“Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me.” — Isaiah 49:15–16 Though I can’t prove it, I’m convinced God prevents far more evil than He allows. When His people are discouraged, God says that He can no more forget us and fail to... Read more
I enjoyed talking with Scott Linebrink on his podcast, Get in the Game, about sharing the Gospel and being generous with our money and spiritual gifts. Scott was a Major League baseball pitcher for twelve years and now serves as Partnerships Director for Water Mission, a great ministry and one I encourage people to support. Here’s a short clip from our conversation: You can listen to the full interview here. Read more
There are many possible motives for lending money. One is to meet another person’s need; another is to profit from the loan by charging interest. Nothing is inherently wrong with lending. It’s a mark of God’s blessing to be in the position to make a loan (Deuteronomy 28:12). The righteous is one who gives and lends (Psalm 37:21, 26). God approves of the generous person who lends freely (Psalm 112:5). In certain cases, lenders graciously forgave debt (Matthew 18:32-33). In Israel,... Read more
Several years ago I spoke at the Canvas Conference, which was a great two-day conference on human creativity and beauty with biblical, gospel-centered theology. In this video clip, I answer a question about whether we will have creativity and use it in eternity: Here are some related thoughts: God gave people creativity in their unfallen state, which remained but was twisted when we fell. He will surely not give us less creativity in Heaven but more, unmarred by sin, unlimited by... Read more
Alex Harris is a wonderful brother, and a true servant leader. When he attended Nanci’s memorial service on May 15, I wasn’t the only one who noticed he stayed until the very end doing the clean-up and didn’t stop until the job was completely done. The fact that Alex is a young man, and was wearing a suit, stuck out. I’ve shared about him and his twin brother Brett on my blog over the years. Together they wrote Do Hard Things when... Read more
Concerning money and possessions, the Bible is sometimes extreme, sometimes shocking. When we come to Scripture, it’s for comfort, not for assaults against our worldview, right? Let God talk about love and grace, thank you. Let us talk about money and possessions—then do with them whatever we please. Were we honest, that’s what many of us would say. Some believers ask each other tough questions: “Have you been spending time in the Word? Sharing your faith? Guarding your sexual purity?” Yet how often do we... Read more
Ectopic pregnancies, when gestation takes place outside the uterus, account for an estimated 2 percent of all pregnancies. Most commonly, implantation begins in a fallopian tube but occasionally on an ovary or against the abdominal wall. Usually the pregnancy miscarries without a woman knowing she was pregnant. Because of the nature of an ectopic pregnancy, the child would normally have no hope of survival. And surgery may be necessary to save his mother’s life. These are tragic situations, but they... Read more
Last week Nanci’s sister Donna initiated a conversation between my daughters Karina and Angela and me about the first weekend of NFL football. She rightly discerned how big last weekend would’ve been in Nanci’s life and how challenging it would be for our family. It was a tough weekend, tougher than I anticipated. The first game of the season was Thursday night. I was at our friends’ house where we always had Thursday night dinner and watched football together. People... Read more
In the last six months, perhaps partly because of Nanci’s cancer battle and homegoing, our ministry has heard more from people about the Heaven book than ever before, as well as about several of my other Heaven-related books. Hope you enjoy these letters from readers. They certainly encouraged me! You opened my eyes and heart to the true Heaven after I read your book Heaven. One evening I sat on my patio after reading a few chapters of your book and decided to... Read more
It’s common to hear advice to Christian parents encouraging them to want more for their children than “just happiness.” While I believe such advice is meant well, we need to address the concept of happiness carefully when it comes to our kids. Yes, children frequently want to stay up late, eat cookies before bed, play video games for hours, and avoid their homework, imagining those things will bring them happiness. But wise parents know better. They, too, want their children... Read more
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