“Don’t let your heart be troubled,” Jesus said to the disciples in the upper room. He was nearing the end of His earthly ministry, but they didn’t know it yet. “Believe in God, believe also in me,” He continued. “In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told […]

Bertrand Russell, the famous atheist, claimed: “Religion is based, I think, primarily and mainly upon fear. It is partly the terror of the unknown and partly, as I have said, the wish to feel that you have a kind of elder brother who will stand by you in all your troubles and disputes. Fear is […]

Have you ever made a hasty, life-changing decision in a moment of doubting God? David did. You see it in 1 Samuel 26-27. King Saul was hunting David. He was surviving in the wilderness, in the nooks and crannies of the hills, hiding from cave to cave. His life was miserable—but at least he had […]

Do you remember The Jerry Springer Show? Did you watch it? (Be honest!) It was both denounced as trash TV and celebrated as America’s “infamous guilty pleasure.” Springer took all of America’s most bizarre dysfunctional and deviant behavior and put it in front of daytime TV cameras. There were kung-fu hillbillies, adults who lived like […]

I heard an Orthodox Bishop make an interesting confession. Hilarion Alfeyev is a world-renown scholar with two doctoral degrees in theology, including one from Oxford, the author of numerous theology books (several of which I own and enjoy), and also a talented classical composer. But after a long career in the church and the academy, […]

“Is it a sin to not go to church?” Before answering that question, let me clarify that “church” is not so much a place where you go but an identity that you have. The church is not the building but the Body. If you believe in Jesus for eternal life, you belong to the church, […]

Americans love progress. We disagree about what true progress looks like, but in principle, we’re all for it. We want to go forward, not backward.  At some level, you have this idea that your life will progress over time. But does God have the same idea of progress as you do? I think it’s safe […]

“Do you know what you don’t know?” That’s an odd question asked by an article in the Harvard Business Review. The author continues: “When put to the test, most people find they can’t explain the workings of everyday things they think they understand. “Don’t believe me? Find an object you use daily (a zipper, a […]

What are you here for? What’s the ultimate purpose of your existence? What gives your life meaning and makes it worth living? Atheism and Christianity give you two very different answers. The atheist has to say you aren’t here for any higher purpose. Your life has no meaning except for what you make of it. […]

What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? (Romans 6:1 NKJV). Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Of course, we know that Paul’s answer is a firm “No.” It makes no sense to think that grace should motivate you to sin. But instead of rushing to […]