When I first became a Christian at the age of 20, I was part of a revival that swept through university campuses in the late 70's to the mid 80's. A number of parachurch campus ministries grew in dramatic fashion as…
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Within Christian circles, “heart” is one of those words which is used freely without really knowing what it is we are talking about. We use this word so often that…
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When was the last time you marveled at the reality that you are an adopted child of God? Too often, Christians understand justification as foundational to their faith, but they overlook…
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At the end of last year, I attended a wedding and a funeral on the same day. It was an experience of excruciating sorrow to witness the sudden passing of…
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We are people of resurrection. May we never forget: this is not a tame worldview. It defies what we might consider to be “normal.” Because in God’s economy, dead stuff comes back to life. After three…
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Recently, I’ve been reflecting on pastors in persecuted contexts and have been thinking about the concept of lament. As He often does, God…
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“The night before last I was taken away to the central investigation area of the Qingyang branch of the Chengdu Police Bureau. This time I…"
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As a nation and culture, we lead noisy lives—and I’m not just talking about sounds. I mean the constant clamoring in our heads and hearts, the endless responsibilities and distractions, and the dopamine-fueled fix of the phones we keep glued to our hands…
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The instant we step out of our homes and put our feet down onto the sidewalk, we are swept up into a powerful and deep story. It is like stepping into the current of a mighty…
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It’s no secret many people feel overworked. You may be one of them. With employees averaging 45 hours per week in their jobs, my country of Malaysia is home to some of the most overworked people in Asia. Kuala Lumpur was recently ranked as the third most overworked city in the world.
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The church, whether it be large or small, oblong or compact, is a vessel for the raw transformative substance of God’s Word. Scripture is our source code. Our base content. God…
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Prayer is a major part of the ministry of the Word. The Apostles established the diaconate so they could devote themselves to prayer and the ministry of the Word…
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The corporate prayer life of a church must be grounded in the healthy, regular, personal prayer of its pastor and its people. In Matthew 6:5-13, Jesus instructs…
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At age 14, One Mokgatle lost his father—the rock of his family—to heart failure. Young One wasn’t a Christian, and his father’s death drew him even further away…
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For the last several years, I’ve led a lot of groups of different sorts—students, pastors, and congregations, both in the U.S. and abroad—through the same…
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My new book, Renovated: How God Makes Us Christlike, explores how God is working in our lives every day. Even though it can be difficult to see the presence of God in the complexities of life…
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I spend a fair bit of time with young adults in the Inner West of Sydney. Our church in Newtown exists on the urban edge of the city. Newtown is widely known…
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There is a lot of discussion—sometimes even heated debate—concerning the core definition of the gospel of Christ. In most cases…
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