The month of July looks to be quite the busy month for me. God has blessed me with some tremendous opportunities to serve his church and I am excited to busy myself with the ministry. I would say that this means I won’t be posting that much on my blog, but I already don’t post that much on my blog,…
Christian Joe Posts
Evangelical Christians understand that the Gospel is of first importance in how we frame our views of the world, both the world to come as well as the world we live in now. Yet we seem to have the tendency at times to emphasize how the gospel affects living in one world at the expense of living in the other.…
The Biblical text of Ephesians four is probably one of the most important Scriptures describing a pastor’s “job.” Clearly in the New Testament, more emphasis is placed on the character and qualities of godly leadership of elders or pastors than their exact responsibilities. Perhaps this is why Christians who study the Bible will mostly agree on the character qualities desired in a…
I have been a pastor for nearly 12 years. I often wonder how it could be that after that long of a time, I routinely am confused as to what exactly it is that I am supposed to be doing. Pastoring is an interesting vocation. A pastor is supposed to be a servant of the church, but the church is not his…
This interactive graphic is fascinating to me – How Americans Die. Click on this link and then scroll through the interactive graphic. Here area couple of observations. Everyone dies and although age is the most common factor, by no means is it the only factor. Consider then the brevity of life. The mortality rate has dropped, but leveled off in the…
I recently wrote an article bemoaning the persistent and pervasive forcing of our nation to live in a fantasy world. One where marriage does not mean marriage, but basically means “an expression of love.” And this is the heart of the gay marriage debate. The argument has been framed in such a way that it makes opponents opposed to love…
My soul thirsts for you O my God, My heart aches to hear your voice Whisper peace into my troubled mind, “Rejoice, my child, you are mine, Rejoice” “Where are the mighty warriors in the land Crying for justice against this evil day? Their silence roars, and my heart longs Will you still uphold me, you’re my one stay?” “There…
On December 20, 2013 a U.S. District Judge ordered Utah’s defense of marriage legislation unconstitutional, in effect overturning a legally approved ban on same sex marriage that was passed by Utah voters in 2004. Many states across this nation seem to be dropping like flies through both judicial and legislative processes as of late regarding the issue of same sex…
“Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, redeeming the time. Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one.” (Colossians 4:5-6) As noted previously, the direct application is to our gospel witness with our lives that we engage in on a daily basis, yet I contend that…
The next several articles will focus on these two verses written by the Apostle Paul to the Colossians applied to the various venues of communication that take place in our current culture. This first installment will provide the overview of the contextual meaning of the verses. “Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, redeeming the time. Let your speech…