Image Credit: Unsplash The current state of this world can cause us a bit of distress, to be sure. But it struck me today upon hearing yet another piece of distasteful news that that feeling that we have deep down when we see something unjust done to another person, is a normal response to wickedness. Now, what we do with that response of course is another matter, and both sides of this must be guarded and guided by Scripture. But we all long for a day when justice will reign

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." - Genesis 1:1 If you were to ask the question: "what is the most well-known Bible verse?", Genesis 1:1 would arguably be one of the responses you would receive. It's a very familiar verse. It is also an incredibly foundational verse. Regardless of what comes next, if we stumble over this verse, we'll stumble over what follows. "In the beginning", that is, at the start of time, the beginning of creation. There was only

The last few days I have been confronted with a couple different consistent themes. One of those themes has been the use of words. The dangers of the 'tongue' is something that the Bible speaks often about. As James puts it: "So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great things. See how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire!" "(James 3:5) I've noticed that as our culture decays, even advertisements are not free from the evils of speech

I recently shared my top three photographic influences. And so, today, I'd like to share my top theological influences. It can be especially dangerous nowadays with the technological advances we've made, to fall into bad teaching. There's a LOT of bad theology out there, and a lot of things that aren't all that helpful. That said, there's also a wealth of good, quality, sound doctrinal teaching as well. Couple caveats: first of all, we must always be careful to not elevate me

Well happy Monday all. For today's share we have a video from Fortis Institute discussing something that, quite frankly, I hadn't put too much thought into. Even still, after watching, I found it to be a very interesting topic, and one I hope you'll find helpful! Here is the video here .

Prayer is an interesting thing. It is a vital part of our communion with God. We pour out are hearts to Him, we praise Him for His goodness and blessing, we ask for His provision, we lift up others to Him for their needs. Sometimes we pray because our hearts are full and overflowing with gratitude towards God. Other times we cry in anger towards Him, not understanding His purposes. We run to God in prayer for help in times of distress. Yet oftentimes our prayers can be mundan

I have few words to say, as while I know today is normally a day I write a blog, I came across an article that I felt is more important to share. Though somewhat familiar with the story, I did not realize that today was the anniversary of the death of missionary Jim Elliot. While I could try to write something useful in relation, instead I'm going to share this article from The Gospel Coalition. He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to that which he cannot lose - Jim E

I confess, I can be lazy. I know that comes as a shock to those who know me (insert sarcasm), but if I may, we all can be at times. And perhaps that's why God has seen to it that we have a lot of exhortations in Scripture on that very topic. While I kid a bit with my introduction, I know laziness at times is something I've struggled with in the past. Of course it comes in forms: how we feel affects our productivity, and in my case its often less about laziness per say, and mo

I've been blessed greatly to be able to teach and help out with youth ministries over the years, it's something I really enjoy. These young people, especially nowadays, go through so much and are confronted by so much opposition to the Bible and the true gospel. These are reasons that Millennials, Gen Z, and Gen A, especially, are suffering with such amounts of depression and anxiety. The world will always bring us down, and if we aren't founding our lives on the true gospel,

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! I just watched this compelling video from Fortis Institute where Todd Friel answers a variety of questions from students at OSU. The first question definitely hits hard and is one that is important to be able to answer and discuss from a Biblical framework, but all of the questions and answers I found helpful and worth sharing with you all. I hope you'll find it as interesting and helpful.

We each have a family history. Scripture shows us that from His human standpoint so did Jesus, yet He was without beginning (John 1:1). I'm reminded of a quote I've seen making the rounds lately, though I can't for the life of me remember who said it or the exact words. But it basically says that God uses sinners, but the reality is there are only sinners for Him to use. The idea being that we are all sinners, and yet God still graciously has chosen to redeem sinners and use

The content share for today comes from Answers in Genesis . As with so many of the topics I share, it's one I truly desire to understand better. Genetics, DNA, and the like, are so fascinating, especially when you approach them with a Biblical eye. What variety God has put in His creation. Yet, as with so much, mankind likes to try to remove Him, and in doing so are left with having to come up with answers to the how and why of things. Of course, the reality is God made it a

"Jacob was the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, by whom Jesus was born, who is called the Messiah" - Matthew 1:16 Not much is known of Joseph. Well, I don't know much, maybe others know more. But Scripture does not mention him much. By my counts he is only mentioned some 15 or 16 times, and that's it. Of those less than 20 mentions, not once are any of his words recorded. And yet, for a man hardly mentioned in Scripture, whose words are not brought to our attention, we a

A number of years ago a friend of mine sent me this clip from Wretched Radio (now part of Fortis Institute). I was familiar with the style of gospel presentation itself from Ray Comfort, but I thought this was a great use of it. You can really tell both Todd's concern for the truth, as well as his genuine care for these two young men and their salvation. It's one of my favorite clips from Wretched, and I hope you'll enjoy it as well!

Recently I've been reading very slowly through the opening chapters of Luke in preparation for Christmas. There's really a lot of little sections to it and each of them have their own story to tell and details to add to the greater story surrounding the birth of Christ. Can you imagine how Jesus' earthly parents felt during each of these accounts? Today I read about Anna, the prophetess. It's a short passage, detailing a moment at the temple as Jesus was being presented and c

From the very beginning, from the time that sin entered the world, creation has groaned, awaiting the restoration of all things. There's a sense of desperation that permeates Scripture. Doubtless did Adam and Eve think upon the birth of their first born that he would be the promised seed, one who would crush the serpents head. Instead he continued the same pattern as his parents and fell headlong into sin. Generations came and went until Noah. Would he perhaps be the savior?

A friend of mine shared this clip from Wretched/Fortis about nose rings and tattoos. If you're reading this, I take it you have an opinion on the issue one way or the other. I for myself know I certainly do. But regardless of those views, I think this is a helpful look at not just those issues but a deeper issue of Christian love and consideration. Do I fully agree with every single thing Mr. Friel shares in this video? Well, this post isn't the time or place that I desire t

As we wrap up the week, and the month, we finish out this week's theme of thankfulness by looking at one more area that the Scriptures show we ought to be thankful for: people. "We give thanks to God always for all of you, making mention of you in our prayers;" - 1 Thessalonians 1:3 The New Testament example clearly shows the various authors being thankful for a variety of people in their lives, mentioning how they pray for them, thank God for them, and are thankful for the

Oftentimes, it can be easy to take things for granted. The things we've discussed this week are no exception. That said, relatively speaking, it's easy to be thankful for the good things. Relative to what? The difficult things in life. Even the secular world shows gratitude for the positive things, but Christian thankfulness extends to every area of life, even the difficult parts. "Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials," - James 1:2 This is a dif

As we celebrate this Thanksgiving Day, amidst the feasting and the family, the football and fellowship, whatever it is you find on this day, may we remember Paul's words to the Corinthian church: "Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!" - 2 Corinthians 9:15 We have so many things to be thankful for but the greatest is the fact that God has and will continue to save sinners; and that if we are in Christ, it is by His grace, so let us be thankful for that. Because of Chri