Randy Alcorn's Blog, page 49

Remembering Nanci, Anticipating Heaven: My Interview on the Chris Fabry Show

A friend recently asked how I’m doing. Nanci’s absence in my life is profound, but I think under the circumstances, I am doing well. My grieving is probably nine parts joy for every one part sorrow, but that is mainly because Nanci and I spent so much time talking about the world to come, and she would walk me through her afterlife bucket list. We would talk of adventures together on God’s New Earth, and that is all still ahead of us. So her death is a heartbreaking interruption to be followed by an everlasting reunion in a world without sin and suffering and grief, where happiness will be the air we breathe.

Had Nanci died suddenly, without warning, it would’ve been much tougher. There were years of grieving for what she had already lost, anticipatory grief as with a broken heart I realized nearly a year ago she would never be able to walk her beloved dog again in this life. I remember when I knew that unless God chose to heal her, we would not go out to a restaurant together or to Maui, her happy place. When we had to cancel going to a football game to sit with the family of a beloved quarterback friend, I knew we would not go to another football game together, and there would be no more of our grandsons’ basketball games and tennis matches at their high school that their mother and aunt attended and that I attended, just a mile from our home. That final family gathering where she spoke into the lives of all of us, including her daughters and grandsons, was like a perfect frame around her life, for which I am deeply grateful to God.

When I read the grief books, I don’t struggle with anger or resentment or regrets, but my heart overflows with gratitude. So the grief is very real, but already it pales in comparison to the joy of the eternal life Jesus purchased for us with His blood. I have no doubts where Nanci is and whether we will be together again. And that makes the pain far more bearable. There is an overwhelming sense of joy that Nanci has been delivered from her suffering of those last 4 1/2 years.

Jesus is Nanci’s best friend and my best friend. She is there with Him, and He is here with me. So Jesus is the bridge that keeps us connected until we live in that new world, with new bodies and minds, that He is preparing for us. The connection I feel to her through Him is profound.

As I wrote another friendly recently, God gets our pain and holds us close. That is a great combo. Many people believe in a God who is distant and understands only in the sense that He is omniscient, not that He has actually entered into our suffering in Jesus (Hebrews 2 and 4). That makes all the difference. I’ve been enjoying and clinging to the promise of Jesus that He no longer calls us servants, but friends (John 15). Of course, we still are servants, but for Him to call us a friend is encouraging beyond measure. And that He is not just a good-time friend, but a friend in our suffering is the best of all worlds.

A few weeks ago I was on the Chris Fabry show, sharing about Nanci and life since her homegoing. I always enjoy talking to Chris—he’s a good brother I’ve known for many years (many have listened to my big Heaven book on audio, and they hear the voice of Chris Fabry when they do). I was honored when he asked me on his program to talk about Nanci.

You can listen to the whole interview here.

Should We Want Our Children to Be Happy?

It’s common to hear advice to Christian parents encouraging them to want more for their children than “just happiness.” While I believe such advice is meant well, we need to address the concept of happiness carefully when it comes to our kids.

Yes, children frequently want to stay up late, eat cookies before bed, play video games for hours, and avoid their homework, imagining those things will bring them happiness. But wise parents know better. They, too, want their children to be happy—the difference is, parents know what will keep children happy in the long run. Because they sometimes need to tell their children “no,” it might seem like their children’s happiness isn’t something that conscientious parents should concern themselves with. But there is a right kind of happiness and joy we should want for children and grandchildren: one that is Christ-honoring and God-centered.

Our children will long for happiness.

God built a desire for happiness into our children, just like it’s built into every person who ever has or ever will live. The important question is, where will they seek that happiness? Will they look for it in Christ and in living a life rooted in Him, or will they seek it in the world and its endless empty mirages?

Any parent who tries to make their child repent of being motivated by happiness is fighting a losing battle. Distancing happiness from the gospel sends a false and damaging message.

Yes, we want our children to experience happiness—the happiness that comes from knowing and following Christ and living a life that is pleasing to Him. Teaching them that they will experience difficulties and suffering, and can also experience a deep, God-given happiness despite (and sometimes because of) those challenges, can strengthen their faith and fill them with purpose.

We’ve all observed parents who say, “I just want my children to be happy,” which means they will give their children whatever they want or allow them to pursue anything they feel will bring them gratification, even if it’s contrary to God’s word. This is not the kind of happiness I’m speaking of. Such parents should actually want more for their children—such as to love God, and therefore be respectful, virtuous, and generous.  “The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice; he who fathers a wise son will be glad in him” (Proverbs 23:24).

As a young man, Samson chased what he thought would make him happy. After going where he probably shouldn’t have, he came home to his father and mother saying, “I saw one of the daughters of the Philistines at Timnah. Now get her for me as my wife” (Judges 14:2). They asked why he would go to a godless nation to find a wife. But Samson insisted, “Get her for me, for she is right in my eyes” (verse 3). Wanting their boy to be happy, his parents gave in. The utter ruin and misery that followed, like one domino falling into the next, is a warning against our imagining that we and our children can be trusted to know better than God what will make us happy.

Proverbs 23:15 says, “My son, if your heart is wise, my heart too will be glad.” Notice the word too here. This verse assumes that the child’s wisdom will bring gladness to the child, as well as to the parent.

Happiness, rooted in God, is better than self-focused “unselfishness.”

