What is the weight of your soul? Though it cannot be measured by scientific means, it does have a weight of its own. The only way to measure it is to attempt to balance it on a scale against all the world deems significant. J.C. Philpot once explored this idea to our benefit. Below is … Continue reading The Weight of Your Soul
Why bother to pray? I have recently posted two articles about the power of prayer here on the blog, but I also had the opportunity to preach a sermon on the same topic this past Lord’s Day at Bethel Grace Baptist Church. Drawing from the teachings of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount, we … Continue reading The Power of Prayer [Sermon]
We often approach the Word of God as if we are above it—as if we are the judge to determine what is significant and what is not. We do this unconsciously when we give Scripture a surface-level reading and think we have given it the consideration it deserves. We regularly sit as judges over the … Continue reading An Encounter with the Word
Sometimes, to protect a passage of scripture from the abuses it receives from those who twist it, we add so many qualifications that we eliminate not only the false teaching but also the profound truth it communicates. We find one such passage in the Sermon on the Mount where Jesus says, “Ask, and it will … Continue reading The Power of Prayer
When trials hit our lives, how much noise do we make? Perhaps that noise is an indication of how fulfilled we are in God. In times of need, if we have God, we have what we need to be content. God dwells in us, and when trials and hardships hit our lives, we do not … Continue reading The Sound of Faith in Hardship
There is something about me that always wants to be in control. If I am sick, I want to outlearn the disease and overcome it. If relationships start to fail, I want to be able to charm them back to life. We all desire control. I think this is why we buy into so many … Continue reading Finding Peace Beyond the Illusion of Control
The following is an excerpt from a letter from John Berridge to a fellow minister who had recently injured himself in a bad fall. Dear Sir, I received your letter, and dare not say that I am sorry for your fall, nor indeed for any afflictions that God lays on His children; they are tokens … Continue reading Fierce Furnace, Gentle Grace
The good times are to be expected, and the hard times are surprising and strange. Perhaps that unconscious assumption is causing us grief. In his book Jayber Crow, Wendell Berry describes the “old-timers” in a way that seems lost on many people today. He says: “As much as any of the old-timers, he regarded the Depression … Continue reading Finding Strength in Hard Times
One of the most perplexing questions of the faith is this, “Why doesn’t God just reveal Himself? Why does He require us to believe what we can’t see?” It certainly would seem much easier to be a Christian if we could look up and see Jesus looking down at us. The preparations required to debate … Continue reading Why Does God Require Faith Without Sight?
Standing at my window one day, while the cholera was raging in London, I saw two corpses carried by, followed by one little child, walking alone next to the coffins, with a few neighbors behind. That child was now an orphan. Both parents had been carried off by the pestilence. The sight of that child … Continue reading Spiritual Orphans: Forgetting our Heavenly Father
The Fight of Faith 