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It’s a 16th century painting called The Creation of Adam by Michelangelo for crying out loud! This first topic is one that I will not be covering “live” with the students… this is the passion of one of my very capable leaders and he will present tomorrow night. But I’ve been thinking about it all Read more

Wow! I could probably begin and end with that one-word summary. This book says everything I have been thinking and saying conversationally with friends for some time. McManus understands the problems with the modern church. He doesn’t hide from them. Nor does he abandon the baby because of the bath water. In many ways McManus’ Read more

Perhaps the picture above is more fitting than I originally intended. My initial thought was to use an illustration that played on the word “hot” by overstating the obvious. Upon further review this image also demonstrates the fury that some of these topics generate. In the next few weeks I will be teaching a series Read more

Christian music is constantly evolving and finding new ways to express the message of Jesus. For the most part this is a good thing. Occasionally there will be a group that is difficult to categorize so we usually give them a multi-genre labeling (the music world’s equivalent to receiving an Oscar). Even rarer is a Read more

A few years ago there was an astonishingly popular book that attracted national attention and helped thousands of people to return to or expand a life of prayer. That’s a good thing. This book is almost identical text in its theme, but uses teenaged illustrations and stories to make its point. At one level I Read more

One of my favorite people in the world to interact with intellectually. Dr. Carson is a capital B… brilliant man. He can talk about things that I cannot even begin to understand without even having any notes in front of him. I’ve seen him do it. The man could preach an entire sermon reading from Read more

The first – and most obvious – thought that this book brought to mind was how blessed I am. This is primarily so because of my college training in counseling. At Northland Baptist Bible College where I was trained, we were taught the value of healthy relationships. Prior to my experiences there I had never Read more

You know how every year you make one of those New Year’s things (resolutions) – you end up reaching that determinative point… the one where you will either keep going or fail… That was where I found myself last week. Our denomination is wrangling with thoughts (thankfully not each other) about our written stance regarding Read more

Ironically enough Bono of the Irish supergroup U2 was one of the featured speakers at last week’s National Prayer Breakfast. I missed his interview live, but was able to watch and listen to it later via the power of the internet on CNN. Say what you want about some of this man’s language and lifestyle Read more

I selected this book on the recommendation of a friend… with less exciting results than my previous week’s entry, I’m afraid. This is not a reflection on my friend or his taste in books. Pollster George Barna has become somewhat famous for giving us the facts… just the facts. He has helped millions become more Read more

Over the Christmas break I re-connected with a friend from college who I had lost track of. We were having coffee one morning and his wife called sobbing and said she had just read an unbelievably impacting book. I didn’t know his wife, so I assumed that was just her personality… the emotional type. Two Read more

I wanted to start the year by reminding myself what it’s all about to be a follower of Jesus. While Lewis is definitely not for the faint of heart, he’s not wordy either… the teacher in him never allows for a wasted word. The truth he expressed in 1952 stands as a poignant reminder of Read more