Sometimes we get confused, thinking we’re being selfish for wanting to be happy. Jonathan Edwards said, “It is not a thing contrary to Christianity that a man should love . . . his own happiness. . . . Saints, and sinners, and all alike, love happiness, and have the same unalterable and instinctive inclination to desire and seek it.”

Jesus says: “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself?” (Luke 9:23-25).

Many think that Jesus’ primary message here is the virtue of selflessness and self-sacrifice. But take another look: He calls us to lose life for His sake by appealing to our desire to find life! It’s not “selflessness” in the sense of doing what’s bad for ourselves; rather, it’s honoring and following Christ and thereby doing the best possible thing for ourselves!

C. S. Lewis began his great sermon “The Weight of Glory” by saying this:

If you asked twenty good men today what they thought the highest of the virtues, nineteen of them would reply, Unselfishness. But if you had asked almost any of the great Christians of old, he would have replied, Love. You see what has happened? A negative term has been substituted for a positive, and this is of more than philological importance. The negative idea of Unselfishness carries with it the suggestion not primarily of securing good things for others, but of going without them ourselves, as if our abstinence and not their happiness was the important point.

Lewis went on to make this critical point: “The New Testament has lots to say about self-denial, but not about self-denial as an end in itself. We are told to deny ourselves and to take up our crosses in order that we may follow Christ; and nearly every description of what we shall ultimately find if we do so contains an appeal to desire.”

It’s possible for someone to act sacrificially and selflessly in the best interests of others while enjoying the fruit: feeling good about having done well and receiving God’s approval and reward.

Parents are called to model finding happiness in Christ.

Some parents believe that looking after their children’s happiness means constantly saying no to their own. But if they don’t take care of themselves, failing to model finding happiness in God, they’ll deprive their children of happiness too. (We’ve all known the overbearing, codependent mother who does everything for her children while reminding them of all her sacrifices. Her unnecessary sacrifices are self-serving in the sinful sense, but in fact, they don’t serve her well. They end up making both her and her children miserable while she exclaims, “All I ever wanted was for you to be happy!”)

Flight crews routinely announce, “If you’re traveling with a child or someone who requires assistance, in the case of an emergency, secure your own oxygen mask first before helping the other person.” Those instructions may sound selfish, just as it sounds selfish to say that one of our main duties in life is to find happiness in God. But only when we’re delighting in our Lord do we have far more to offer everyone else—our children included.

Proverbs 20:7 says, “The righteous live a life of integrity; happy are their children after them” (CJB). May we model and pass onto our children a rich heritage of Christ-centered happiness.

Browse more resources on the topic of happiness, and see Randy’s related books, including Happiness and  Does God Want Us to Be Happy?

Photo by Joice Kelly on Unsplash

What Is the Difference Between Judgment and Discernment?

In this four-minute video, Alisa Childers, author of Another Gospel A Lifelong Christian Seeks Truth in Response to Progressive Christianity, answers the question, “What Is The Difference Between Judgment and Discernment?”

Here are some related thoughts to what Alisa shared:

Matthew 7:1-2 says, “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

So clearly here Jesus is saying, “Don’t judge.” But the context is king when we’re interpreting Scripture—and in verses 3-5 he goes right on to say:

How can you say to your brother, “Let me take the speck out of your eye,” when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

It’s clear that “Judge not” does not mean you can’t see a speck in your brother’s eye or that in seeing it you have no responsibility to help your brother remove it. On the contrary, He’s saying yes, see that speck in your brother’s eye, but take the log out of your eye first so you can help him.

So “judge not” doesn’t mean “Don’t discern.” We are to help each other, which requires a certain amount of discernment. Then, Jesus says in the very next verse (6): “Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs.”

Without even getting into the meaning of that verse, we can see that this requires discernment. Clearly it requires we see that a person can be acting like a pig and that there are certain things that we need to be careful of putting in front of them.

Right in the immediate context of “Judge not” you have with great clarity evidence that you are still to be discerning. We are not to go around condemning people. But at the same time, we’re to recognize what God says in His Word. If God says in His Word that adultery is a sin, and He clearly does, I am not being judgmental if I look at a person committing adultery and conclude that they are sinning. I’m simply believing what Scripture says.

If I have a relationship with that person, I need to go to them and say, “You know, what you’re doing is not right. God is not pleased with this and He’s going to judge you for it. You need to repent and turn to Christ.”

You might say, “Now that’s condemning them and judging them.” No—that’s just believing what God has said is true and then trying to help the person because sin is in no one’s best interest. Sometimes we act as if we should look the other way, just let our friends and family members go on with their sins, and never say anything about it. Well, that’s not good for them. Sin is not good for us; righteousness and holiness is. And it’s good for our brothers.

So judge not, yet use discernment.

Photo by Severin Höin on Unsplash

“What Was It Like, Grampy?” Obadiah Abernathy Tells Stories at Family Supper

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As I’ve shared before, when I’m asked who my favorite character is from my novels, I always say Obadiah Abernathy from my novel Dominion. (I share more about my inspiration for his character in this past blog.) In this excerpt from the book, Obadiah shares memories with his family, and talks about black history.

“Powerful good dinner, ladies, powerful good,” Obadiah said, voice weak but energized by having his family together. “Menfolk gotsta come up with some pretty big whoppers to match this!”

