Along my spiritual journey, Jesus has continuously asked me to set fire to my personal ladders. A chapter-a-day podcast from 2 Peter 2. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

God has His own Quality Assessment process — not one of condemnation, but of cultivation. A chapter-a-day podcast from 2 Peter 1. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

If I’m going to trust the Story. I have to trust His timing. A chapter-a-day podcast from 1 Peter 5. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

What I am observing — and at times personally experiencing — in our current social landscape is a return of social ostracism as a form of punishment. None of this is new. It is as old as human empire itself. If Peter were to pay us a visit, he would say, “Welcome to the club."

A chapter-a-day podcast from 1 Peter 4. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

In my upcoming book I share the story of how as a young man I believed with certainty that I was supposed to become a pastor, and how God made clear that He had purposed for me a quirky career analyzing business phone calls (a la “This Call May Be Monitored”). My mother was greatly disappointed by the abrupt change in my vocational trajectory.

A chapter-a-day podcast from 1 Peter 3. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

I have for many years had a recurring brainstorm that returns every four years or so like the spring rains on the fields of Iowa. A chapter-a-day podcast from 1 Peter 2. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

Peter urges his fellow believers to embrace the very words Jesus spoke to him: Consider your investment strategy. A chapter-a-day podcast from 1 Peter 1. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

James' final pleas feel far more poignant when I place my feet in the sandals of one of the letters’ original recipients. A chapter-a-day podcast from James 5. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

As I did some spiritual cardio evaluation yesterday, I had to come clean with the fact that I sometimes allow my self-righteous desires and pride free rein when it comes to my attitudes towards certain individuals. A chapter-a-day podcast from James 4. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

As I meditated on the tongue this morning I likened it to a living cardiogram — my words revealing symptoms of heart trouble. A chapter-a-day podcast from James 3. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.