There's a poem by Andrew Marvell, "To His Coy Mistress," that begins, "Had we but world enough and time [ . . . ]" It's a great phrase. For the speaker and his eponymous lover, the phrase is his desire for more time for them to flirt and fall in love. For us, though, the possibilities are endless. What would we do "had we but world enough and time"? Would we travel the world? Buy a mansion? Spend a thousand years learning to compose symphonies? Master sculpture? Finally catch

One of my favorite Peanuts cartoons has Snoopy hard at work at his typewriter banging out a theology book. His title: Has It Ever Occurred to You That You Might Be Wrong? For some people, I'm sure it hasn't; they hold to their childhood beliefs, well, dogmatically. For others, however they personally read the Bible is absolute truth, even if they're the only one to ever read it that way in 2,000 years. It's the latter bunch I want to discuss. They perfectly illustrate the nee

The law of diminishing returns says, in a nutshell, the more times you do something or experience something, the less you get out of it. Usually we apply it to jokes. The first time you hear a hilarious joke, you laugh until you cry. By the twenty-ninth time you hear the same joke, you barely crack a smile (assuming you don't just roll your eyes). The return (laughter) diminished. Of course, it applies to a lot of other things, too: nerves about a new job, anger at a specific

It's eclipse day! This means Jesus is coming back, the seven-year tribulation period is about to begin, God is passing judgment specifically on America, and constellations are soon to align which signal the fulfillment of Revelation 12. I'll see you on the other side! Or . . . not. Since all of that is bunk. Every last bit of that (and far more) has come across my desk recently, and it tells me Christians have issues with what prophecy truly is. Biblical prophecy is not endle

It's a simple fact everyone believes in something. The true skeptic just doesn't exist. People may not believe in God, they may not believe in love, they may not believe in leprechauns or vaccines or that the earth is round or whatever, but they still believe something. It could be as simple as the belief they'll draw their next breath without complications or something as complex as the idea our universe is just an alien computer simulation. But everyone believes in somethin

For three days a week, every week, for almost a year now, you've been reading my thoughts on this blog. Today I want to change it a bit. Instead of listening to what I have to say, take the time you'd normally spend reading this post and pray. Listen to what God is telling you right now, in this moment. Share your burdens. Intercede for others. Give thanks to the Almighty. Praise His holy name. I have nothing to say more important than what God has for you today. Find out wh

The race riot in Charlottesville over the weekend -- something I never would have dreamed would happen in 2017 -- demands a Christian response. It seems one of America's favorite sins, racism, is back to the forefront of the national consciousness. People are dying fifty years after the Civil Rights Act at the hands of white supremacists because they view people as equals regardless of the color of their skin. It's easy for us to say racism isn't a problem anymore. And I'll w

We all grew up singing the same song in church: The B-I-B-L-E Yes, that's enough for me I stand all alone on the word of God The B-I-B-L-E (BIBLE!) I think it used to be true. The Bible itself was enough. But recently I had to buy a new Bible, as my preaching/teaching Bible fell apart beyond repair, and the process to replace it was immensely discouraging (and frustrating). I have nothing against study Bibles or reference Bibles, Bibles with maps, Bibles with devotions, or an

As Russell County begins another school year, I want to let our students, parents, teachers, administrators, and other school staff that we are praying for you! I know it will be another long year, but it's also another year of opportunities and growth -- spiritually as well as mentally. If you doubt the truth of that statement, let me ask you: will the next school year try your patience? Courage? Faith? Humility? Kindness? If so, then you have a chance to bear more of the fr

There's a common modern-day parable that goes something like this: One day an old man was walking along the beach in the early morning and noticed the tide had washed thousands of starfish up on the shore. Up ahead in the distance, he spotted a boy who appeared to be gathering up the starfish, tossing them one by one back into the ocean. He approached the boy and asked him why he spent so much energy doing what seemed to be a waste of time. The boy replied, "If these starfish