Below is Pastor Don’s blog, where Pastor Don shares his thoughts on Scripture, current events, and more. Make sure to check back here frequently to read more about topics we may even discuss when we meet!
I came across the following quote from Timothy Keller in the book “Center Church.” He says, “Moralism eats away at real joy and humor because the system of legalism forces us to take our self (our image, our appearance, our reputation) very seriously.” [parentheses and italics in original]. That has indeed been my personal experience.…
“Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know that you have done this in the integrity of your heart, and it was I who kept you from sinning against me. Therefore I did not let you touch her.” Genesis 20:6 I will leave it up to you to read and fill in…
I confess that I’m just not very politically minded, even with a Master’s Degree in political science. I glance at headlines from time to time, and I find the theories that attempt to explain human society and virtues like justice and fairness very interesting, but the ins and outs of Washington or Lansing just seem…
I invented a new phrase today in a conversation with someone about new believers. He called them ‘squeaky clean’ and I called them ‘filthy clean.’ There is something true about his phrase and something true about mine. When a person gives their life to Jesus Christ embracing His sacrifice for them through humility and faith,…
I need to clarify something I recently said in a video I posted online, and have decided to make it a blog post not only because it’s an opportunity to teach on God’s character, but also to comment on one particular aspect of a healthy church. We’ve been doing a Grow Vlog (video blog) for…
I made my wife really happy yesterday. Monday is my day off, and I committed the day to getting some projects done around the house, and one in particular brought about by some decorative sticky-backed circle mirrors that left holes in the drywall when Nikki tried to remove them in order to apply a fresh…
I love big cities! There is something about the hustle and bustle of city life that energizes me. I attended a conference for Pastors in Chicago this past week, and if I am honest, I was more excited about being in Chicago than I was about attending the conference. But God met me on His…
This is a post I wrote originally for http://thecollegiatechristian.org, primarily for college students, but I think it applies to us all. Welcome to summer, college kids. The torturous stress of exam week has passed, dorm rooms and apartments have been cleared out, books cashed in and temps are rising. The freedom (apart from lame part-time…
It is amazing to me that I have now been preaching almost every week for over four years. That means I have delivered close to 200 sermons, and in a very real sense sermon preparation has become the structure of my life. The skeleton of my weekly schedule revolves around textual analysis on Mondays, Historical…
I read Wired magazine each month, almost cover to cover in order to keep up with technology trends and because I am a bit of a nerd. (Have you seen my Star Wars Lego collection in my office?) In the middle of the April edition I came across a tiny little article that grabbed my…
Happy National Day of Prayer. I hope this day finds you praying. I hope this day is not very different from everyday. I hope that you communicate with God regularly about a whole host of subjects. But I am guessing that you are like me, and prayer can easily slide into a routine that happens…
In the wake of the tragic events in Boston, I reencountered a quotation from Fred Rogers that has become a staple on Facebook whenever tragedy strikes. Fred Rogers was very good working with children and had a long standing Television show and he once said, “When I was a boy and I would see scary…
