Danny

When Your Ears Itch

“I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when peopleContinue reading “When Your Ears Itch”

Make Yourself Replaceable

When I was in college, I and a few friends started a campus ministry. We did small-group Bible studies and a series of evangelistic outreaches, ranging somewhere from wacky to somewhat decent. Overall, a good organization. I remember someone, years after I graduated, coming up to me and saying that they really appreciated the workContinue reading “Make Yourself Replaceable”

Poem: Demas

Second Timothy was written near the end of Paul’s life, and in a lot of ways it is a really sad book. Paul talks about people abandoning him, one of them was Demas. The Bible doesn’t tell us a lot about this man, but Paul does write, “…Demas, in love with this present world, hasContinue reading “Poem: Demas”

The Wild Equilibrium of Christianity

Many people like heresy because they think it is new. They say that standard, orthodox Christianity is dry and boring, while a new take on Christianity is wild and exciting. G.K. Chesterton would laugh at those people. Chesterton compared true Christianity with a man holding on to dear life behind galloping horses, swaying to theContinue reading “The Wild Equilibrium of Christianity”

What Else is Real

Background My son is almost 2, so I traffick pretty heavily in children’s books. One of my favorites, “Why do we say goodnight,” is by Champ Thornton. Especially for being a children’s book, this book has some really solid truth. I think his most helpful contribution is how he portrays the interplay between emotions andContinue reading “What Else is Real”

The Severe Mercy of the Fall

The Common Narrative The longer that I am a Christian, the more I realize how nuanced suffering is. Take the story of the Fall of Man. In the first three chapters of Genesis, God creates the world. Man is placed in the perfect Garden of Eden to work and cultivate. There is a rule, however,Continue reading “The Severe Mercy of the Fall”

Rugged Good Works

“Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they mayContinue reading “Rugged Good Works”

The Difficult Church

Background On March 15, 2020 our church closed its doors temporarily because of Covid-19. We are slated to open again on June 7, and frankly, it has been a long two months. For me, uncertainty has been the hardest part. As a small group leader, I have people that look to me for direction, andContinue reading “The Difficult Church”

Contextualization and “Indian Donuts”

Background I was having a conversation with my wife about the degree that Christians in India should contextualize the gospel to make it intelligible to people, but yet not lose the meaning of the gospel. (It goes without saying that I married up). She said something to the effect of, “well, it’s like when peopleContinue reading “Contextualization and “Indian Donuts””

It can’t be fixed

Background The ending of the book of Daniel is one of the saddest scenes in the Bible, but there is much we can learn from it. A little background: King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon attacked Jerusalem and sacked it. (Daniel 1:1-2) In an attempt to strengthen his own kingdom, Nebuchadnezzar captured some of the best andContinue reading “It can’t be fixed”