How Do You Hold Your Beliefs? (Determine Doctrinal Rank)

In 1 Corinthians 15:3, the apostle Paul declares that the gospel is "of first importance." In other words, Paul is telling his audience that the gospel is the most important thing for them to know. His words have huge implications for how the church holds its beliefs and how it does theology. For if the … Continue reading How Do You Hold Your Beliefs? (Determine Doctrinal Rank)

You Don’t Need to be a Monk to Follow Jesus

It's self-evident that pastors are holier than "regular" people, right? It's obvious that those who leave their home country to take the gospel around the world are better Christians than those who stay and work ordinary jobs, right? Wrong! And the reason why those sentiments are wrong is the Protestant Reformation. The Protestant Reformation was … Continue reading You Don’t Need to be a Monk to Follow Jesus

Burnout Resources

Here are a few resources on burnout. Articles Helping Senior Pastors Overcome Depression and Burnout: Written to help pastors specifically, but has so many good insights both theologically and practically for overcoming burnout. How I Recovered From Burnout: 12 Keys to Getting Back: Short article written from ministry/Christian perspective. Why Do We Work Too Much?: … Continue reading Burnout Resources

Let’s Save Apocalyptic Thinking for the Actual Apocalypse

The apocalypse is personal for me. In 1994, Harold Camping predicted the end of the world and the return of Jesus, despite the fact that Jesus himself says no one knows when he will return (Matthew 24:26). When I was young, Camping's heresy infiltrated the church my parents were attending at the time and some … Continue reading Let’s Save Apocalyptic Thinking for the Actual Apocalypse