Why I Listen to Old People

"Give instruction to a wise man and he will be wiser still,

Teach a righteous man and he will increase his learning."

Proverbs 9:9

Ever since I was a child, as much as I can remember I have always been around older people. I remember so fondly growing up with my grandparents for the first seven years of my life, how having them in full view was perpetually inspiring. I don't remember a day of boredom. They were also my very first mentors. I never forget their counsel.

That's why I love this article by Josh Riley who writes of the value of learning from those who are both older than us, and those who have gone before us. It is these who often tell us about most crisis, "It's not a big deal." Or, "Pray about it child, God will take care of it all." Chuck Swindol once said that he feels sorry for anyone who does not have a mentor. It's such an undeniable pity. I must remember by God's grace, to stay close to my mentors and listen to those who have gone before me.

The more I “mature” in age, the more I find myself listening to old people.

We sometimes hear about the difference between new writers and dead guys.  The appeal of the dead guys, of course, is that they have gone on to glory and its too late for them to become heretics or major moral failures.

And the new guys have some fresh insights, having been exposed to a different world growing up than older folks.  But there is a middle ground of life experience we need to pay attention to: the old guys who have most of life behind them and the reality of impending glory before them.  They have much to say worth listening to.

And by old folks, I mean people in the last quadrant and season of life—roughly 60 or 70 and over.

Here are a few reasons why you should listen to old people:

1. Old people have lived more of life than the rest of us.  When they stand up to speak, they have a long track record of life from which to draw.  And much of that time was spent actually focused on living life rather than memorizing passwords, tweeting trivia, engaging with video games, Facebooking, and texting.  Much of that time was spent thinking, reflecting, and doing real things–often hard things– rather than watching people pretend to do real things on television. They know more about the human experience and the struggles of the human soul.  They have regrets.  Regrets we can learn from and, if we are wise, strive to avoid.

2. Old people are done with ladder-climbing and can speak the truth without fear of losing a job, donors, followers, blog readers, a career track, supporters, customers, conference invitations, record deals, or a popular reputation (those things shouldn’t impact any of us…but let’s be honest.  They do).  Do you ever wonder why modern-day preachers rarely speak out against heresy the way New Testament apostles did in virtually every New Testament epistle?   It’s simple, really.  We don’t want to lose our platforms.  If we speak the truth, we’ll anger the liberal heretics on the left, the conservative Pharisees on the right, and the money-changers who rule both and who control more of the religious trinket and publishing empires than we’d like to admit.  Truth is, we value acceptance over faithfulness—that’s why we hoard influence rather than dispensing 100 proof Truth.  Old people just don’t care about that kind of pretense any more.  They’re no longer trying to climb the ladder, so if they offend gatekeepers and aren’t invited to the latest conference, it’s OK.  They probably don’t want to fly all the way out there anyway.  They don’t have to walk on eggshells, fearful their church following might shrink, which in turn would shrink their own reputation, which would in turn shrink their own income and lifestyle.  It’s already shrunk, due to empty nest syndrome, age limitations, and the general downsizing of life that takes place at that age.  It’s so easy to justify compromise when we’re seeking fame and influence that we don’t recognize we are doing it…. until we get old and don’t need the fame to feel good about ourselves, the income to sustain a very comfortable lifestyle, or the reputation to impress the flock into buying our stuff.  Old people can truly view people as…well, people, rather than religious consumers. They are prepared to give people what they need, rather than what they want.  Having lived most of life, they have a better understanding of what people need, whereas younger people have a better understanding of what people want. They are willing to dispense spiritual surgery to address the rot in the soul, rather than hand out pretty Band-Aids, pain killers, and entertainment that do little more than cover up soul pain and make it feel good for a while.

3. Old people have walked with God and have seen and heard most all aberrant theologies and pharisaical perspectives.  They’ve seen personal shipwrecks caused by every kind of perverted theology from liberal “grace” abusers who turn grace into licentiousness, to conservative, legalistic Pharisees who have extra rules and rules and more rules for everybody.  Most of them have lived on both sides of the fence at some point in their lives and have learned to major on the majors and minor on the minors.  They fight for the gospel and ignore secondary issues, where the younger guys still fight for influence, acceptance, and a viral blog post, Instagram shot or video.