Soon the stories flowed like melting butter on steaming okra. As usual, Obadiah was right in the thick of them. “We was crossing through Kentucky on horse and buggy, round about 1915 or somethin’, my daddy, Freeman Abernathy, a drivin’ proud as you can imagine. We comes to a car—nicest Model T you ever seen—but this white man had run it off the road. He was standin’ there with his three chillens and one in the pantry, wife pregnant as you ever seen. It was gettin’ dark, five miles at least to the next town.

“My daddy stopped, of course, like any Christian would. He offered to pull it out with our wagon. We had two strong horses, could’ve done it sure. This fellow looks at Daddy and says, ‘I don’t need no help from the likes of you, nigger.’

“Daddy just climbed up in the wagon and shooed off them horses. We looked back and the man’s wife started cryin’ and the chillens looked so bewildered. Mama said she felt sorriest for the chillens ’cause of the way they was gonna grow up. She said, ‘You raised up in the garbage and you can’t help but stink.’”

They laughed, but the laughter was restrained, held in check by pain. As usual, Obadiah’s stories were a string of pearls without the string. There seemed no logical connection between them.

“Your mama’s daddy, he went from being a Kentucky slave to a Lincoln Republican livin’ in N’awlins. When he heard people say, ‘Lincoln freed the slaves,’ and such hullabaloo, he’d always say to us, ‘No man gives freedom, not even Honest Abe. God gives freedom. He’s the one who delivered us out of bondage like he did his people Israel. Ol’ Abe just had the good sense to agree with God.’”

Obadiah looked at the children, most of them huddled on and around three big beanbag chairs.

“Did you know,” Obadiah said, “Mr. Lincoln was good friends with ol’ Frederick Douglass, the former slave? After the president gave a speech once, they wouldn’t let Frederick in to see him, so Abe sent word to let that black man in. And ol’ Abe says to him right in front of everybody, ‘Mr. Douglass, there’s no man whose opinion I respect more than yours.’ That’s the kind of man Mr. Lincoln was. And that’s the kind of man Mr. Douglass was. Don’t let nobody tell you different.”

“Tell us more about Frederick Douglass, Daddy,” Marny said. “For the children.”

“Frederick, well he born a slave in the early 1800s. He taught himself to read at age twelve. He got his freedom by runnin’ away, always feared maybe they’d lock him up and haul him off yet. You know how many books he had when he died?”

“A hundred?” Keisha asked, wide eyed.

“A hundred would have been a lot those days. Books hard to come by then. But Mr. Frederick Douglass, he had more than ten thousand books.”

“Funny you should mention Frederick Douglass,” Harley said. “I was just quoting from him this week in my African American literature class. He was talking about hypocrisy in the Christian churches. See, Douglass rejected this Christianity of yours.”

“Just ’cause there’s counterfeit money,” Obadiah said, “don’t mean real money’s no good. You ain’t paintin’ the whole picture, Son. Frederick Douglass was an ordained AME deacon, a church man. I may not have your degrees, boy, but I’ve read his autobiography a half-dozen times. You get me a copy, and I’ll read you somethin’.”

Sophie went to the bookcase and took a book off the shelf, bringing it to Obadiah, who opened it eagerly and started searching.

“Here it is,” Obadiah announced. “This is what Mr. Frederick Douglass said.” He cleared his throat, with the look of pride that came over him whenever he read aloud. “‘Between the Christianity of this land, and the Christianity of Christ, I recognize the widest possible difference—so wide, that to receive the one as good, pure, and holy, is of necessity to reject the other as bad, corrupt, and wicked. To be the friend of the one, is of necessity to be the enemy of the other. I love the pure, peaceable, and impartial Christianity of Christ: I therefore hate the corrupt, slaveholding, women-whipping, cradle-plundering, partial and hypocritical Christianity of this land. Indeed, I can see no reason, but the most deceitful one, for calling the religion of this land Christianity. I look upon it as the climax of all misnomers, the boldest of all frauds, and the grossest of all libels.’ See, Son, he rejected the perversion of Christianity, but he embraced true Christianity. You need to see that difference—don’t throws out the baby with the bathwater.”

“Tell us another story, Grampy,” Celeste said.

“Well, let’s see now. Here’s a story. Colored folk used to drive through Mississippi, comin’ or goin’ from Louisiana or ’Bama or Arkansas. One day this preacher was travelin’ and had to go through Ol’ Miss. He prayed loud and hard like black preachers do, ‘O God, help me make it through Mississippi!’

“Well, there was a few moments silence and then the preacher heard a voice from heaven. It was God himself and he says to the preacher, ‘You don’t know what you’re askin’, son. Even I don’t go through Mississippi!’”

Everyone laughed.

“Now, that’s just a story, chillens. The Almighty’s in Mississippi just like everywhere else, and don’t say your grampy said otherwise, you hear me now? Good people and bad people there just like everywhere else.”

“Tell us about the Klan, Granddaddy,” Jonah said.

“Well, my daddy explained the Klan to us one time after they rode up on their horses and put a burnin’ cross in front of our ol’ shanty. Daddy said that when God was makin’ peoples, there was some folk at the very back of the line, and he ran plumb outta brains to give ’em. He felt bad he didn’t have no brains left to pass out, so he decided to give ’em white sheets instead. That way they could cover up their heads and nobody could see their brains was missin’. That’s how the Klan started.”

