The first temptation of Christ hinges on a tiny word – “if.” Satan, encountering a famished Jesus in the wilderness, whispered, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread” (Matt. 4:3, italics mine). It may seem a minor thing for Jesus to have pulled off...

“America’s Pastor,” Billy Graham, passed away Wednesday at the age of 99. The news of his death opened a floodgate of tributes from near and far. President Donald Trump tweeted, “The GREAT Billy Graham is dead. There was nobody like him! A very special man.” The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, said...

As we move through Lent, it’s a sure bet you’re going to be reminded to “deny yourself.” One of my sons told me that a Facebook friend feels she’s eating too many starchy carbs, so she’s giving up French fries. A lot of people view Lent as a kind of...

In seminary, I was a youth pastor. Every summer during this time, I served as a volunteer at high school church camp. Those were halcyon days spent in small groups, worshipping under the stars, eating junk food with no regret and climbing  “The Mountain,” a cedar-cloaked bluff topped with a...

The flu is fierce this season. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention reports that this year’s outbreak is on pace to be the worst in nearly a decade. Influenza activity is now widespread in 48 states and Puerto Rico. If that news isn’t bad enough, the season hasn’t peaked yet....

A few of my clergy colleagues have just completed the “Live Complaint Free” challenge. The brainchild of Rev. Will Bowen of Kansas City, the campaign utilizes a bracelet to remind the wearer not to complain or criticize for 21 straight days. If one breaks the pledge, he or she has to...

We’ve all heard the phrase, “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade” – but what if life hands you a pile of jalapeños? That’s the situation I faced earlier in the month when I was preaching a revival near Austin, Texas. The host pastor took me out for lunch after...

Do you know that you glow? No, I’m not talking about the clammy glow you sport after a workout. I’m talking about actual light that comes out of our bodies. According to a 2009 study conducted by the Tohoku Institute of Technology, human bioluminescence exists – it’s just too faint for...

Mark Twain reportedly said, “It ain’t those parts of the Bible that I can’t understand that bother me. It’s the parts that I do understand.” One such understandable story is found in Matthew 9:9: “As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth....

Oh, come, Thou Dayspring from on high, And cheer us by Thy drawing nigh; Disperse the gloomy clouds of night And death’s dark shadows put to flight. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel Shall come to thee, O Israel. Have you ever witnessed the darkness turn into dawn? It’s beautiful, isn’t it? The...