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Will Hispanic Evangelicals Save the Western World?

2012-05-23T14:40:33Z

I just returned from a wonderful trip to Nicaragua--a nation that was a Communist basket case just seventeen short years ago--but is now emerging into freedom. I was invited to help train 230 YWAM staff from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Belize, Costa Rica and Panama who are laboring in those nations and sending others all over the globe.

It's thrilling to see what God is doing among Latino evangelicals in the 21st century. Merely one hundred years ago they were uninvolved in God's global work. Today they're a major part of the "Fourth Wave of Modern Missions." And seeing their dynamic faith got me thinking:

Will Hispanic evangelicals be used of God to help save the Western world?

Finishing Well: Lessons from Hitler, Einstein, and Walt Disney

2012-05-08T17:48:50Z

Three friends from three different generations died last month. All of them knew Jesus, but their passings were sobering and mostly unexpected.

On Friday, I drove two hours to see another friend who was recently given thirty days to live. We enjoyed a wonderful twenty minutes together and finished our time at his home with prayer. I told him that our next meeting would "be on the other side."

Then a couple of days ago, I was between flights at the San Francisco airport on my way home from Washington, D.C. and thumbed through some biographies of Adolph Hitler, Albert Einstein and Walt Disney. I was especially interested in their "last days" since I'd been dealing with death recently.

All three did not finish well. There's much we can learn from their stories.

I want you to finish well. So do I.

Chuck Colson and Richard Dawkins: The Difference Humility Makes

2012-04-25T03:40:00Z

We lost a great man of God this past week with the passing of Church Colson. I met him on a couple of occasions and read most of his his books starting with Born Again in the late seventies. Most recently I re-read, How Now Shall We Live? as a research text for my doctoral studies.

I consider Chuck Colson the greatest "worldview warrior" of the past twenty years.

For my doctoral thesis, I also recently read Richard Dawkins The God Delusion, atheism's most recent bestseller. I needed to harvest some quotes from it for a chapter on secularism-atheism.

Both Chuck Colson and Richard Dawkins have brilliant minds. What struck me this week is the difference that humility makes.

Understanding Current Events By Looking Behind the Curtain

2012-04-02T16:18:51Z

"For we are not fighting against people made from flesh and blood, but against the evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against those mighty powers of darkness who rule this world, and against wicked spirits in the heavenly realm" (Ephesians 6:12).

I loved the Wizard of Oz as a child because it was the first movie shown in color on television (Kansas was black and white, and when Dorothy arrived in Oz it was burst into color--right on the TV screen!).

I was also intrigued by the concept of the wizard. He hid behind a curtain and deceived the inhabitants of Oz. They thought one thing was happening, but it was really another. Finally, Dorothy's dog, Toto, pulled aside the curtain and the wizard was exposed.

There is an important lesson here. Things may not be what they seem. What looks to us as the cause just might be effect of another.

I got thinking this week about the "truth behind the curtain" when watching the growing race rage behind the Tayvon Martin story--the 17-year old young man who was shot and killed in Miami.

And I was reminded: We must interpret current events by remembering to look behind the curtain.

Another Reminder To Have Two Suitcases Packed

2012-03-20T03:07:13Z

Three weeks ago, my wonderful 92-year-old father broke his hip and had surgery that we weren't sure he would survive. He did. As he rehabs and gains strength, we're enjoying precious times talking both about life and eternal life.

My good friend and YWAM Atlanta director Ramona Musch survived a brain tumor last year--but recent reports show that a small growth has returned. Please pray for her and her family.

And yesterday morning I had minor surgery to remove a small cyst from from my voice box. They "put me put" for the procedure, and as I slipped into la-la-land, I remembered a good friend, Sam Hines, who died having the very same surgery some years back.

So I prayed as the "lights went out"--and also recalled a column I wrote some time ago about being ready to face both life and death.

Dad, Ramona, and I have two suitcases packed.

Do you?

Seven Principles of the Judeo-Christian Ethic

2012-03-07T03:54:00Z

Last September my friend Winkie Pratney surprised me at a conference in Texas by publicly presenting me a copy of the Revival Study Bible he recently helped to produce. I've been using it since in my devotions--and its commentary and teachings inspire me daily to seek God for personal and national renewal.

The Bible contains a section edited by Richard G. Lee called "The Seven Principles of the Judeo-Christian Ethic." I'd like to share them with you today.

Want to build a strong life and nation? Then build them on principles from the very character of God that helped create many of the blessings of our modern world.

Here are the seven principles of the Judeo-Christian ethic.

Letter to a Homosexual Friend

2012-02-20T18:36:53Z

A week ago the state of Washington became the seventh state in the U.S. to approve homosexual marriage. It was done by a bill passed in the legislature and signed by the governor.

Both a referendum and an initiative have been filed to give the people a vote on the matter. If enough signatures are gathered, the vote will take place during the November elections. So far, not one state in America has legitimized homosexual behavior by a vote of the people.

The future of marriage is both a legal issue and a personal one. I believe it is critical for people of faith to align themselves with truth on the law side and with grace on the personal one. Actually. truth and grace are manifestations of the same heart motivation: the love of God.

A number of homosexuals are dialoguing with me because of my involvement in this issue. I thought it might be helpful to share one of those dialogues with you.

Why Did They Lie To Us About Global Warming?

2012-02-06T00:58:10Z

I'm currently writing a new book for a doctorate degree. The title is River of God: Understanding the Source of the World's Major Religions and Why Only One of Them Can Be True. The book is about truth--and one of the chapters I'm working on is about its opposite--lies.

I've noticed that when I'm studying or writing about something, that subject seems to appear everywhere on my radar screen. It becomes the "lens" of the week that directs my eyes to see and my brain to ponder. Which is why the following story on global warming really caught my attention.

Did you know that they've been lying to us about global warming for at least fifteen years?

Why would they lie to us?

The Best About Marriage

2012-01-10T19:17:32Z

The defining issue of the 19th century was slavery. It took 250 years to change the hearts of the American nation and get it right--at the cost of 600,000 lives.

Abortion was the paramount moral issue of the 20th century. In the United States, we have killed over 56 million children since 1973. We have yet to stop this profound evil against our own progeny, but the tide is turning and victory may be in sight.

The great challenge of the 21st century will be preserving marriage. To our great shame, Washington is poised this month to become the seventh US state to redefine it. Many have prayed, made calls to our legislators, and spoke out passionately for God's truth about the importance of the marriage union.

This issue will not go away because many people--especially children--will be broken by the destruction of marriage. We must not quit, but be faithful.

Truth always wins out in the end.

I offer today some of the best words I've read recently on marriage. May you use them to strengthen yours--and share the truth to all of those around you.

Are Pastors As Courageous as the Governor?

2012-01-05T04:15:35Z

I really don't like most Internet "forwards." Some are insightful--and occasionally one or two are real zingers. But most are not profound or important enough to pass on to my already-information-overloaded friends.

Today I make an exception and ask you to deeply consider fowarding the following words to every pastor or spiritual leader that you know personally.

I didn't write this letter. But I consider it a "Wittenberg Door" moment that is desperately needed to halt the destruction of many lives and an entire civilization.

The following article begs you to get involved in the seminal cultural issue of the 21st century--the redefinition of marriage. Will you twittle your thumbs while Rome burns or will you grab a fire-hose and start putting out the flames?

What will you do?