There have been many articles and books written regarding spiritual fathering and parenting. This article is different in that I am writing from the perspective of leaders who need fathers.  Read More

As a leader who spends much of his time on various aspects of community transformation I believe it is now time we go to the next level and get specific regarding proposing and implementing public policy and strategies that will cause communities and cities to flourish. There should also be measurable markers related to what “flourishing” means, which could be the subject of another article.

In the past decade the apostolically minded church across the globe has embraced a functional “Cultural Mandate” (Genesis 1:28) which calls the church to disciple nations (Matthew 28:19) and influence the created order. Many have broken through the old paradigms and have gone from merely being church-centric to being kingdom-centric. Thus, we understand the kingdom concept of being the salt and light of the world (Matthew 5:13-16) and not just being satisfied with what happens on Sunday within the four walls of a church building.  Read More

In the past several months there has been a lot written regarding grace. My goal in this article is to make clear the difference between grace, which is God’s undeserved gracious actions and gifts towards us related to our salvation in Christ, and the consequences of sin that come from numerous sources and places.

It has been said that once we as believers in Christ Jesus confess our sins that God remembers them no more (read Hebrews 8:12 and Psalm 103:12). Some have taken this to mean that we can just go on with our lives as if the sin never happened. But, the reality is, based on the severity of the sin committed (yes, some sins are worse than others according to Scripture; read John 19:11, Luke 12:47-48, 1 John 5:16-17), there are various ramifications that arise related to God’s discipline, opening a door to Satan, destroying relationships, and our own heart condition.  Read More

Every week it seems there is another scandal breaking out with a high-profile person, whether in politics, sports, media or the church. A person could have done much good their whole life but with one act of passion destroy everything they have built.

Proverbs 22:1 teaches us that a good name is worth more than riches. One of the things I have found out through the years is that a person’s name and reputation are their greatest capital in regards to opening up doors and having influence in the world; this is a quality people look for even more than gifts, talents, or leading a successful enterprise or ministry. This is because people know success built upon gifts and talents and not on the foundation of character and integrity will not last in the long run. All of us are tempted to fall and have capacity to fail because of our sin nature.  Read More

In the nineteenth century higher critical views of Scripture (as opposed to lower critical views that concern biblical exegesis involving the study of historical context and culture, the author’s intent, and so on) came on the scene when German scholars questioned the authenticity of Scripture with a reductionistic approach, in which the Bible was treated like any other document, instead of starting with the assumption of divine inspiration. The following are some of the common challenges to the widely held Evangelical belief of the divine inspiration of Scripture.   Read More

"Oh, no single piece of our mental world is to be hermetically sealed off from the rest, and there is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry: 'Mine!'   Read More

Charles Finney brought this strong charge back in 1873: “The error that lies at the foundation of this decay of individual and public conscience originates, no doubt, in the pulpit. ... Brethren, our preaching will bear its legitimate fruits. If immorality prevails in the land, the fault is ours in a great degree.

“If there is a decay of conscience, the pulpit is responsible for it. If the public press lacks moral discrimination, the pulpit is responsible for it. If the church is degenerate and worldly, the pulpit is responsible for it. If the world loses its interest in religion, the pulpit is responsible for it.

“If Satan rules in our halls of legislation, the pulpit is responsible for it. If our politics become so corrupt that the very foundations of our government are ready to fall away, the pulpit is responsible for it.

“Let us not ignore this fact, my dear brethren; but let us lay it to heart, and be thoroughly awake to our responsibility in respect to the morals of this nation."  Read More

"Albert Mohler, who heads the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, said on Twitter that votes for same-sex marriage suggested that 'we are witnessing a fundamental moral realignment of the country.'  (Quote from http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2012/11/07/election-results-raise-questions-about-christian-rights-influence/ )  Read More