It is the evening before Valentine’s Day. Tomorrow will be marked by billions of pounds of chocolate being exchanged, countless millions of flowers (bought at marked-up prices) being passed between lovers, special deliveries of gifts of all shapes and sizes being received at offices and places of work, and endless amounts of cooing, cuddling and…
Through the months I’ve spent writing my book on spiritual discernment, I have wrestled with various definitions of the word. While several definitions have been offered by other authors, none struck me as being quite right or quite complete. I have offered a definition on this site and was glad to receive some good feedback…
I’ve always loved Calvin & Hobbes. My friend Brian first introduced me to the comic strip back when I was a young teen and I immediately fell in love with it. (Here is a must-have for any true fan: The Complete Calvin & Hobbes). The strip works on at least two levels. There is the…
Last week I wrote an article about the Christian and birth control. Before I continue this short series, I feel it is important to point out that I do not approach the topic from the viewpoint of a professional doctor or a professional theologian. Rather, I merely offer my reflections based on reading books, discussions…
King for a Week is an honor I bestow on blogs that I feel are making a valuable contribution to my faith and the faith of other believers. Every week (or two) I select a blog, link to it from my site, and add that site’s most recent headlines to my right sidebar. While this…
Yesterday afternoon a reader of this site sent me a link to a recent article from WorldNetDaily. According to their “About Us” page, WorldNetDaily is “an independent news company dedicated to uncompromising journalism, seeking truth and justice and revitalizing the role of the free press as a guardian of liberty. We remain faithful to the…
Last week I posted a couple of articles dealing with auto-eroticism. I believe there was some useful discussion following those and was glad to hear from people who felt that they benefited from them. Since then I have received a couple of questions regarding my views on birth control (from people who, I suppose, feel…
There is always a catch. You’ve gotten the letters, phone calls and emails just as I have. There is always someone wanting to offer us something, but things are never as they seem. There is always a catch. You can have a wonderful vacation in Hawaii, but you’re responsible for paying for your own accommodations…
This article continues the discussion I began yesterday on the topic of self-centered sex. Because sex is created by God and to be used for His glory, it is not purely a physical or sexual or emotional issue, a theological issue. Thus in yesterday’s article we built a brief framework in which to understand sex…
Twelve or eighteen months ago I wrote a couple of articles about the always difficult subject of autoeroticism (i.e. masturbation). This is a subject I hesitate to write about and yet one that I feel is both important and relevant. It is a subject that takes us outside of our comfort zones but hiding our…
This is probably another one of those articles that discusses something everyone else already knows and has already thought about, but for which I am a bit late to the party. I’m not necessarily the sharpest knife in the drawer and sometimes you need to give me a little extra time to figure these things…
King for a Week is an honor I bestow on blogs that I feel are making a valuable contribution to my faith and the faith of other believers. Every week (in theory) I select a blog, link to it from my site, and add that site’s most recent headlines to my right sidebar. While this…
The Bible Experience is a unique product. Featuring a unique cast, it offers what is surely a unique recording of the Bible. Hear the words of the Bible brought to life like never before. Inspired By…The Bible Experience: New Testament Audio CD is a fully-dramatized reading of the Bible performed by an unprecedented ensemble of…
When I was a kid, my family would travel to the United States every year or two. We would visit friends or family or just find some new and exciting place to settle down for a short vacation. I always enjoyed this trips to the U.S. but noted some peculiarities about American culture. This tends…
Last week Paul (who, for those who haven’t made the connection, happens to be my pastor) wrote about an article in the Canadian media which stated that “The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada will recommend next month that all expectant mothers undergo screening for fetal abnormalities such as Down’s syndrome — not just…
The issue of profanity in the church is one that continually surprises me. To myself and to many other Reformed types, what is most shocking about the profanity discussion is that we need to have it at all! That we should avoid foul speech seems obvious and beyond dispute. And yet here we are. There…
King for a Week is an honor I bestow on blogs that I feel are making a valuable contribution to my faith and the faith of other believers. Every week (in theory) I select a blog, link to it from my site, and add that site’s most recent headlines to my right sidebar. While this…
Last week I posted a quote from Jim Elliff on the subject of “zealous immaturity.” Writing about those who seek God’s will in a way that he feels is unbiblical, Elliff writes “God may use the sincere individual who gets his guidance the illuminist’s way. He may bless him. He may honor his faith more…
This is the third article in a three-part series examining the Bible’s call for spiritual discernment. You can access the first article here and the second here. Yesterday we learned the bad news that Scripture portrays those who lack spiritual discernment in three ways: They are spiritually immature, they are backslidden, and they are dead.…
This is the second article in a three-part series examining the Bible’s call for spiritual discernment. You can access the first article here. Today we will see three marks of a lack of discernment. Lack of discernment shows spiritual immaturity In the closing verses of Hebrews 5, the author of this great letter warns his…