Laughter and knee slapping and howls filled the room. Then Harley gave a serious explanation of what the Klan was. Clarence liked his daddy’s explanation better. Harley started telling about the freedom rides and the battle against segregation in the South. Imitating their drawls, he made fun of white southerners who couldn’t comprehend why blacks rose up in opposition to segregation:

“I dawn’t unda-stay’en what’s goin’ awn. It’s like some’mm dun jumped inta allda nigras ova’night.” The older family members laughed and laughed, including Clarence, while for the most part the children didn’t get it. It was true, though. White folk could talk so funny.

“What was it like living in your ol’ shotgun house, Grampy?” Keisha asked. “Well, let’s see now. At night we chillens slept with each other, cuddlin’ up to stay warm.”

“Yuk,” Jonah said.

“No yuk about it. Sometimes my ol’ nose was so frozen, don’t know what I would’ve done if brother Elijah hadn’t been there and let me snuggle it into his back. They was hard days, but good ones.” His eyes teared up. He looked up at the ceil­ing as if trying to peer beyond it. “I miss eatin’ sowbelly and corn pone and slicin’ up the catfish fresh out o’ the river and sittin’ on the porch those warm nights—Elijah and me and Daddy and Mama and the rest—jus’ listenin’ to those hound dogs bark and lookin’ up at heaven’s stars and seein’ the face of God.”

“I wish Uncle Elijah could come for Christmas this year,” Clarence said.

“Not as much as I wish it, I reckon. But we both slowin’ down, Elijah and me. We both slowin’ down.” He looked at his oldest son. “Harley, you still got that music me and Elijah loved? Count Basie, Lena Horne, Duke Ellington? Now that was music, um, um. Elijah and me, we’d listen to ’em till the cows come home.”

Harley went over and put on the music while Daddy moved on to another story. Clarence watched Harley. He remembered when his brother had won a statewide essay competition for Mississippi high school students. But when they tried to make arrangements for him to stay in a local hotel, they couldn’t because it was seg­regated. Harley had never forgotten that, just as Clarence had never forgotten the teacher at the integrated school who thought his paper was so good he must have plagiarized it. Clarence could never convince her he hadn’t.

Photo by Phinehas Adams on Unsplash

Is It Possible to Be Hyperimaginative in Thinking about Heaven?

A reader recently asked me, “What do you mean by ‘hyperimaginative’ in this sentence in Heaven: ‘Discussions of Heaven tend to be either hyperimaginative or utterly unimaginative’?”

Here’s part of what I said in the book:

We cannot anticipate or desire what we cannot imagine. That’s why, I believe, God has given us glimpses of Heaven in the Bible—to fire up our imagination and kindle a desire for Heaven in our hearts. And that’s why Satan will always discourage our imagination—or misdirect it to ethereal notions that violate Scripture. As long as the resurrected universe remains either undesirable or unimaginable, Satan succeeds in sabotaging our love for Heaven.

After reading my novels that portray Heaven, people often tell me, “These pictures of Heaven are exciting. But are they based on Scripture?” The answer, to the best of my understanding, is yes. Scripture provides us with a substantial amount of information, direct and indirect, about the world to come, with enough detail to help us envision it, but not so much as to make us think we can completely wrap our minds around it. I believe that God expects us to use our imagination, even as we recognize its limitations and flaws. If God didn’t want us to imagine what Heaven will be like, he wouldn’t have told us as much about it as he has.

Rather than ignore our imagination, I believe we should fuel it with Scripture, allowing it to step through the doors that Scripture opens. I did not come to the Bible with the same view of Heaven that I came away with. On the contrary, as a young Christian, and even as a young pastor, I viewed Heaven in the same stereotypical ways I now reject. It was only through years of scriptural study, meditation, and research on the subject that I came to the view of Heaven I now embrace.

Nearly every notion of Heaven I present in this book was stimulated and reinforced by biblical texts. Though some of my interpretations and speculations are no doubt mistaken, they are not baseless. Rightly or wrongly, I have drawn most of them from my understanding of the explicit and implicit teachings of Scripture. Discussions of Heaven tend to be either hyperimaginative or utterly unimaginative. Bible believers have tended toward the latter, yet both approaches are inadequate and dangerous. What we need is a biblically inspired imagination.

We should ask God’s help to remove the blinders of our preconceived ideas about Heaven so we can understand Scripture. The apostle Paul said, “Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this” (2 Timothy 2:7). I encourage you to pray, “Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law” (Psalm 119:18).

By hyperimaginative, I meant fantasy-prone, to the point of being gullible and reading into things, and going beyond the actual evidence and any sense of objectivity. I would include the power of suggestion when people hear the various afterlife stories, such as young Colton Burpo’s claim of seeing rainbow unicorns in Heaven, as well as circles/halos around the heads of people. There is no suggestion of rainbow-colored unicorns in Heaven, or unicorns at all, and the idea of halos over people’s heads comes from medieval art, not from the Bible.

I’m not saying I know for sure God didn’t take him to Heaven, but I do know for certain that the statements made by people who claim to have been to Heaven should never be considered authoritative. God’s Word should be the only standard by which we judge which parts of people’s testimonies about Heaven we should and should not consider accurate.

To claim that one’s old friend who died, who was an avid golfer, is now playing golf in Heaven, is hyperimaginative, since the resurrection has not yet happened. Therefore, it seems unlikely this is happening in the present Heaven, though it is possible that it may happen on the future post–resurrection Heaven, which will be the New Earth. In fact, there is no reason I can think of why people with resurrected bodies would not play sports on a resurrected earth, even though we can’t know for certain until we get there.

