“Sin is basically ingratitude, and in Christianity, religion is grace and ethics is gratitude.” -Klyne Snodgrass ‘Be careful, then, how you live, not as unwise people but as wise, 16 making the most of the time, because the days are evil. 17 So do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18 Do not get drunk with wine, for that is … Read More
Uncertainty and God’s Will
I’ll never forget the time our youth pastor’s wife came up to me after the Sunday morning service and said, “Pastor Greg, can you help us? We don’t know what the h*ll we’re doing!” She was referring to the profound uncertainly she and her husband both felt over what God wanted them to do vocationally and where he wanted them … Read More
What I Learned about Vocation from Parker Palmer
“Vocation is the place where your deep gladness meets the world’s deepest need.” Frederick Buechner In 2016, I was coming to the end of a five-year, very bumpy career transition. I wanted to return to pastoral work, serving the church full-time. But door after door closed and it seemed God was frustrating my plans. Because we were in the middle … Read More
A Critique of Gothardism, Part 2 of 5
As an exercise in discernment, this series critiques the teaching associated with the Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP), Advanced Training Institute International (ATI), and specifically their founder, Bill Gothard. His teaching includes a myriad of distortions and this post addresses examples under the first two of six main areas (listed at the end of Part 1): the use of … Read More
The Strange Familiarity of God’s Mysterious Ways
We can make our plans, but the LORD determines our steps. (Prov. 16:9, NLT) In late 2015, I was in a discouraged place. God was providing for every financial need our family had, yet he seemed bent on frustrating MY plans. I had been in the process of trying to transfer my credentials to the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC) and … Read More