I grew up in a church tradition that really emphasized hell as a motivation for accepting Christ’s forgiveness of our sins. In fact, my own salvation decision as a young child was highly motivated by this. I no longer see overemphasis on hell (often an exclusive emphasis) as biblical or effective in bringing true heart […]
Shades of Pornography: Is “50 Shades of Grey” Pornography or not?
I’ve noticed the beginnings of the social media buzz for the 50 Shades of Grey movie, coming out in 2015. While IMDb’s parental guide of the movie isn’t out yet since the movie isn’t completed, it does reveal this: This is based off an erotic novel and is currently rumored to have two versions, an […]
4 Indications that Your Sarcasm Needs to be Checked
Sarcasm isn’t bad in and of itself. When used appropriately, it can really lighten the mood, bring friends together and even bring emphasis to a passionate point. The Apostle Paul sometimes used sarcasm in his writing, my favorite example of this of course being Galatians 5:12. But can sarcasm be sinful, harmful and damaging? Can […]
The Five Love Languages Condition Us for Self-Serving Kickback Love
I’ve read The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman enough times that I pretty have the entire book memorized. For a time, this book seemed like the savior for my relationship with my wife. The idea behind it so simple: I want a better marriage. a.k.a. I want my wife to do specific things for […]
The Real Reason Marriage & the American Family have Dissolved
When you talk about the cultural war on marriage, Christians and the media typically think you must be talking about gay marriage. The sobering truth is the Christians already lost the “war” to a cultural definition of marriage well before gay marriage hit the spotlight. In fact, a strong argument could be made that if […]
How Being “Color Blind” Whites Out Minorities
For most of my life, I never thought having a multiracial church mattered. I also thought racism didn’t really exist anymore. Slavery was over. Don’t use the “N word”, be nice to black people and racism is eliminated. As a rough summary, this is what a lot of white Christians think about race. If asked […]