There’s a difference between an overactive imagination and outright lying, of course, but the story of “the boy who went to Heaven” is a sad case demonstrating how far people can go in their imaginations, to the point of fabrications. That particular boy who claimed he’d gone to Heaven as related in a bestselling book (not Heaven is for Real, a different book) five years later admitted, “I did not die. I did not go to Heaven…I said I went to heaven because I thought it would get me attention.” He added this, something every Christian should take to heart: “When I made the claims that I did, I had never read the Bible. People…should read the Bible, which is enough. The Bible is the only source of truth.”

I think it is possible to speculate responsibly, especially about the future Heaven, in that the resurrection of people and the resurrection of the earth itself suggests many things that may well be possible on the New Earth. But no one should claim them with certainty. For instance, in the Heaven book I say it is possible that God could have us travel and explore new planets and galaxies in the new universe. That is speculation, but it is in keeping with what we already know about the universe God has created and the way the minds and hearts of people are wired.

An eternal, physical, earthly existence is fully consistent with what we know about resurrection bodies. Jesus ate and drank, walked, talked, taught, and cooked fish for His disciples. He said to them, “See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have” (Luke 24:39). We are told our resurrection bodies will be like his (Philippians 3:21). This is not speculation; it is revealed truth. Based on these facts we know to be true about the nature of humanity in this life and the resurrection, and about this Earth and the New Earth, it is no stretch at all to say human beings could play golf and every other sport on the New Earth in their resurrection bodies. That’s just a logical extrapolation grounded on what the Bible tells us. To claim we know resurrected people will play golf is to go too far. But reasonable Bible-based speculation about the possibility of resurrected people playing sports on the New Earth is very different from saying, without any biblical support, that there are rainbow colored unicorns in the present Heaven or that people there have halos.

Here’s a full excerpt from my book Heaven about the limits and value of using our imaginations. And here are several blogs I did in past years about “visit to Heaven” books.

Photo by Josh Hild on Unsplash

My Daughter and I “Should Have Died” Thirty-Three Years Ago Today, But the God of Providence Had Other Plans

Today is the thirty-third anniversary of the day my 10-year-old daughter Karina and I, along with our friends Barry Arnold and his daughter Andrea, also 10, “should have died” in a plane crash in Alaska. Instead, we had an emergency landing, and were rescued seven hours later. (I tell the story in a blog here.) The film footage I shot that day was posted by Barry 12 years ago, and has since gotten over 1.7 million views:

Each year my home church, Good Shepherd Community Church, hosts a Sportsmen’s Banquet, and this year Barry shared the story of our near crash and emergency landing. He asked if I would film my alternative account of “what really happened” that day (I’ve joked about it with him) so he could include it in his presentation (I told the real story in that blog, and Barry told a much more detailed story at the banquet):

Below is Barry’s full message. His wife Vicki also shares her perspective, as she was with Nanci and our daughter Angela, waiting for any news but honestly thinking we were all dead. I think you might enjoy listening to it:

I’ve been pondering how the three Franklin kids (Karina’s children) and the four Moffat kids (Andrea’s children) and their future children and Eternal Perspective Ministries and Cornerstone (the church Barry later founded) and all but three of my sixty books and much more would never have existed if we would have died that day. (For example, one of hundreds of stories, a prisoner we recently heard came to Christ through reading my novel Deception, though of course God could have made that happen in 1,000 different ways.) God is gracious and kind, and both when disasters happen and when they do not, He is 100% sovereign.

The authorities believed for five hours or so that we had died, and given the history of fatalities from planes going down in that same stretch, we “should have died.” I put quotation marks around those words because Scripture says of God, “your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be” (Psalm 139:16). As evangelist George Whitefield said, “We are immortal until our work on earth is done.”

“Providence is wonderfully intricate. Ah! You want always to see through Providence, do you not? You never will, I assure you. You have not eyes good enough. You want to see what good that affliction was to you; you must believe it. You want to see how it can bring good to the soul; you may be enabled in a little time; but you cannot see it now; you must believe it. Honor God by trusting Him.” —Charles Spurgeon

“In their hearts humans plan their course, but the LORD establishes their steps.” —Proverbs 16:9  

The Bible Is the Story of God’s Generosity: Will We Be Part of That Story?

Sometimes we take for granted God’s many wonders, such as the beauty of a hummingbird, the glories of a rose, or the taste of grapes picked off the vine. For me, late-summer bike rides in Gresham, Oregon, are highlighted by the scent of ripe blackberries and the warm sun on my face. Are these small things? Sure. But how encouraging that God has intended “all things” for our good: “Command those who are rich . . . not to set their hope on riches . . . but on God who richly provides” (1 Timothy 6:17 NET, emphasis added).

God’s generosity abounds. His gifts surround us—everywhere we look, and everywhere we don’t.

In the middle of instructing those who are rich, Paul took a moment to comment on the character of God. He described God not as demanding or restrictive or begrudging, but as a God full of joy who provides all things with our delight in mind.  

Galatians 5:22-23 indicates that a fruit of the Spirit is “goodness.” The word Paul used in 1 Timothy 6:18 that’s translated “to do good” is the verb form of this same word. In other words, God wants us to bear the fruit of his Spirit. Doing good goes far beyond simply doing no harm—it means actively reaching out to people through both small and large acts of generosity.

