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I live on a street where the men have a habit of watering the front lawn by hand with a garden hose. I’m sure their wives are asking, “Why can’t you use a sprinkler?” The men probably argue that a sprinkler wastes water. But, deep down, the real reason is that it...

SOME YEARS AGO we planted a tree on the west side of our house expecting it to grow and eventually shade us from the afternoon sun. We were disappointed because, for some reason, the tree didn’t grow. It didn’t die, but neither did it grow. Possibly, it was because it...

God’s Gift of Specialists Up to this point, we have explored the foundations of our new life in Christ and the process of transformation into His image. But, as we’ve seen, the specifics of God’s design involve other members of the team, the church. As Paul turns from...

Deep in our souls, like the woman at the well, we thirst for joy, security, meaning, unconditional love, and belonging. Our thirst for these things is not wrong. The places we seek them are. The glory of God is the water for which we thirst. His love is the security...

Truth #4: Every person will spend eternity in heaven with Christ and fellow believers or in hell separated from God forever. The Scripture is emphatically clear about the reality of heaven and hell. In recent days, some evangelical leaders have challenged the idea of...

As an Asian kid, when I was growing up, I never noticed roof racks on cars. That’s because Asian parents aren’t big on roof racks. They have no need to own roof racks because they don’t go surfing or camping. The whole reason your Asian parents make you study so hard...

If you’ve spent any time watching home-improvement shows on TV, you’ve seen plenty of examples of transformation. Often a married couple or partners in real estate and renovation, both with enormous know-how and creativity, take an out-of-date, sometimes dilapidated...

When the elder brother hears from the servants that his younger brother has returned and has been reinstated by his father, he is furious. Now it is his turn to disgrace the father. He refuses to go in to what is perhaps the biggest feast and public event his father...

Tim Keller says that when we experience the inevitable disappointment that comes from drinking out of a broken cistern, we respond in one of four ways: Blame the idol. We assume that we simply chose the wrong idol and resolve to make a better choice next time. “Well,...

Typically, as we engage in conversation, we’ll naturally progress through the interests and values layers to reach the final worldviews layer. If we earn enough trust in the interests layer, we’ll be allowed to progress to the values layer. If we navigate the values...