SLED: A Simple Way to Talk with Those Who Are Prochoice About the Personhood of the Unborn

Last updated on: May 27, 2016 at 5:57 am By Randy Alcorn

In my book Why ProLife? I say that every argument for abortion which appeals to a woman’s inconvenience, stress, and financial hardship can be made just as persuasively about her two-month-old, her two-year-old, her teenager, her husband, or her parents. In many cases older children are more expensive and place greater demands on their mother than an unborn child. People immediately recognize those arguments as invalid when it comes to killing older children. So why not the unborn? After all,... Read more

A Message for High Schoolers and Everyone Else Too: Find Your Happiness in Christ

Last updated on: May 23, 2016 at 10:20 am By Randy Alcorn

Last year I had the privilege of talking to a group of high schoolers about happiness. I love young people and enjoy spending time with them, so it was a pleasure to bring them a message I feel is of utmost importance for people of all ages. When I was 15 years old, I came to faith in Christ. I discovered that a lot of my unhappiness had been due to my sin and separation from God, and that when... Read more

Kids—and Adults—Need to Get Outside

Last updated on: July 5, 2016 at 8:41 am By Randy Alcorn

Several years ago, a friend and I were driving through a neighborhood on a beautiful summer day and he said, “We haven’t seen a single kid outdoors. They’re all inside, watching movies, playing video games and looking at computer screens.” Nanci and I have talked about how when we were growing up, free time when it was daylight meant being outside, and free time at night meant reading a book. I have great memories of playing army in the wheat... Read more

If “No Eye Has Seen,” How Can We Know About Heaven?

Last updated on: May 6, 2016 at 10:28 am By Randy Alcorn

Years ago when I was working on my book Heaven, a pastor visiting my office asked what I was writing. When I told him, he replied, “Well, since Scripture says ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him,’ what will you be talking about? Obviously, we can’t know what God has prepared for us in Heaven.” (He was referring to 1 Corinthians 2:9.) I said to him what I always... Read more

We Need to Laugh at Ourselves (Try Checking out the Babylon Bee)

Last updated on: April 29, 2016 at 10:26 am By Randy Alcorn

Over the years, I’ve observed some Christians who are perpetually somber, never laughing or poking fun at themselves, rarely celebrating, and quick to frown when they see someone having fun. They believe that happiness is ungodliness, and that having fun is a sin. It’s not! Though his portrait shows a somber expression, German Reformer Martin Luther (1483–1546) said, “It is pleasing to the dear God whenever thou rejoicest or laughest from the bottom of thy heart.”[i] As believers, we need... Read more

God of the Beautiful

Last updated on: April 28, 2016 at 5:51 am By Randy Alcorn

In an 1847 letter to his father, Scottish author George Macdonald (1824–1905) wrote of the barriers he faced in turning to Christ: One of my greatest difficulties in consenting to think of religion was that I thought I should have to give up my beautiful thoughts & my love for the things God has made. But I find that the happiness springing from all things not in themselves sinful is much increased by religion. God is the God of the... Read more

The Happiness Found in God’s Word: Part 3 of a 3-Session Conference

Last updated on: April 22, 2016 at 9:46 am By Randy Alcorn

Augustine said, “By hearing Thee I am happy; because of Thy voice I am happy.”[i] There’s no place we can go to hear God speak authoritatively, to hear His voice with complete confidence, other than the Bible itself. When we’re right with God, we’re delighted with His words, because they’re an extension of Himself—His majesty, His beauty, and His happiness. “The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul. . . . The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing... Read more

The Happiness of God: Part 2 of a 3-Session Conference

Last updated on: April 21, 2016 at 12:13 pm By Randy Alcorn

Since we’ll inevitably seek what we believe will bring us happiness, what subject is more important than the source of happiness? Just as we’ll live a wealth-centered life if we believe wealth brings happiness, so we’ll live a God-centered life if we believe God will bring us happiness. No one shops for milk at an auto parts store or seeks happiness from a cranky God. As much as I believe in the holiness of God, I also believe highlighting God’s... Read more

Hardwired for Happiness: Part 1 of a 3-Session Conference

Last updated on: April 21, 2016 at 12:08 pm By Randy Alcorn

Based on the books I’ve read, the sermons I’ve heard, and the conversations I’ve had, I’m convinced that many Christians believe our desire for happiness was birthed in humanity’s fall. But what if our desire for happiness comes from God? What if He wired His image bearers for happiness before sin entered the world? How might this perspective change our approach to life, parenting, church, ministry, business, sports, and entertainment? Augustine asked rhetorically, “Is not a happy life the thing... Read more

Having a Pilgrim Mentality about Money and Possessions

Last updated on: April 12, 2016 at 7:45 pm By Randy Alcorn

The more holdings we have on earth, the more likely we are to forget that we’re citizens of another world, not this one, and that our inheritance lies there, not here. The Levites had no earthly inheritance, because God himself was their inheritance (Deuteronomy 18:1-2). Christians have been told that we are “a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God” (1 Peter 2:9). The priests had no earthly inheritance, and neither do we of... Read more