4 New Videos on The Unbelievable Gospel
Here’s a string of new videos to go with my book The Unbelievable Gospel, which won “Book of the Year” in the Evangelism/Apologetics category in the Christianity Today awards. Feel free to use them in...
View Article5 “Best” Books on Evangelism
It’s hard to list five favorite books on evangelism, not because I command a vast knowledge of evangelistic literature, but because there are so many different types of “texts” or fields of knowledge...
View Article3 Books on Christ in the Old Testament
Someone walked up to on Sunday and asked if I could recommend any resources in understanding how Christ/the New Testament relates to the Old Testament. I loved this question because most of our Bible...
View ArticleWhy Christianity is Harder & Easier
Christ says ‘Give me All. I don’t want so much of your time and so much of your money and so much of your work: I want You. I have not come to torment your natural self, but to kill it. No...
View ArticleResponding to the State of the Secular Union
In 2008, about 50 million people in America checked the “Religious None” box. Ten million of those are ardent atheists. This means that the rest of these 40 million people aren’t really sure what they...
View ArticleBooks on Character (& Virtue Collapse)
In working through Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, I’m trying to better understand our present moral collapse. Virtues have turned into values, and sins have morphed into mistakes. The new center for...
View ArticleDoes the How of Evangelism Really Matter?
Think about the last time you tried to share the gospel. What was going through your head? Were you angling to find an opening to mention Jesus? Or perhaps you were more intentional, looking for an...
View ArticleMy Best Books of the Summer (2015)
Here are some of my best books from the summer: MOST ENTERTAINING FICTION Ready Player One, Ernest Cline BEST LITERATURE Notre-Dame de Paris, Victor Hugo BEST SHORT STORIES Men Without Women, Ernest...
View Article5 Standout Books on the Incarnation
Although I didn’t grow up observing Advent, we instituted the tradition at City Life when we planted the church in 2008. Year after year, I marvel at depth, promise, wonder, complexity of the notion...
View ArticleAlmighty
Almighty: Courage, Resistance & Existential Peril in the Nuclear Age Dan Zak Obama’s recent visit to Hiroshima pushed the threat of nuclear war back onto the public mind, even if only lasting for a...
View ArticleWe’re All Great Abbreviators
I’ve just finished writing a study guide for three of the craziest letters in the New Testament–1, 2 Peter & Jude. The letters cover stuff like: angels sleeping with humans, gang rape,...
View ArticleRecommended Books on 2 Peter & Jude
This summer I wrote a study guide for 2 Peter & Jude. These are prophetic book letters for our time. It became clear to me that the straight forward truths, difficult texts, and glorious promises...
View Article3 Recommended Books on Burnout
In light of my recent article at Lifeway Leadership, here are a few books I recommend reading if you feel exhausted by ministry, lackluster about the church, or distant from Jesus: On The Brink – This...
View Article10 Books I Really Enjoyed in 2017
About Grace, Anthony Doerr – This author won the Pulitzer for his book, All the Light We Cannot See, which is easily my favorite novel of the past five years. About Grace is Doerr’s first novel and...
View ArticleHope for Dizzying Times
A friend recently confessed political views in her church are so tense and divided, she can’t bring up politics with her fellow Christians. A member in my own church asked me if it was okay to not call...
View ArticleFavorite Summer Reads
While I didn’t read as much as I would have liked this summer (lots of family time, travel, movies & writing), I definitely found some gems. Here are four favorites: Favorite Fiction: The Great...
View Article5 Books on the Holy Spirit
When writing a book, a constellation of influences converge to produce what we put on paper. Those influences range from personal experience to the knowledge of others. As I have matured in my...
View ArticleElder Development & Holiday Reading
This Fall we started the fourth round of Elder Development at City Life Church in our 12 years as a church. We deliberately cast the net wider than those who are ready for eldership so that we can also...
View ArticleWhat to Do with News Fatigue
Impeachment hearings. Mother allegedly kills her three children. U.S. drinking water filled with “forever chemicals.” Coronavirus in China. Unsanctioned bombings by Iran. It seems like a new crisis...
View ArticleMy Favorite Books of 2022
This is, perhaps, the deepest and most satisfying book I read all year. Wiman, an award-winning poet, weaves reflections on life, suffering, meaning, and faith through his own brush with death,...
View Article
