August 2005

Dr. Albert Mohler has written 2 very thoughtful and short pieces on the issue of evil in our lives. It is a timely article in light of the distruction caused by Huricane Katrina. You can read them at: The Goodness of God and the Reality of Evil Behind a Frowning Providence — The Christian’s Confidence in the Face of Sorrow see also www.disciplemaking.net

As I reflect on my convictions and also my role as a pastor, I see the issue of baptism as an important issue to decide on. I have asked my self “Is Paedobaptism (Infant Baptism) so clear in Scripture that it would be sinful not to baptize one’s babies?” First let me say that I reflect on this as a Baptist pastor, and see this as important to ones ministry because it will affect one’s philosophy of ministry as well as one’s ecclesiology. To help me reflect on this I am also reading through “Baptism of Disciples Alone” by Fred

A Review of Your Best Life Now, by Joel OsteenReviewed by Daryl Wingerd see also www.disciplemaking.net

As I was having a conversation about how people develop passion for Glory, I thought about what I heard the other day by John Piper on his prayer life. He uses an acronym for praying that I am using to help my passion for God to increase and my obedience to be a delight to my heart. The acronym is I.O.U.S. I: Incline my heart to your word.O: Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things.U: Unite my heart to fear your name.S: Satisfy me in the morning with your steadfast love. I desire to teach people to pray

The only way we develop ministry convictions is by bringing God’s Word to bear on specific situations that arise in our lives and determining God’s will in that situation from the Word. Many issues of life are clearly addressed in the Bible, and we would do well to memorize verses that speak to those issues. But there are always issues in life that are not specifically spelled out in the Scriptures. Many people have never considered that God does give us guidance in the gray areas of life. Even though something may not be wrong in and of it self

It always encourages me to heart John MacArthur defending Biblical Christianity because he never cowers nor tries to please the audience.You can see a few key quotes that John MacArthur gave on last nights Larry King show, as well as a link to the full transcript of the entire dialogue with Dr. John MacArthur, Barbara Forrest, Ph.D. (professor of philosophy, Southeastern Louisiana University), Deepak Chopra (the best selling author of “How to Know God”), Senator Sam Brownback (Republican of Kansas), Congressman Chris Shays (Republican of Connecticut, who disagrees with the president on the teaching of intelligent design), and Dr. Jay

Recently I am looking over what the Gospel actually is and how to relate to others on the basis on a common Gospel. Here is a statement that I am reviewing currently that may be helpful to you if you are relating to people that are in disagreement with your views. THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST: AN EVANGELICAL CELEBRATION A Call to Evangelical UnityAn introduction to “The Gospel of Jesus Christ: An Evangelical Celebration.” The Gospel Statement Revisited – an interview with Timothy George A Theology to Die ForTheologians are not freelance scholars of religion, but trustees of the deposit

Here is my first attempt at blogging. We will see how it goes. More later see also www.disciplemaking.net