I think we all knew this was coming, but it is nonetheless shocking to see it happen.A friend of mine, James Coates, who went through the D. Min. program with me and is a pastor in Canada, has been arrested by the Canadian Government for holding church services.Here is an update from James' wife:James has been in isolation in a cell block since yesterday morning. His hearing didn't go very well. T...  Read More

Let us therefore remember, whenever each of us contemplates his own nature, that there is one God who so governs all natures that he would have us look unto him, direct our faith to him, and worship and call upon him. For nothing is more preposterous than to enjoy the very remarkable gifts that attest the divine nature within us, yet to overlook the Author who gives them to us at our asking.~John ...  Read More

Al Mohler has recently written a very helpful article about Vaccines and the Christian Worldview. In the article he lists seven issues that Christians should consider as they think through the morality of the new COVID vaccine.Mohler writes:This is an absolutely historic and crucial moment. This pandemic has wrought untold destruction—and we are, I pray, in the final months of this contagion’s dea...  Read More

The finest test of the consecration of a minister of Christ is not in his public performances, but in what he does when the world is not looking. It is hard for a man to tell when he is preaching whether he is preaching for himself or for God. To open up glorious ideas, to clothe them with language which glows and speak them in tones which burn-all this is so delightful that it is not easy for the...  Read More

On July 19th of 64 AD a fire broke out in the capitol city of Rome, which burned for three days and three nights. When the flames were finally extinguished and the citizens of Rome began to grasp how much they had lost, historians tell us that the whole city descended into a “hopeless brotherhood of wretchedness.” This wretchedness quickly turned to furious rage at Emperor Nero.Nero was already kn...  Read More

By any measure, last week was a terrible week for our nation.For reasons that need no further explanation, it was a particularly bad week for conservatives in this country.In light of the anxiety that so many of us are feeling about the days to come, I want to remind all of us that no that matter who sits in the White House, no matter who holds the gavel in the house of representatives, and no mat...  Read More

This is a short piece of creative writing that I started a few weeks ago. I’ve spent a lot of time in 1 Peter lately, getting ready for my next preaching series, so the format of the letter is similar to that of 1 Peter (I’ve included hyperlinks in bold to all of the biblical references). It’s something of a “tongue in cheek” letter to those dear friends who have left California (California’s Refu...  Read More

I first professed faith in Christ and was baptized as a young teenager, having heard the Gospel at a private Christian school I attended for two years. But as a young adult I was distracted by new responsibilities and the things of the world. I attended church only sporadically and did not spend enough time in the Word or in fellowship with other Christians. When Lori and I married I understood my...  Read More

I accepted Christ at the age of 8 during vacation bible school at the Dixon Neighborhood Church in Dixon, CA. At the time, I remember sitting a row behind three of my classmates. When the leaders asked who accepted Christ, I raised my hand and one of my classmates in front of me did also but then quickly put it down when they were ridiculed by their friends sitting next to them(Matt 13:4,19). By t...  Read More

"One of my favorite scenes is in the home of Bob Crachit..."  Read More

"There are many different kinds of troubles in this world."  Read More

"As God provides the sea for leviathan, so does he find a pool for the minnow."  Read More