Serious About Scripture

Mentoring and motivating Christ’s people to live his words

A Tale of Tested Assumptions

Quincey was an exacting man, an accountant. He wanted to be forgiven by God for his many sins because his conscience was troubling him. He assumed that he must confess each of his sins to receive that forgiveness, and that this confession could not be just an act, but genuine. So he set out to do that. Not all sins are of the same weight, since Jesus talked of “greater sins” and “worse sins,” so he further assumed he must…

Asahel Nettleton: The Forgotten Evangelist

The year was 1812. America had just declared war on Great Britain in June and lost its first battle in October. In the midst of that climate, a young, unimpressive minister on his way to an assignment in New York stopped at a church in the community of South Britain, Connecticut.[1] When he was invited to preach, no one could have anticipated the impact his ministry would have, not only on this small church, but also on all the East Coast over the…

The Kind of Group Prayer Participant You DON’T Want to Be

My first opportunity to pray in a group came when some of my fellow high school students and I were standing in a circle, holding hands. The leader told us we could either pray or squeeze the hand of the person next to us. I was a squeezer that day. Since then, I have enjoyed praying and hearing others pray hundreds, if not thousands, of times in both planned and impromptu settings. However, I have learned through my mistakes and…

For Better Conversations

Good conversation went fugitive with the invasion of electronic media. Yet you long for it, and so do those in your circle of acquaintances. Believers in Christ ought to be excellent at it. Even our non-believing friends ought to leave us saying, “That was the best conversation I’ve had for months.” There is an art to develop in conversation, granted, but we should be committed to the process. In my view, it is attainable by any of us. Hint: Self…