Ten Ways to Have a Better Relationship…With Your God

I’ve found some relationship advice I want to share. There is a world out there of magazine posts and blog articles giving us “5 steps to…” and “10 ways to…,” many of them centered on relationships. Seems easy. Here are ten ways you can have a better relationship with God:

1. Don’t Have a Relationship With Other Gods

Exclusivity and fidelity to God are a no-brainer, but sometimes we give in to that craving to have more. We can’t forget who is Lord of our life. Continue reading

Responding to Violence In Churches

The past few weeks I have been hurt to see the news of church shooting incidents. Times like these may rock our faith. Sometimes this means feeling intimidated, insecure. Sometimes this means questioning our commitment to peace. Sometimes this means fearing that some sort of change is coming we can’t handle. Continue reading

What If Dracula Was A Pro-Vaccine Campaign

Dracula is our most famous vampire. Created in 1897, at the turn of the century, his legacy is the most famous Victorian monster of our time.

In the past 100 years, Dracula has been analyzed with Freudianism, feminism, post-colonialism, racism, and Marxism. While some have written about its commentary on asylum medicine, I’ve only seen one author make a connection to vaccination. Continue reading

1 Peter 3:15 and Loving Apologetics (Part 4: Application)

In high school,  I made it my mission (or at least a hobby) to “prove God” to people, provided those people were my friends and I had control of the conversation. When the social media consisted of email and AOL IM, I learned how easy it was to insult and cajole someone for not thinking the way that I do. At times, my conversation was a kind of bullying in order to assert how right I was.

For example, when someone once suggested the Bible was just a bunch of stories to help children sleep at night, I insinuated that what would help me sleep at night was something violent happening to them. I felt I had the right to be so arrogant and careless. If they didn’t see the obvious truths as I’d presented them, they weren’t worth respecting in a debate. My mission was about my right-ness. It took a long time to change my attitude. Continue reading

1 Peter 3:15 and Loving Apologetics (Part 3)

Previously I wrote about how 1 Peter 3:15 “call to apologetics” should be read in context of its immediate passage to inform us about what apologetics is. In a passage that anticipates persecution from without, making a defense is seen as a holy necessity that must be done with gentleness and reverence.

I decided to read through the entire letter of 1 Peter, trying to imagine myself as his audience, and allowing the entirety of the letter to inform my understanding of “defending the faith.” Continue reading

1 Peter 3:15 and a Loving Apologetics (Part 2)

Previously I wrote about how 1 Peter 3:15, often the flagship Bible verse about Christian apologetics, should be read closely to inform us about what apologetics is about, particularly the end of the passage, “yet with gentleness and reverence.”

In this post, we will examine the verse as part of a broader passage on hope. Let us consider 1 singular verse, 1 Peter 3:15, in the context of the broader passage (chapter 3). Continue reading

1 Peter 3:15 and a Loving Apologetic (Part 1)

Christian apologetics is as old as Christianity itself. While the word apologetics may sound funny, it doesn’t mean to apologize, but rather, “to give an explanation or justification.”

This is where we get our word apologize, the basic meaning to explain we now take to mean expressing contrition. While apologetics is not about being sorry, it is also not about being rash or reckless. For Christians, it just so happens that the humility it takes to be sorry is the same humility it takes to defend our faith in Christ, because our faith begins with the repentance of our sin and the confession of Christ as savior. Continue reading

Self Esteem: What Matt Walsh Gets Wrong and Why It Matters

Last week Christian conservative blogger Matt Walsh, who writes for The Blaze, published a video for PragerU, titled “Why Self-Esteem is Self-Defeating.”

Walsh’s argument in the video is that teaching people to have self-esteem is a fantasy that does more harm than good. He makes several good points, but falls short of applying them appropriately.
Continue reading