Resources by Topic: Christian Life

My son-in-law Dan Franklin, married to my daughter Karina, shares some great video blogs on his church's site, and the following was one I thought was really excellent. Those who have ever wondered whether the Bible permits Christians to be involved in the military or the police will find some helpful principles to think through here.

We live in an age when politicians and nearly everyone else only admits to as much wrongdoing—if they admit it at all—as is necessary to minimize it and then move on with their lives. But what does true repentance look like?

“God opposes the proud,” 1 Peter says. That’s a word used for battle, and to oppose means to be at war with. Do you really want to be at war with God? No! That's a war we can never win.

Have you and your family talked about the certainty of your deaths, and how that should impact your lives now? Not talking about death won’t postpone it a moment. Talking about death won’t bring it a moment sooner. But it will give us opportunity to be better prepared when it comes.

Stephanie's thoughts about her experience with cancer will help young and old alike. Coming off Nanci’s and my “year of cancer” in 2018, I encourage everyone to read this article and pass it on to others!

Many of the challenges and issues that pastors face in discipling and teaching those in their churches have remained the same since I was pastoring over 25 years ago. But there are also many new challenges for pastors, including helping Christians navigate digital technologies and social media platforms.

Philip Yancey, a writer I often appreciate, wrote an article about his own struggle to carve out focused attention for reading, and how his own personal experience reflects our culture at large. The decline in reading books is something I feel strongly about, as those who aren’t dedicated readers most likely won’t be dedicated readers of God’s Word.

I don’t believe in painting a broad brush over certain authors when we don’t agree with them in every area. 

In this article, Scott Hubbard, editor at desiringGod.org, shares some thoughts about the statement “All I need is God.” He writes, “Throughout Scripture, God’s people often need more than God alone—they need God through the things he has made.” Thanks, Scott, for this helpful clarification.

Randy Alcorn was interviewed by Greg Laurie about his new book Face to Face with Jesus: Seeing Him As He Really Is. In this audio clip, Randy talks about being more like Jesus. 

Randy Alcorn was interviewed by Greg Laurie about his new book Face to Face with Jesus: Seeing Him As He Really Is. In this audio clip, Randy talks about God's Word. 

Nanci and I love The Valley of Vision, which is a collection of brief and profound Puritan prayers compiled by Arthur Bennett. We find them powerful and penetrating.

Here's my suggestion for this year: tell yourself you will read a minimum of ten minutes before watching something or looking at a device. I guarantee you that if you do this every day, some days you will never turn on the TV.

Like many others, I deeply loved British pastor-scholar John Stott (1921-2011) and appreciate his books and contribution to the church of Christ. He had a great impact on me as a young Christian.