealth in the history of humankind.” What will younger generations do with that wealth? Studies show the younger someone is, the less he or she tends to give financially. Not just less in amount, but less in proportion. According to Barna Group, “Only 13 percent of Millennials and even fewer Gen Z (6%) give money on a frequent... Read more
Multiple times in Revelation 21, God says He will come down from the present Heaven to live with His people on the New Earth. The city “comes down out of heaven,” God’s dwelling place is “with man,” God will “dwell with them,” and God Himself “will be with them.” Despite the repetition, most Christians still don’t appear to believe that God’s plan is to bring Heaven to Earth and dwell here with us forever. Not just for a thousand years in a millennial... Read more
The angel’s message to the shepherds at Jesus’ birth condenses the gospel to its core. He said, “I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people” (Luke 2:10). The gospel isn’t for some; it’s for all. The Greek adjective translated “great” here is megas—this isn’t just news, but good news of “mega-joy.” It’s the best news there has ever been or ever will be. What characterizes this good news is a deep, everlasting joy for... Read more
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