We should avoid the confusion of using our “Christian” or uncommon words in conversation. While great for writing and learning doctrine, we should not assume people even know the major stories of the Bible, let alone understand some of theology’s unique vocabulary. According to ChristianBook.com, the King James Version (KJV) reads at a 12th grade level, the New American Standard Bible (NASB) at an 11th grade level, and the New International Version (NIV) at the 7th-8th grade level. People can understand the Bible, and the Holy Spirit illumines the Scripture (I’m using Christianese there. I should have said, “the Holy Spirit helps people to understand the spiritual things in the Bible), but we should not make the process more difficult for someone by using words they may not have heard before. The apostle Paul wanted to proclaim Jesus as clearly as possible (1 Corinthians 14:19, Colossians 4:4).
Thirty Days ago I, along with Heath Mullikin and Jeff Brady, began the Bible in 90 Days Reading Plan from YouVersion. The YouVersion cloud Bible and applications deserve their own post, so for now I will just say that I use it, and you should check it out. For this post, I will concentrate on the benefits and challenges I have seen during the first third of this reading plan. Continue reading Reading the Bible in 90 Days: The First 30 Days→
This method of sharing the gospel was designed for children by Child Evangelism Fellowship , and they have an excellent explanation of how to use the wordless book or bracelet on their web site. They suggest starting with the gold page to emphasize God and His love. I learned it dark page first, so that is how I present it here. I have used this with youth as well, not because I thought they were childish, but because it is so easy to remember.
In Divided by Faith, Emerson and Smith (2000) make a case, supported by U.S. history, that Evangelicals generally work within culture to spread the gospel, and, for some (perhaps many), taking action that is counter-cultural would expend energy and resources that could better be used spreading the good news of Jesus. Evangelicals, according to Emerson and Smith, take this stand because evangelism and discipleship are the first priority of the Church, a position that is difficult to argue against when one considers the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20). Continue reading When Evangelism Is Not Enough→
Doing the work of an evangelist (2 Timothy 4:5) does not always mean preaching a sermon, knocking on doors, standing on a street corner, or following a memorized series of Scriptures. There is nothing wrong with learning a series of verses, such as The Romans Road or The Wordless Book; I find those to be very useful tools for the good news of Jesus and confidence builders for the evangelist, but also I believe we should be willing to present the good news like Philip (Acts 8:26-35), beginning from place the person we are conversing with would like to begin. Continue reading Not Far From the Kingdom of God→
Escher’s “Relativity” – People doing simple tasks in a complex environment.
The first time I heard of the discipline of simplicity, I thought it was something extra-biblical that some monks invented. The Bible does not say to “be simple” (In fact, in the KJV we are instructed to move away from being simple (Psalm 19:7, Proverbs 21:11)). However, there is a difference between being simple and living simply. Life is not always simple, but I have found that it pays to simplify where one can. There are probably many facets of life where we can over do it, but to keep things simple, let’s look at two: the physical and the spiritual. Continue reading The Simple Life→
I am becoming convinced that there is a systemic dichotomy in African-American family culture. First, let me state that when I refer to “African-Americans” I am specifically referring to those of us who are descendants of the North American slave population, not all dark-skinned North-Americans nor modern immigrants from African countries. Here is the dichotomy: African-Americans highly value family relationships, yet we have adapted to a culture that systemically breaks our families apart. Continue reading The Broken American Family→
Anyone who has read Gary Chapman’s 5 Love Languages would recognize receiving gifts as one of the love languages. A person with this primary love language not only enjoys receiving gifts, but also giving them. I am writing this post as a person who does not have the primary love language of receiving gifts. I enjoy giving and receiving gifts, but not gifts just for the sake of gift giving. As a person who’s love language is quality time, I would rather a person come to my birthday party empty handed, or with a six-pack of root beer we can share, than to send me a costly gift that I cannot use. Continue reading Gift Giving→
As we continue on the journey towards simplicity, I am now asking myself a question. How did I end up with so much stuff?! The answer is simple. Since the only things at my home that multiply on their own are dust and weeds, everything else I either purchased or someone gave me. This post will focus on obtaining things for ourselves, and the next will reflect on gift giving.