4. If they are truly regenerate, the older they get the more aware they are of their own shortcomings and the vastness of the grace of God. They’ve learned to enjoy growing and living in grace, and responding to it with obedience and gratefulness rather than callousness or performance standards.  They aren’t impressed with themselves and don’t waste much time on nonsense.  They realize how silly 95% of the stuff people on earth get excited about on earth really is.  They know they don’t have another 50 years ahead of them and so the things of eternity are becoming clearer to them as the clutter of life is pulled away.  They still believe God has a sense of humor but they somehow sense He isn’t laughing at most of the stuff we are laughing at on television.  They are more serious about life, and yet often less anxious at the same time.  They spend less time stressing in the pursuit of coolness, and more time resting in the pursuit of godliness…less time striving to be accepted by ungodly people or churchy people and more time enjoying the acceptance of God they already have.

Sure, there is a tendency in old age to become a grump, a curmudgeon, and a luddite resistant to change and technology.  But that shouldn’t prevent us from learning and listening.  After all, young folks have a few undesirable tendencies too.

So, that’s why I increasingly listen to old guys, not just dead guys and young guys.

Do you want to know what is temporal and cool?  Talk to a millennial.  Want to know how to make money?  Talk to a boomer.

But if you want to be wise?  Listen to some faithful old guys and ladies who have walked with God two or three times longer than you’ve even walked the earth.

The internet is filled with wisdom from some of these folks…people like Alistair Begg, J.I.Packer, Peter Lord, or Steve Brown, John Stott (recently deceased, sadly) and Billy Graham come to mind for me.

But you don’t have to just listen to “professional” Christians.  Some of the godliest and wisest men and women you’ll ever meet might be just down the hall in your own church.

Or even in your own family.

Lets learn from those who came before us and are still with us. 

Source: http://worship.com/2013/08/why-i-listen-to-old-people/

Things I Wish I Could Tell My Younger Self About Calvinism (Or: How to Be Less of A Jerk)

by Stephen Altrogge

Another well-articulated and tastefully conveyed conviction to model myself after.

“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?

Jesus replied:

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with

all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second

is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets

hang on these two commandments.” – Matthew 22:34-40

“If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.” – 1 Corinthians 13:2

“When I first understood the Doctrines of Grace (more commonly known as Calvinism and/or Reformed theology), I felt like I had entered The Matrix (minus Keanu Reeves).

It was as if multiple puzzle pieces were clicking into place and a single, unified picture was becoming clear. Things that seemed somewhat confusingly jumbled, like the various covenants, Israel’s rejection of Christ, and weird statements in the book of Romans, suddenly came together, like in a television show when an enlightened detective starts drawing lines between various mug shots and newspaper clippings while heart-thumping music plays in the background.

All this was a big deal to me, and I quickly came to the conclusion that it was my mission from God to convert every person in existence to Calvinism. As you can imagine, this made me quite a pleasant person (insert record scratch noise).

As I’ve gotten older, slightly more godly and slightly less annoying, I’ve come to a few realizations about the place the Doctrines of Grace should hold in my life.

I wish I could go back in time and communicate these things to my younger self, although my younger self probably would have fiercely debated my older self and then come away concluding my older self was a moron.

What would I tell my younger self?

CALVINISM MATTERS, BUT IT’S NOT EVERYTHING

I treated the Doctrines of Grace as if they were the sum and substance of Christianity. As if when Jesus was asked about the greatest commandment, he said, “Be sure you believe in election and total depravity!”

This full-throated zeal for all things Calvinist caused me to look down on those who were far more godly than me yet maybe didn’t agree with me on every point of doctrine.

Sure, you’ve given your entire life to serve orphans and widows in Cameroon, but you don’t believe in election, so what’s the point?

Meanwhile, I’m sitting in my living room, wearing sweatpants and sipping coffee while I read Systematic Theology. 

It was absolutely pathetic.

I still believe that the Doctrines of Grace are crucially important to understanding Scripture, but there are other astonishingly important elements to following Jesus.

Like love. Mercy. Justice. Generosity. Serving. Compassion.

Calvinism should NOT be the dominant theme in everything I do as a Christian. Rather, it should be the background track, like the bass line in a Daft Punk song. Or, as John Newton said:

I am more of a Calvinist than anything else; but I use my Calvinism in my writing and preaching as I use this sugar. I do not give it alone, and whole; but mixed, and diluted… I think these doctrines should be in a sermon like sugar in a dish of tea, which sweetens every drop, but is nowhere to be found in a lump – tasted everywhere, though prominent nowhere.

