Are Christian Parents Too Protective of Their Children?
In 2017, Jack Gilbert—who teaches microbial science at the University of Chicago—published a fascinating book: Dirt is Good: The Advantage of Germs for Your Child’s Developing Immune System.
As the title suggests, Gilbert challenges a core assumption of every nervous parent, namely that we must take every step humanly possible to protect our child from any and all forms of contamination. It seems that our kids can never use enough hand sanitizer or take enough baths or use enough Clorox wipes.
As paradoxical as it seems, argues Gilbert, some level of exposure to germs can actually be a good thing. It can help children develop their immune systems which, … Continue reading...
Key Signs of an Abusive Pastor #3: Overly Critical and Harsh with Others
I’m continuing my blog series on spiritual abuse in the church which I am calling “Bully Pulpit”. You can see the prior installments here , here, and here. Since spiritual abuse is not as easy to spot as other forms of abuse, I am working my way through a number of key signs that churches should be on the watch for.
We come now to a third sign of a spiritually abusive pastor, namely that they are known for being overly critical and harsh with those under them. As Chuck DeGroat observes in his book, When Narcissism Comes to Church, abusive pastors are known for … Continue reading...
5 Leadership Lessons I Learned from Ted Lasso
If you watched the Golden Globes the other night, you saw that Jason Sudeikis won best actor for his role as the lovable Ted Lasso in AppleTV’s new hit TV show. That win spurred a number of new articles about why America loved, and needed, this show so much.
So, I thought it would be fitting to repost my earlier article on this charming show and how it teaches us (ironically) about what good Christian leadership looks like:
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Looking back on 2020, it seemed like all news was bad news. We moved from impeachment to the coronavirus to the killing of George Floyd to the presidential election to multiple … Continue reading...
What Do We Do When Our View of Morality Is Seen as Hateful and Intolerant?
I am working my way through a blog series in anticipation of my forthcoming book, Surviving Religion 101: Letters to a Christian Student on Keeping the Faith in College (Crossway, 2021). This new series will include 7 videos that tackle key intellectual questions about the Christian faith.
This fifth video deals with one of the most common challenges we face: “My Views Are Seen as Hateful and Intolerant: Should I Change Them?”
Here we come to the issue of the Christian view of morality. For those on a secular college campus, there’s nothing that makes you feel out of place more quickly than your distinctive moral code.
Of course, … Continue reading...
Aren’t Christians Just Arrogant Know-It-Alls?
I am working my way through a new blog series in anticipation of my forthcoming book, Surviving Religion 101: Letters to a Christian Student on Keeping the Faith in College (Crossway, 2021). This new series will include 7 videos that tackle key intellectual questions about the Christian faith.
This fourth installment video deals with one of the most common criticisms we face: “Aren’t Christians just arrogant know-it-alls?”
I can still remember watching an interview years ago where Oprah Winfrey asked Tom Cruise about his controversial religion of Scientology. Cruise’s faith had come under fire due to recent events, and Oprah was pressing him pretty hard about what he really believed.… Continue reading...