For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16 ESV) Do you trust God? That, really, is the heart of the gospel. Can we, knowing our failure, move past and accept his forgiveness, allowing him to free us [...]

Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. (Ephesians 4:25 ESV) This strikes me as one of the most profound things I’ve ever read. In context, putting away all falsehood is a result, or a part, of “putting on” the [...]

About four years ago, I stared off of a precipice into oblivion. A depression that can only be described as debilitating gripped me, causing constant waves of self-loathing to all but drown me in despair. My problem? I couldn’t find a job that was sufficient to the task of supporting my family. We depended on [...]

The Calling of Matthew 9 As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him. 10 While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and “sinners” came and ate with him and [...]

I’m also a grammar geek, Star Trek geek and computer geek. Give me a break, I grew up that way. This week the full force of my geekiness has been turned towards the Bible as I’ve discovered and started to practice the Bible study technique that John Piper uses, called “Arcing.” It’s something that feels [...]

I looked around, as I tend to do quite a bit, at church today and realized that Karri and I sit alone. A lot. Karri remarked on it today, that it seemed there was a buffer of seats around us and that the rest of the congregation/class had settled into little cliques around us. Now, [...]

I’m beginning to see a dangerous idolatry in the water at First Hattiesburg, and it’s a very, very common one among churches in the South, and started hundreds of years ago with the Holy Roman Catholic Church. It’s something that doesn’t really become clear until you’ve been there a month or two and listened to [...]

I need to sit down with Glenn Galey or someone else at church who has grown up Christian slowly but surely deepening their faith and their personal connection to God through His Word, rarely straying far when they do stray at all. I need to walk a mile or two in their shoes so I [...]

Last entry I said, “There are two things lacking in the way I’m approaching my faith right now, so far as I can see it. First, I’m neglecting the Joy of God in His created things. I need to relax and see the world as God sees it, with unlimited love.” God hears and answers [...]

So, it’s been a couple of weeks now, two Wednesday night Bible studies and two Sundays. During that time, my family’s life has seen some astounding changes. Karri, my wife, is diving deep into Driscoll’s “Religion Saves (and nine other misconceptions)” book and sermon series with reckless abandon. In the midst of impending loss (her [...]