Many Greek scholars believe that “goodness,” as listed in Galatians 5:22, specifically involves generosity: Greek scholars Robert Mounce and J. B. Phillips, as well as the New American Bible and the New Revised Standard Version, all translate this word in Galatians 5:22 as “generosity” rather than “goodness.” Renowned scholar F. F. Bruce is inclined to agree.

Martin Luther was a Greek scholar who translated the New Testament into German in 1522. In his commentary on Galatians, he describes the word translated “goodness” in English in Galatians 5:22. He says it refers to “when a man willingly helpeth others in their necessity by giving, lending, and such other means.”

Louw and Nida’s dictionary, widely used by Bible translators, defines this word often translated “goodness” as “to be generous, generosity . . . the act of generous giving.”

These definitions fit perfectly with the idea that the Holy Spirit’s first indwelling of God’s people resulted in widespread acts of radical generosity: “God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all that there were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need” (Acts 4:33-35, NIV).

A life characterized by greed and stinginess is neither Spirit-filled nor Christlike. If we know Jesus and the Holy Spirit is at work in our lives, we’ll see the fruit of generosity. We will become more and more like our generous God.

One of the great privileges of my life has been my involvement with the ministry of Generous Giving, a group I highly recommend. This beautiful and powerful 7-minute spoken word from David Bowden at their latest conference really touched me. As David says, “God built generosity into the grain of the universe. …Giving is how we were made. God has sown generosity into our DNA.”

See more resources on money and giving, as well as Randy's related books, including Giving Is the Good Life  and  The Treasure Principle .

Photo by nine koepfer on Unsplash

Abortion Has Created a Global Mission Field for the Church

Note from Randy: Some Christians have a deeply held belief that prolife work distracts us from the “main thing” of sharing the gospel. To those who say the job of the church is strictly evangelism, I would point out that prolife activities open great doors for evangelism. Students who make a speech on abortion have follow-up conversations that can lead to sharing the gospel. Those who work at Pregnancy Resource Centers have regular built-in opportunities they would otherwise not have to share Christ. Those who pass out literature at abortion clinics regularly share the love of Christ. People who open their homes to pregnant women can demonstrate a love that is more than words, then follow with the words of the gospel. My own family had the joy of seeing a pregnant young woman come to the Lord while living with us.

Many, both church leaders and members, still insist that it isn’t the job of the church to get involved in prolife activities. But what is the job of the church? I appeal to you to come to grips with the fact that loving God cannot be separated from loving our neighbor (Matthew 22:34–40). To a man who wished to define “neighbor” in a way that excluded certain groups of needy people, Christ pre­sented the Good Samaritan as a model for our behavior (Luke 10:25–37). He went out of his way to help the man lying in the ditch. In contrast, the religious hypocrites looked the other way because they had more “spiritual” things to do.

In Matthew 25:31–46 Christ makes a distinction of eternal significance based not merely on what people believe and preach, but on what they have done for the weak and needy. Can anyone read this passage and still believe that intervening for the needy is some peripheral issue that distracts the church from its main busi­ness? On the contrary, it is part and parcel of what the church is to be and do. It is at the heart of our main business, which includes both speaking the gospel and living out the gospel. 

That’s why EPM loves the work of LIFE International, a prolife ministry that views the global issues created by abortion as a mission field. In this article, their President, my friend Kurt Dillinger, shares honestly about his own journey as a pastor into prolife work, and shares examples of how God is using their efforts to spread the good news of Jesus.

Early in my life as a pastor, I saw a line that separated my Gospel calling from cultural issues like abortion. To tell the truth, I wasn’t sure what to do about abortion, so that line gave me some comfort. But one morning, as I read from Genesis 1, I began to see that I was forgetting something.

“So, God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.”

This is a beautiful and awe-inspiring statement, but I sensed God saying something new to me: “Kurt, you do not know my heart for the lives I create. You have not recognized that every attack on a child is also an attack on me, his Father.”

At that moment, I realized that defending preborn children is entirely within the scope of my calling and the Church’s mission. If the love that sent Jesus to the cross is for everyone (which we boldly proclaim), then every person is immensely valuable to God.

There is no source of life apart from God. None. Not random biological processes, as many in our culture would claim. And obviously not God’s adversary, whose mission is “to steal, kill, and destroy.” No, every human life comes directly and personally from God, and to needlessly take an innocent human life is to destroy God’s work and God’s image.* Leaving aside the cruelty of abortion, this is also an inherently spiritual and evil act.

God’s word erased the dividing line that once gave me comfort. I have been called to proclaim the Gospel. Which means I have also been called to proclaim the value of those to whom the Gospel is offered. There is simply no division between the Gospel and God’s heart for human life.

We founded “LIFE International” to live out this calling. We purchased an ancient synagogue that had fallen into use as an abortion clinic and reclaimed it, rededicating the building to express the Father’s heart for life. (There’s much more to that story! See lifeinternational.com/who-we-are)

Abortion has created a global mission field, and preborn children are the largest endangered people-group in the world, with more than 60 million aborted each year. The Gospel compels us to enter this mission field and proclaim the immense value of every child.

Since 2001, we have been training people around the world to provide life-giving service in their own communities—to the preborn and their families, but also to other neighbors whose lives are considered less valuable, including the old or sick or disabled, the poor or less-educated, and those who have been exploited in various ways.

