Ordinary Life & Vocation

Have you noticed that words like “extreme” and “revolutionary” have ironically become part of our “ordinary” vocabulary, even in the world of contemporary Christianity? We’re constantly being encouraged to “transform the world,” to pursue “radical discipleship,” or simply to do “big things for Jesus.” But what is the cost of this continual use of superlatives? […]

Some may argue that the call to recover “ordinary discipleship” is simply a cop-out for mediocrity and low expectations. But as the hosts explain in this program, they’re actually calling for a higher quality form of discipleship that’s sustainable over the long haul; one that doesn’t give up easily when immediate results are unseen. On […]

It is wonderful when thoughtful believers take individual initiative to learn what they believe and why they believe it. But this shouldn’t be something that we can only be obtained through a spectacular conference experience, or through the ideas of best selling book. Every church should be a garden, and every minister is called to […]

There seems to be a false choice today in many quarters between a secular naturalism and hyper-supernaturalism. Conceived this way, either nothing is miraculous, or everything is. But in either case, God’s ordinary providence gets sidelined and ignored. That’s what’s on tap for this edition of the White Horse Inn as the hosts begin to […]

Paul describes the teaching of the gospel—all that is needed for salvation—as “the whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27). Our kids need that counsel, too. Read through Acts with them! Explain the stories. Help them see the goodness, power, and love of the God who made them and sent his Son to die for them.

I feel like motherhood brought the curse nearer to me. I feel like it dropped me on the far side of the sea as I watched my body and my mind unravel into threads only to be wound back up with anxiety and worry. The suffering of a world so infected by Adam’s fall has […]

I’ve rolled into church many a Mother’s Day morning with a heavy heart and deflated expectations. There were years of singleness, and then miscarriage, when I felt invisible in the pew, wondering if I would ever wear the title of “mother” myself. Then came holidays where I felt steamrolled by the demands of raising babies […]

My wife, my kids, and I were on our feet—shouting, jumping, cheering like crazy—as Iowa State fan favorite Tamin Lipsey splashed a clutch three-pointer with 15 seconds left to tie the game. For a moment, it felt like pure joy. Then, just 15 seconds later, we were all equally devastated as Arizona hit an impossible […]