Book Review: Jesus, Bread, and Chocolate

John J. Thompson recently published what I believe is his first book. Entitled “Jesus, Bread, and Chocolate – Crafting a Handmade Faith in a Mass-Market World”, the book is one part auto-biographical, one part informational (overviews of how beer is made, where chocolate comes from, etc.), one part biography (he shares brief stories of several

How Effective Does A Ministry Have To Be In Order To Be Worthwhile?

I expect this is a question many leaders ask themselves in some form or another. When you spend your time, energy, and other resources on something, you want to believe that it is worthwhile. You also want to be getting the most out of this investment, not necessarily personally, but in terms of moving toward

The Problem of Evil, Part 5 – Love Not Micromanagement

In my previous post, I explain why the “magical” view of God is ruled out by his unchanging nature which fixes reality within certain parameters. In this article, I share how one of God’s specific characteristics rules out him micromanaging the world. One of if not the most primary characteristic of God is love. I

The Problem of Evil, Part 4 – The Fixed Nature of Reality

In my previous post, I shared two misconceptions about God’s power: that it is “magical” and means controlling (or micromanaging). I now want to make a case for why God’s being all power can’t mean these things. When we say “God”, we must mean something or else we are talking about nothing. By saying God