IT’S NOT MY JOB TO CONVERT THE WORLD TO CALVINISM

For a brief time, I became the Mormon missionary of Calvinism (minus the weird name tag and odd underwear). I thought it was my job to convert all people to the gospel of Reformed doctrine, and if they didn’t convert, I became frustrated.

If someone disagreed with me, my brain began generating thoughts like this:

Why can’t they see it?!? They must be spiritually defective! They must be, like, a baby Christian or something! Have they not accepted John Piper into their hearts? Maybe if I just speak louder and longer, I can convince them of the truth. 

I foolishly assumed that it was my God-given responsibility to make sure that every person I knew fully agreed with everything I thought. As if I somehow had cornered the market on all sound doctrine and biblical understanding.

This is incredibly ironic given that the very heart of Reformed theology says God gets all the glory because he is the one ultimately responsible for all the saving, changing, and preserving. It’s like Alanis Morissette said: “Isn’t it ironic?”

Yes, yes it is.

I don’t debate about Reformed theology much these days. I’ll happily discuss it with someone who wants to, but I know that I can’t convince or change any person. If you want to chat about Calvinism, let’s grab a beer (a requirement of being Reformed) and we’ll hash it out.

CALVINISM IS NOT REQUIRED FOR GODLINESS

Some of the most godly, prayerful, loving, generous people I know, do not believe in Reformed theology. These people are so godly and so spirit-filled that they make me look like a headhunting pagan who plays with ouija boards for fun.

The truth is, godliness and Calvinism don’t necessarily go together. Calvinists have a somewhat well-earned reputation as pompous, self-righteous windbags who would rather write 10,000-word screeds than actually serve someone.

When I was younger, I assumed that a person who didn’t embrace Reformed theology was somehow less mature or godly than me. I look back and shudder.

I was the windbag.

I was the one who loved hearing myself talk.

I was the one who liked to toss around fancy theological words (double reprobation anyone?).

It was both terrifically ungodly and tremendously obnoxious. If you were at the business end of my weaponized Calvinism, I apologize.

I still fully embrace Reformed theology, but I now realize that it’s no longer necessary for godliness.

When John Wesley (an Arminian) was asked whether he thought he would see George Whitefield (a Calvinist) in heaven, he said, “No.” Then he said:

Do not misunderstand me, madam; George Whitefield was so bright a star in the firmament of God’s glory, and will stand so near the throne, that one like me, who am less than the least, will never catch a glimpse of him

I feel the same, but in the opposite direction. I expect I won’t see many of my fellow believers in heaven who don’t believe in Reformed theology because they will be much nearer the throne than me.

CALVINISM ISN’T THE SOLUTION FOR EVERY PROBLEM

When I first truly understood that God is sovereign over all things, that was a great comfort to me. God is working all things together for my good. God is the one responsible for saving people. God is in control of governments and presidential candidates (thank goodness!).

But too often, I treated the Doctrines of Grace as the cure-all medicine for every spiritual problem.

You’re struggling with worry? Don’t you believe God is sovereign?

You’re struggling with anger? Don’t you believe in total depravity?

You’re worried about whether you’ll make it to the end? Don’t you believe in perseverance of the saints?

You get the point. Calvinism became my miracle pill that I dispensed freely. No matter the circumstances, I was always quick to whip out my bottle of Reformed theology from my fanny pack of systematic theology (I think that analogy works).

I somehow failed to grasp that truth always goes down better when it’s preceded by grace, love, compassion, and the bearing of burdens. Grace is the spoonful of sugar that makes the medicine of truth go down. Love, compassion, and empathy make it so much easier to hear truth.

Now I still talk encourage people with those same biblical truths, but not before I spend plenty of time simply listening and bearing burdens.

IN THE END

When Jesus returns and all is said and done, I don’t think we’ll be debating the finer points of theology. We’ll be so enraptured with the glory of God that not much else will matter.

Until then, I’ll seek to continue to learn from those who are more godly than me. By God’s grace, in 10 years I’ll be less of a pompous windbag than I am now.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to drink a craft beer while listening to a John Piper sermon.

Source: http://theblazingcenter.com/2016/11/things-wish-tell-younger-self-calvinism-less-jerk.html

Beer and Christianity

I won't say much (by way of introduction) about this well thought out argument written by Barry Cameron of Crossroads Christian Church. He forces us as Christians to think more critically about consuming alcohol; and he helps us consider the more important question, "Should we consume alcohol?" It seems the question has always been, "Can we drink alcohol?" Well, sure we can but should we? When we do so, how does it impact our witness? Does enjoying a beer impact our witness? Well, here we go:

CAN A CHRISTIAN DRINK ALCOHOL?