Our training program, The Journey of a Life-Giver, prepares believers to live out the Gospel. We demonstrate the biblical foundation for recognizing each human life as sacred. We teach the importance of prayer and spiritual preparation for ministry. We present God’s design for sexuality, marriage, and family. We provide technical insights into the amazing processes of human reproduction and prenatal development and the brutal reality of abortion procedures. Finally, we provide a safe place for participants to confess their own failures and receive God’s great mercy and forgiveness.

Our list of partners around the world grows exponentially as the leaders we train venture out to train others. We are currently working in more than 100 countries and developing partners in the remaining nations. Here are two examples:

Nubako and Claudine Selenga are church leaders based in the large city of Kinshasa (DR Congo), once known as “the rape capital of the world.” After our first Journey of a Life-Giver training, Claudine had an idea. What if sexually abused women, rather than being pushed away from the church by their shame and injury, could be drawn into the church and restored? This desire led to the formation of the Tabitha Center—a training center that invites women for friendship and vocational training. Over six months, participants receive counseling toward the healing of their hearts and spirits. They also learn a trade, enabling them to support themselves after graduation.

In the seven years since this program started, the Selengas have formed 240 Tabitha Centers across Kinshasa, bringing hope and restoration to thousands of vulnerable women!

Here’s another stunning demonstration of the power of the Gospel to transform lives.

During abortion-recovery training in Katmandu (Nepal), our team included a new member—a quiet and unassuming young pastor. As we discussed our previous experiences while presenting the Gospel and the sanctity of human life, this man told of an extraordinary event. He had been describing the miraculous process of prenatal development to a group of 100 women in his home nation of Cambodia. Their awe at the beauty and complexity of this process was obvious, so he asked if they would like to learn about the Person who created it. They did, and so the pastor presented the Gospel. All 100 women accepted Christ!

When we see God’s brilliance and experience His love, we are transformed. This is our message around the world: God’s love is expressed in creation, in each person who bears His image, and—most clearly of all—in the Person of His Son. Each one of us was made for Him, each one of us has immense value, and each one of us remains broken until our relationship with Him is restored.

Our work at LIFE International continues to accelerate. Our U.S.-based office is growing, and our 10 regional hubs are expanding their outreach to member nations. The message of The Father’s Heart for Life continues to spread—through those who have already been trained and the many educational resources we provide.

Perhaps, as I did, you struggle to fit abortion into your worldview. Even knowing that a human being is sacrificed each time an abortion is performed, we are left with the difficult question of what to do about it. I am convinced Scripture answers this question. The Gospel compels us to love those whom God loves, to speak up for them within our culture, and to help in practical, life-giving ways.

If you agree, we would love to work with you through LIFE International. Please visit our website (lifeinternational.com) to learn more.

Kurt Dillinger
President
LIFE International

*Of course, I speak of needless destruction. In very rare cases such as ectopic pregnancy, the child will not survive procedures necessary to preserve her mother’s life.

Photo by Austin Wade on Unsplash

The Value of Knowing Both Sides

Note from Randy: My son-in-law Dan Franklin is lead pastor at Life Bible Fellowship in Upland, California. Dan is married to my daughter Karina, and the father of three of my grandsons. Years ago he was one of our speaking pastors at my home church, and to this day I really miss his teaching. (But since he speaks a lot more at LBF, I’m able to hear him more online!) 

In this article, Dan gives great advice about understanding both sides of an issue. In today’s charged and divided culture, may God’s people model humility and wisdom in our communication, and bring more light and less heat to our dialogues with others.

In formal debate, participants prepare themselves to be able to articulate and defend a certain side of an argument. But they often are not told until right before the debate which side they will need to argue. For example, they may know that the debate is about the death penalty, but they may not know whether they will be arguing for or against it.

Because of this, debaters are forced to learn both sides of an issue. In fact, they are forced to know both sides so well that they would be able to effectively argue for positions with which they disagree.

This skill—the skill of articulating both sides of an issue—is one that is in short supply in American culture. Most debates that we observe on television consist of two people trying to outshout and demonize each other. This is because it is much easier to dismiss opposing arguments than it is to understand them.

And most of us opt for the easy way more than we realize. We do this by listening to podcasts, reading books, and watching shows that reinforce—rather than challenge—our beliefs. It is more comfortable to think that the other side (politically, theologically, or in relationships) is immoral or foolish than to think that they may have arguments that would challenge us.

Proverbs 18:17 says, “In a lawsuit, the first to speak seems right until someone comes forward and cross-examines.” In this verse, Solomon says that wise people make sure that they know both sides of an issue before drawing a conclusion. Because this practice is so rare in our culture, I want to offer four ways that we can follow Solomon’s wise words and pursue understanding both sides.

1. Assume there is more to the story.

I have three sons. When one of them comes to me with a story about how his brother attacked him, I find myself being skeptical. I am not skeptical that a conflict occurred. I am simply skeptical that the conflict arose because of one completely innocent victim and one unprovoked perpetrator. So I ask questions, and I listen to both of them give their explanations for what happened. This is a good practice not only in parenting, but in life as a whole. If you find yourself saying something like, “Why would anyone vote for that candidate?” or “Why would any thinking person be an atheist?” I suggest that you begin with the assumption that your perspective would change if you had more information. This would not necessarily mean that your opinion about politics or religion would change, but you may end up having more empathy and respect for those who hold differing viewpoints.

