It was a perfect summer day, puffy cumulus clouds drifting across an azure sky. My then-seven-year-old son Jed pointed at a large cloud and said, "That one looks like the empty tomb after Jesus rose from the dead!" Then he turned and said, "And that one reminds me of the lion of Judah!" You'd think a seven-year-old would see a ducky or pony shape in the clouds rather than evidence of Jesus' resurrection and lordship. But when children are raised with an awareness of God's presence, they're amazingly perceptive. In fact, even when children aren't raised to know about God, their Continue Reading
Why You Can’t Possibly Crack Life’s Code (and what to do Instead)
She was only ten years old when a random accident took her life. Decades later, her parents still grieve the loss of their daughter. How could the unthinkable happen to this Christian family? Why this senseless tragedy? The writer of Ecclesiastes has some wisdom to offer about the mysterious nature of life. (I’m grateful to the team at thebibleproject.com for the following insights.) Thirty-eight times in the book, the Teacher repeats this phrase: “Hevel, hevel, everything is utterly hevel.” In English Bibles, the Hebrew word “hevel” is usually translated “meaningless.” Continue Reading
The One Voice You Must Listen to as you Raise your Children
We were on vacation, enjoying a visit with grandparents and cousins. The day before we left, my then ten-year-old son pouted and fussed to the point where I'd had it. I headed toward him to correct him. Suddenly, in my thoughts, a quiet, powerful voice said, Stop. Do not bring discipline to Sam. Just ask him what's wrong. It was the voice of the Holy Spirit. I switched gears and said, "Sam, what's wrong?" "I'm going to miss Mitchell!" said Sam, bursting into tears. I comforted my son as he wept at the thought of having to leave his cousin. Once he had a chance to let his Continue Reading
The One Way You Can Astonish Jesus
The man wasn't even a Jew. He and his men had been stationed in Capernaum by the Roman authorities to keep law and order. But he'd established a good relationship with the local Jewish elders, so he asked them for a favor. Would they go to Jesus and ask him to come and heal his paralyzed servant, who lay close to death? Not only did the elders go to Jesus, they pleaded earnestly on behalf of the centurion. "This man deserves to have you do this, because he loves our nation and has built our synagogue," they said. So Jesus went with them (Luke 7:4-6). Before he got to the Continue Reading