By Barry Cameron

September 19, 2012

On Monday night, news broke that Olympic gold medalist snowboarder, Shaun White, had been charged with vandalism and public intoxication. On my Facebook wall, I posted the following comment: “This just in . . . and the gold medal for character enhancement, once again, goes to alcohol.”

For years, well-meaning, sincere Christians have debated the subject of drinking. Let me be clear by saying there isn’t a single verse in the Bible that says a Christian cannot have a drink; although the Bible clearly warns about the destructive and addictive nature of alcohol (Proverbs 20:1; 21:17; 23:29-35; Ephesians 5:18) and is very clear that drunkenness is always wrong (Romans 13:13; Galatians 5:19-21; 1 Peter 4:3; Habakkuk 2:15; 1 Corinthians 5:11).

The Bible is also clear that mature Christians should avoid causing others to stumble by drinking (Romans 14:21), and that leaders ought to avoid drinking alcohol (Proverbs 31:4-7) and cannot be given to drunkenness (1 Timothy 3:3, 8 Titus 1:7.)

I have yet to hear from anyone who drinks how alcohol enhances anything or blesses anyone. Max Lucado said, “One thing for sure, I have never heard anyone say, ‘A beer makes me feel more Christlike . . . Fact of the matter is this: People don’t associate beer with Christian behavior.”1 I’ve yet to see how it improves someone’s testimony or makes anyone a more effective witness for Christ. Quite the contrary, like Shaun White mentioned above, or Richard Roberts, Oral Roberts’ son, who was arrested in Tulsa, Oklahoma, driving under the influence, the result doesn’t enhance your testimony. Rather, it takes away from what testimony you had.

Recently, a friend of mine, former mega-church Pastor, John Caldwell, wrote an article in Christian Standard magazine called To Drink or Not to Drink? Here’s the link to his article. John’s article explained why he has personally abstained from drinking alcohol and dealt with the bigger issue of the contemporary church becoming more and more like the world.

Not surprisingly, a number of people responded to John’s article and some called him to task for taking such a strong stand against drinking. In response to the responses, my good friend, Ken Idleman, former President of Ozark Christian College and now Pastor of Crossroads Christian Church in Evansville, IN, wrote these words, which are among the very best I’ve ever read on this issue. I asked Ken for his permission to share them here.

“Okay, I am conscience bound to weigh in on this one…. For a minute, forget about making a definitive case for or against ‘drinking’ from the Bible. Here’s the truth from logic and real life. No one starts out to be an alcoholic. Everyone begins with a defensive attitude saying, ‘I’m just a social drinker and there is nothing wrong with it!’ no one says, ‘It is my ambition that someday I want to lose my job, my health, my self-respect, my marriage and my family. Someday I want to be dependent on alcohol to get through my day.’ yet, this is the destination at which several millions of people have arrived. Why do you suppose that is? It is because alcohol is promoted and elevated as a normal/sophisticated activity in life…. It is also expensive, addictive and enslaving. People get hooked by America’s number one legal drug. And just like all illegal drugs, alcohol finds it way into the body, the bloodstream and the brain of the user/abuser.

I had two uncles whose lives were wrecked by alcohol. The exception you say? Hardly. It is not what they wanted when they dreamed of their futures when they were in their 20s. Praise God, they were wonderfully delivered in their 60s when the grace of God became real to them. And can you imagine it?…. They got their lives back by becoming total abstainers by the power of the Holy Spirit!

One of my most memorable conversations in the state penitentiary in Jefferson City, MO, was with a young man facing a 28-year prison sentence for the brutal sexual assault of his own 8-year old daughter. I will never forget the image. The tears literally ran off his chin and splashed on his shoes as he gushed, ‘I guess I did it. I don’t know. I was drunk at the time.’

Listen, some of those who are defensive in response to Dr. Caldwell’s thoughtful and courageous article will want to revise their text if, in a few years, they discover that they were able to handle their drinking just fine, but their son or daughter could not. Answer honestly. Could you live with the knowledge that your dangerous exercise of Christian liberty factored into your children’s ruin? Or, if your loved one is killed some day in a head on collision by a driver under the influence who crossed the center line, will you still be defensive of drinking?