2. Listen to the other side’s best case. 

We can all find YouTube videos of our favorite debaters ripping their opponents to shreds. However, many of these videos exist because the debate is a mismatch. My suggestion is not simply to listen to a liberal if you are a conservative, or to a pro-life person if you are pro-choice. My suggestion is to listen to the most articulate liberal or the most intelligent pro-life person. Listen to the other side make their best case and see if your belief stands up to this. In saying this, I am not suggesting that Christians should only read books by atheists (I think this would be a bad idea because we all need encouragement from other believers). I am simply suggesting that it is best not to draw a firm conclusion unless we have heard the other side give their best argument. I personally read a lot of books by people with whom I agree. But I also read books by people who disagree with me on foundational issues, whether relating to God, to politics, to the Bible, or to human nature. Listening to the other side gives me a great chance to (a) be more secure in my position or (b) change my mind when presented with a better option.

3. Ask questions. 

Social media thrives on each person expressing strong opinions. While strong opinions may get clicks and likes, they are often uninformed. If wisdom is found in knowing both sides, cultivate the skill of asking questions. If someone says something that you find outlandish, ask them about it instead of simply concluding that they are a fool. We would all do well if we had less name-calling and more question-asking.

4. Offer conclusions humbly. 

I’m not saying that we shouldn’t have strong beliefs and convictions. We absolutely should. G.K. Chesterton—one of my favorite authors—said, “Merely having an open mind is nothing. The object of opening the mind, as of opening the mouth, is to shut it again on something solid.” So draw conclusions. I personally have very strong beliefs about God as the one and only Creator, about Jesus Christ as God’s only Son, about our need for salvation through Christ alone because of our sins, about the resurrection of Jesus, and about a number of other issues. And when we come to strong conclusions, most of us want to share those conclusions with others. But we should do this with humility. After all, if you have arrived at the truth, the great thing that you have to offer is not yourself, but the truth.

Photo by cottonbro

Will Our Life’s Work Continue in Heaven?

Because there will be continuity from the old Earth to the new, it’s possible we’ll continue some of the work we started on the old Earth. I believe we’ll pursue some of the same things we were doing, or dreamed of doing, before our death. Of course, people whose jobs depend on aspects of our fallen world that will no longer exist on the New Earth—such as dentists (decay), police officers (crime), funeral directors (death), insurance salespeople (disability), and many others—will change their work in Heaven, but that doesn’t mean they’ll be unemployed. What’s now an interest or hobby may become their main vocation. Others, however, may continue with work similar to what they do now, whether as gardeners, engineers, builders, artists, animal trainers, musicians, scientists, craftspeople, or hundreds of other vocations. A significant difference will be that they’ll work without the hindrances of toil, pain, corruption, and sin.

Author Victor Hugo, in reflecting on his life’s work, spoke profoundly of anticipating his work in Heaven:

I feel within me that future life. I am like a forest that has been razed; the new shoots are stronger and brighter. I shall most certainly rise toward the heavens the nearer my approach to the end, the plainer is the sound of immortal symphonies of worlds which invite me. For half a century I have been translating my thoughts into prose and verse: history, drama, philosophy, romance, tradition, satire, ode, and song; all of these I have tried. But I feel I haven’t given utterance to the thousandth part of what lies within me. When I go to the grave I can say, as others have said, “My day’s work is done.” But I cannot say, “My life is done.” My work will recommence the next morning. The tomb is not a blind alley; it is a thoroughfare. It closes upon the twilight, but opens upon the dawn.

I’m convinced that Hugo was right in saying that every Christian’s life’s work, though not always his or her vocation, will continue on the New Earth. After all, our calling to glorify God will never end. It applies as much here and now as it will then and there, and it will likely be fulfilled in many old ways as well as new ones.

In The Biblical Doctrine of Heaven, Wilbur Smith suggests, “In heaven we will be permitted to finish many of those worthy tasks which we had dreamed to do while on earth but which neither time nor strength nor ability allowed us to achieve.”This is an encouraging thought. It saves us from frantically thinking that we have to do it all now, or from giving up in despair because of the limits of time, money, and strength, and the duties that keep us from certain things we’d love to do.

In Heaven Opened, James Campbell took comfort in this same idea:

This throws some measure of relieving light upon the painful mystery of a life brought to a sudden close in the fullness of its power. In the presence of such a tragedy we instinctively ask, Why this waste? Is all the training, discipline, and culture of this choice spirit to be lost? It cannot be; for in God’s universe nothing is ever lost. No preparation is ever in vain. There is need up there for clear heads, warm hearts, and skilled hands. . . . If some kinds of work are over, others will begin; if some duties are laid down, others will be taken up. And any regret for labour missed down here, will be swallowed up in the joyful anticipation of the higher service that awaits every prepared and willing worker in the upper kingdom of the Father. . . . He will allow no heaven-born hope to be put to shame, but will bring to realization life’s brightest visions.

What will it be like to perform a task, to build and create, knowing that what we’re doing will last? What will it be like to be always gaining skill, so that our best work will always be ahead of us? Because our minds and bodies will never fade and because we will never lack resources or opportunity, our work won’t degenerate. Buildings won’t last for only fifty years, and books won’t be in print for only twenty years. They’ll last forever.

For more on the eternal Heaven, the New Earth, see Randy’s book  Heaven . You can also browse our additional resources on Heaven.

Photo by Elena Mozhvilo on Unsplash