Stop what you’re doing. Take 10 minutes to breathe in a verse of God’s Word, Ephesians 2:10. Consider it a personal flash mob devotional moment. There is some Wow to be had in this verse. First the whole verse, then we’ll step into it phrase-by-phrase. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus … [Read more...]
The Lost Art of Bible Memorization
I have been an observer, studier, ruminator and meditator of Scripture. I have seldom been a memorizer. It’s not out of any philosophical approach to learning Scripture that I’ve not made Bible memorization a staple of Bible disciplines. It’s more out of reasons that I think are common to most, namely, impatience. And these … [Read more...]
A.D. The Bible Continues…A Bible Background Brush Up
If you haven’t checked in yet with A.D. The Bible Continues, you might want to. As a point of confession, I am not hugely enthusiastic over Bible story depiction. I’m not sure why, partly because the depictions over the past decades tend to run through the filter of western Christianity and come off, well, cheesy. … [Read more...]
Summer Missions: The Power of Hear and Do
It’s a rhythm through all of Scripture. It’s what keeps our foundation solid. It’s what produces a crop exponentially greater than what was sewn. It’s what keeps us from fooling ourselves. It’s the steady sway of Hear and Do. Understand and practice. Know and keep. It’s why summer missions experiences are … [Read more...]
5 Ways to Mark 50 Days
The Easter season gives us a unique opportunity to use the calendar as a tool to jump start our spiritual lives. We have the 40 days of Lent before Easter. We have the six-day countdown between Jesus’ Triumphal Entry on Sunday and His crucifixion on Good Friday. We even have a more hourly record during the crucifixion. And of … [Read more...]
Bible Time: Ministry Prep vs. Personal Prep
We know the maxim: Live it before you teach it. But is this always practical, or even necessary? Depending on the setting, answers, like car mileage, may vary. It’s noble to distinguish our professional Bible time—prep for talks, sermons--from our personal Bible time. We all know the value of wrestling with an issue or a … [Read more...]