A good friend during my growing up years was the only child of social drinking parents. When his folks were away, he would go to the rathskeller [German for tavern] in the basement where he developed a taste for alcohol. I won’t bore you with the details. He is 65 today. A broken life, broken health, broken marriages, a broken relationship with his only son, a broken relationship with his only grandchild, a broken career and a broken spirit that…. Tragically…. He tries daily to medicate with the alcohol that led him to this tragic destination.

Hey, thanks for indulging my rant. Like my friend John Caldwell, I confess to setting the bar high for Christian leadership [especially] when it comes to aesthetic holiness. Call me a ‘right-wing fundamentalist.’ Call me a ‘throw back to the days of the tent evangelists.’ Call me a ‘simpleton.’ Call me a ‘minimalist.’ but, if you do, go ahead and also call me a ‘watchman on the wall’ where the welfare of my family [children, in-laws, grandchildren] and my church family is concerned.”2

Personally, I’ve yet to have my first beer and have no desire to start now or to drink alcohol of any kind. At the same time, I don’t judge those who believe they have freedom in Christ to drink. But when asked, I always tell people I don’t believe it’s the best choice.

The bottom line is this: the question really isn’t CAN A CHRISTIAN DRINK? Rather, it is:SHOULD A CHRISTIAN DRINK?

© 2012. Barry L. Cameron

1 David Faust, Voices From The Hill, (Cincinnati, OH: Cincinnati Bible College & Seminary, 2003) 252.

2 John Caldwell, “To Drink or Not to Drink,” Christian Standard 11 August 2012, 18 September 2012.

Source: http://www.crossroadschristian.org/blogs/blog/12806077-can-a-christian-drink-alcohol#.U3Vx7j-xy1r.facebook

Advice for Seminoids

By Tim Gombis

We had an interesting discussion in class yesterday about the challenges of enduring church life while in seminary.  My students are a joyful bunch who love Jesus and his people, but they reflected honestly on the difficulty of dealing with the disconnects between what they study in class and what they observe in church. It is soul-upsetting to critically reflect on Christian realities in classes and then to participate in less-than-ideal Christian practices on Sundays.

This led me to reflect a bit on my own struggles to maintain a proper posture toward the church while inhabiting an environment of critical biblical and theological reflection.

Unfortunately, a seminary education can sometimes (though not always) produce a phenomenon we might call “the seminoid.”

I should know.  I was one.

(NOTE: Friends and family are NOT welcome to share stories in the comments below!)
The seminoid has a superior attitude toward “the laity,” an arrogance toward average Christians, a condescending posture toward the church.  S/he is a “know-it-all” who trots out impressive sounding words in small-group settings, critiques church practice, and spends Sunday afternoons revisiting errors in the sermon and shortcomings in the service.

In the seminoid, the process of critical thought has created a critical spirit.
So, some advice to seminoids—or, to anyone pursuing theological education—on how to be a blessing to the church rather than a bane:

(1) Receive the church.  Seminoids want to comment on the church’s failures, rebuke it, set it right, fix it.  Don’t do that.  Don’t see yourself in all your theological wisdom as a gift to the church.  Learn what it means that the church is a gift to you.  Receive it as such and give thanks to God for it.  Youare the one who needs to grow in Christ, not them.  Of course, objectively,everyone needs to grow in Christ.  But focus your critical scrutiny on your own need to cultivate the character of Christ, and let the church help you in that pursuit.

(2) Minister from your weakness.  Seminoids, like others of us, assume that they minister most effectively from their strengths.  That’s a wrong assumption and a perverted vision of “spiritual gifts.”  It’s counter-intuitive, but we minister most effectively from our weakness.  Jesus told Paul that “power is perfected in weakness” (2 Cor. 12:9), which led him to discover that “when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor. 12:10).  Now, you are indeed a gift to the church, but don’t assume that you know how you are a gift to the church.  That needs to be a long process of discovery, and others will probably see it before you.  If you think you know, you’re probably wrong.  I say this to seminoids because your initial assumption may be that you bless the church by being its instructor, its doctor, diagnosing its wrong theology and its malpractice, and prescribing right theology and proper practice.  If you do this, you will not bless the church.  You will burden it.


