Servant Leaders: 7 Leadership Insights from the Gospel of Mark
In my graduate studies, a few classmates and I were assigned to dig into the Gospel of Mark and identify seven leadership principles from Jesus. What surprised me was just how many leadership principles come from the Gospel of Mark (there are a lot more than seven). As leaders inside and outside the Church, I […]
Loving Your Actual Neighbor: Starting Where You Live (Part 1)
In 2017 on a return flight from Orlando back to Ohio, I sat quietly contemplating one main question posed at the Exponential conference I had just attended. And that question was, “What if when Jesus said to love your neighbor as yourself, he meant your actual neighbor?” I’m certain there were many other great ideas […]
What Are the Gospels in the Bible? A Summary of Each Gospel
Have you ever wondered what is unique about each of the Gospels in the New Testament? The four Gospels in the Bible are Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The Gospels provide a comprehensive portrait of Jesus, allowing the readers to see his central place in the scheme of redemption. The climactic death, burial, and resurrection […]
3 Steps to Passing Along the Faith: Repeat (Part 3)
Here is Part 1 (“Hear”) and Part 2 (“Obey”). The Shema, recorded in Deuteronomy, was originally spoken to the Israelites on their way into the Promised Land. This section of Scripture was so important that the first part of it became a daily prayer for Israelites. Moreover, it was from the Shema that Jesus quoted […]
There Are Two Crosses in the Life of a Christian
There are two crosses in the life of every true Christian: the cross on which Jesus suffered and died, and the cross on which we must suffer and die to self. Receiving Jesus is free; we need only to accept His free gift of eternal life. To do that, however, we must repent, turn from […]
Something to Behold
On the winter solstice, literally the darkest day of 2020, my son and I craned our necks skyward on the front lawn. “Can you see it?” I pointed. “Below the moon to the southwest.” Just the day before, I’d sunk pretty low, feeling decidedly un-festive and weary of the yoke of fear, anxiety, and loss […]
