Husband, father, and grandfather, Tim lives with his wife in northern Indiana where he often teaches Bible classes at his church. He is the author of the book, Back to God, scheduled to be released in early 2020.
As a child, I struggled to finish my dinner. Not that I was given too much food, I just disliked one or more of the items on my plate. Often my mom would remind me of the starving child in Africa who would love to have my food. Fortunately, international adoptions were not common back then, else I might have foolishly suggested we procure one. That would not have gone over well. The problem was not an inefficient allocation of… Read More »Longing for Righteousness
It is like the Rocky movies. Twelve rounds, winner take all, the arrogant, brutish slugger up against the over-matched but hopeful challenger. The first nine rounds are somewhat typical in that the amateur rival is getting the snot beat out of him by the champ, along with a good deal of blood. However, this match is different. The challenger does not even throw a punch. He is continually knocked down, gets back up, staggers but stays in the fight. Finally,… Read More »Triumphant Meekness
The term social justice has become a volatile catchphrase that is bound to stir up emotions across the political spectrum. Though the Bible clearly calls us to uphold justice, some have hijacked the vocabulary of justice to promote an agenda contrary to God, his commandments, and his design. These people proceed with a presumption of their own righteousness. However, the biblical starting point for godly social justice is not self-righteous indignation, but mourning. Yet, that mourning is not without hope.… Read More »Good News for Mourners
Let’s face it, the prosperity preachers have an appealing shtick: “God wants you to drive the best car, live in lavish luxury, and be independently wealthy.” Unsurprisingly, that message coincides very conveniently with my own innate self- indulgence, covetousness, and vanity. Nevertheless, the most formidable opponent of this prosperity gospel is the Bible. In the Beatitudes (Matt. 5:3-12), Jesus preached a contrary message. His gospel involves poverty, mourning, meekness, hunger, purity, peacemaking, and persecution. The primary characteristic of the blessed… Read More »The Poverty Gospel
What do you think of when you see a treadmill? Physical fitness? A heathy lifestyle? Sweat? I think, Oh, look! There’s a garage sale. You may detect a bit of cynicism. Blame it on deceptive advertising. The attractive and impressive models that grace the box on exercise equipment with their finely sculpted bodies have never come within 100 feet of a potato chip. They torture themselves for a living. They promise us non-olympians the “thrill of victory.” Nope! It’s “the… Read More »Spiritual Exercise through Scripture Memorization
Peace officers carry guns. As a child of the sixties, that still strikes me as ironic. The word peace conjures up images of flowers, certainly not guns. Nevertheless, having survived the sixties and the decades since, I am convinced that arming the police with flowers instead of guns would be disastrous. The paradox of peace is we must fight for peace. Fighting Words This is a contentious day when disagreeing with someone could get us ‘canceled.’ We are accused of… Read More »The Paradox of Peace
Human aspiration to greatness and glory is one evidence of the image of God imprinted on our hearts. History tells the story of this universal pursuit of glory. When the gospel informs and directs this pursuit, it generally results in human flourishing. However, a secular, self-absorbed society can seduce us with its own kind of great commission: “Follow your dreams.” The problem with dreams is they can loosen our grip on kingdom reality. Over the Rainbow The entertainment industry bombards… Read More »The Problem with Dreams
Aiming for mere human exceptionalism is a sure path to spiritual floundering (Matt. 5:20). A case in point is the call for tolerance. Tolerance, though a singular virtue in secular society, is destructive to the power and purity of the church. The root meaning of tolerance is enduring pain. It implies no change or progress. It is live and let live. You do your thing, and I will do mine. The problem with tolerance is it settles for mediocrity and… Read More »The Problem with Tolerance
“The church is full of hypocrites.” You may have heard that criticism from someone. Upon hearing this charge, a friend of mine would often respond, “There is always room for one more.” We all have been guilty of saying one thing and doing another. That does not excuse our hypocrisy. However, the greater threat to the church is the problem with actors. Who Are You Calling a Hypocrite? Calling out religious people for the sin of hypocrisy is not a… Read More »The Problem with Actors
In our day, a collective fear grips society and few have the courage to expose the nakedness of baseless, narcissistic claims foisted upon us by powerful self-serving institutions. Do we expect our children to speak up and rescue us? Fathers, how can we expose our kids on the front lines as we flee the field of battle. If we don’t want our children to grow up to be cowards, we must courageously lead them by speaking God’s truth in love.