(3) Mentor a jr. high kid.  Find a kid in your church (or in your neighborhood) in a single-parent home and become his or her mentor.  They won’t want to hear you discourse on prioritizing biblical atonement metaphors, rhetorical strategies in Luke-Acts, the presence or absence of imputation language in Paul, or historical causes of the demise of mainline denominations.  They’ll probably want to see if fart noises make you laugh, if you can hit a free throw with your eyes closed, and if you care that they’ve been hurt by the class bully.  This is good for you.  It’ll help you avoid taking yourself too seriously.  It’ll remind you that the aim of your theological education is to make you better at spending time with such people for whom Jesus gave his life.
Never forget that Jesus highly commends spending time with jr. high kids (Matt. 19:13-15) and strongly condemns public displays of spirituality (Matt. 6:5-6).

(4) Think eschatologically.  Imagine yourself in the future as a much wiser 60 year-old.  As your future self, reflect a bit on how you treated others, how you related to the church.  You do not want to be an old person with regrets that you hurt people, turned some off to the faith because of arrogance, or discouraged them with ill-considered criticisms.

(5) Consider silence.  Memorize proverbs on remaining silent rather than talking (Prov. 10:19; 13:3; 17:27-28; James 1:19).  I have a handful of regrets for saying something hurtful or stupid in ministry contexts.  I don’t have any regrets about biting my tongue.

(6) Meditate on Scripture.  Memorize passages about humility and servant-hood (e.g., Mark 10:45; Phil. 2:1-11; 2 Cor. 4), along with Proverbs about the speech patterns of the wise (e.g., Prov. 12:18, 23).  Draw on Scriptures that the Spirit may use to orient your character according to Jesus.  Do not memorize texts that you can use in theological debates to buttress your pontifications.

(7) Love the church like God loves the church.  Remember that God gave his life for the church (Acts 20:28), that he loves his people.  If Jesus showed up at your church, he would likely look past your church’s faults and express his outrageous love for its messed-up members.  You’d rather have Jesus say “amen” to your expressions of delight in his people rather than “what’s your problem?” when you note their many shortcomings.

Source: http://timgombis.com/2012/10/11/advice-for-seminoids/

Taming The Dragon

Taming the Dragon from Moments with You 4 JAN 12 Devotion:

Therefore encourage one another and build up one another, just as you also are doing.
1 Thessalonians 5:11

It can lie. It can gossip. It can slander. It can also murmur and complain. It can manipulate and flatter. It can tear down. It can paint itself in nice words, even while cutting someone to ribbons.

My friend Joe Stowell calls it "the dragon in our dentures." Our tongue. It can truly be deadly.
On the other hand, when that "dragon" is under the power of the Holy Spirit, when we are daily training it to be submitted to Christ’s control and available for His use and purposes, He can transform it into an instrument that delivers encouragement.

I remember being in church one Sunday morning when I spotted a prominent local oncologist walking by. I’d been hearing about some special things he’d been doing with his cancer patients--some unique ways he was allowing God to minister through him in the course of practicing his profession. So I caught his attention and said, "Hey, I just wanted you to know I really appreciate what you’re doing. Do you realize what an incredible minister for Christ you are? You’re making quite a difference in our community."

It was like I’d hit him with a stun gun. A dazed expression flashed across his face. And after a moment’s pause, he looked at me and said, "Really?" I said, almost laughing now, "Well, yeah. The things I’ve been hearing about the work you do are really inspiring. We could use a lot more Christ followers like you."

He shook my hand and smiled. "You don’t know how much I needed to hear that this morning. Thank you." I was reminded again how often people just need a nod of encouragement in their journey, no matter how confident he or she may appear to be.

Shared a good word with someone lately?

Discuss
Think about some things you’ve been noticing in others that are really worth praising. Slay the dragon and encourage them.

Pray
Ask God to make you and your words build up, not tear down.

The Exemplary Husband (1)

If the husband will be the kind of leader he should be, most problems within the family can ultimately be resolved. But if the husband defaults of his biblical and spiritual responsibilities, the problems invariably grow worse - and sometimes even destroy the family.

The husband's role is not simple, and it requires expertise that, frankly, doesn't come naturally to most men. The husband's various duties involve priestly elements, organizational and administrative tasks, and numerous responsibilities related to spiritual and practical leadership of all kinds. Being a godly husband requires the skill of a gifted manager, the heart of a loving counselor, and the ability to lead while gaining a follower's respect - chiefly by being a consistent example. The godly husband is a loving soul-mate, a mentor, a friend, a protector, an encourager, and a devoted listener. This is by no means a part-time calling.