Savedthroughfaith.com

Prior to becoming a pastor I worked in the insurance industry. One aspect of this job that I really enjoyed was my regular time with so many different people. As I tried to get to know them I found out that most were not believers. I knew that in order to reach them with the gospel I needed to be more intentional. I began a quick little file called, “hit-list.” Contrary to the title this list was a list of unbelievers whom I was prayi...

“Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. Luke 22:31-32 As the Savior is looking down the barrel of the unmitigated wrath of God he speaks to his disciples rather cryptically about the ‘one’ (Judas) who would betray him and then quite specifically about the Apostle Peter’s impending defection. In the midst of this dialog between Peter and...

I had an interesting “day-dream” recently. Before I get to the specifics and why it is important I should say that I am generally not a proponent of day-dreaming. This is because such thinking is often just a manmade tent for me to store all of my highlight reels of personal awesomeness or other examples of things I would control and fix–if I were God. In other words day dreaming is often musings upon what it would be like if Go...

It is one of the most helpless feelings you have as a parent. You are holding your young child and they are gasping for their next breath. This was the reality for us as a family this week as our youngest son, Bo, came down with RSV, a respiratory virus. We watched him quickly regress to the point that he was laboring for every breath. My wife had taken him to the doctor prior to this point and they prescribed a nebulizer as well as an antibiot...

I have often marveled at how much and how light the Apostle Paul traveled. As you read the book of Acts and the Epistles you get a quick sense of how much ground the guy covered. He was in and out of countries, cities, and towns. He shuffled through different cultural contexts with their variant practices of worship. You see him in synagogues, in the market place and in the Areopagus (Acts 17). At the same time, he traveled light. He had one satc...

I had a great visit with a church member recently. In our discussion he hit on a point that I believe many Christians have a burden for. Essentially he was concerned with intentionally integrating Christ in all that he does, in particular his work environment. In one sense I as a pastor want to tell people exactly what to do and in another sense I do not. From the standpoint of his thoughts he needs to think in terms of one who has been give...

One of my favorite statues is in downtown Boston, in Quincy Market. Towering above the crowd on a pillar is a life-sized Sam Adams statue. Engraved on it is this inscription: Fearless and Incorruptible. Now whatever you think of the early American Revolutionary you have got to admit that Adams was, from the perspective of his cause, fearless and incorruptible. Likewise there are many great reformers in the Bible who fit into such a mold. One of...

Last night we joined some other families from Emmaus Bible Church at a nursing home. We were able to sing, study the Bible and pray with them. It was truly a blessing. Along the way something strange happened to us. The gentleman that I was talking to, Ernest, told me all about his wife and 6 children. He spoke of how he farmed and loved his kids. He told me he has loved Jesus for many years and he loves the Bible. Then he stood up. He was probab...

This past Christmas my daughters got me a single egg pan to help me with my breakfast. Knowing how I love to eat eggs for breakfast and occasionally burn them, they figured this pan which boasted “The Perfect Egg” would be an ideal gift. They were right. Multiple times a week I opt for this hot breakfast and marvel at how, well, perfect the eggs turn out. I also learn a valuable ministry lesson: patience and trust. The issue is th...

God loves me. These three words are a serious cause for pause. They are a time for reflection and delight. However, if you are like me you may find yourself chasing this sweet taste of divine benevolence with other theological tonics, as if we are feeling guilty or something. I think this is a problem. THEOLOGICAL FLINCHING Let’s make it practical. You are talking with a friend about what you’ve been reading in your devotions. You ta...