In a fascinating episode of Hidden Brain, “When Doing Right Feels Wrong,” Shankar Vendantam tells the story of Darwin, a Detroit police officer who found himself in a dilemma, conflicted between competing values that seemed to be at odds with each other. One evening after work, Darwin found himself sitting at a bar with a… Read More »
In recent weeks, there have been calls for abuse reform in the Southern Baptist Convention and Presbyterian Church in America. We’d like to highlight some of the recent reports in the news and call the church to repentance and concern for the hurting. For those who want to grow in learning to handle abuse:
I like to think of repentance like rain on a parched land. Sometimes rain will downpour, other times it comes as gentle rain, steadily and slowly. We know it has rained by the signs of life. In the soil of true repentance, life will spring out from the ground. Genuine repentance shows itself with fruit… Read More »
We come to Christ as beggars. Begging Jesus is what we observed in blind Bartimaeus, the blind beggar who sat on the side of the road, who pleaded for mercy from Jesus. (Mark 10:46-52.) What a picture of our miserable and needy state. We come to Jesus: blind, begging, and in need of a Savior’s… Read More »
A few months ago, I wrote a book review on “Is it Abuse?: A Biblical Guide to Identifying Domestic Abuse and Helping Victims” by Darby Strickland. Strickland’s book gives us foundational insights in understanding an abusive relational system. I was encouraged by many of you who want to grow in service to the oppressed, as… Read More »
I have been benefiting recently from Darby Strickland’s book, Is it Abuse? A Biblical Guide to Identifying Domestic Abuse and Helping Victims. In the book she challenges Christians and the church to be a refuge for the abused, a place where they can find help and get wise counsel. She cites Psalm 82:3-4, “Give justice… Read More »
I’m a big fan of helping Christians dwell together in peace and unity with a love for the truth. What do we do when Christians disagree about how to handle coronavirus? In seeking the peace of the church in this time, I’ve been thinking about the role of our conscience in Covid-19. What does conscience have to… Read More »
Steve Midgley gave the last message at the CCEF conference regarding how God redeems family. Perhaps this year’s CCEF conference has brought back bad memories of conflicts, divorce, abuse, distrust, or feuds. It is true that family life is under threat. So what hope do we have? Steve suggested that instead of gazing back on… Read More »
Ed Welch delivered a message about how our family history speaks to our present and shapes how we view God today. Ed encouraged us to do some self-reflection. Our histories impact us naturally, perhaps without us even knowing it. Our past family life can be seen as a house with a shepherd. What was the nature… Read More »
Ste Casey gave a message challenging us to be vulnerable with our households for the glory of God. He told the story of a lady who showed up at his family’s home in need of protection. She had been in an abusive relationship and could not break free. Ste explained the risk his family (including… Read More »