If God does truly ordain everything, even when the hairs on our heads fall to the ground (Matt. 10:30), then nothing in our lives happens by chance. God uses crooked sticks to draw straight lines, and in this case, he uses false accusations to conform you to the image of Christ.

If we spend a large part of our lives seeking our own interests, it can be very difficult to break from this pattern and live sacrificially for others. The more we entrench ourselves in self-satisfaction, the less capable we are of denying ourselves.

“Some people believe that Christ only advances his kingdom through the exercise of great power and manifestations of the spectacular, but that is not what I’ve found. I find that it is the seemingly very small deeds of ordinary ministers of the gospel and others that push the darkness back—small acts of kindness, love, and biblical instruction.”

As counterintuitive as it might seem, sometimes a silent presence is the most effective thing you can do as a pastor.

You don’t want to put up unnecessary obstacles to people’s ability to grasp and comprehend your teaching and preaching. Keep your message accessible and unhindered by unnecessary intellectual barriers.

I regularly get asked the question, “How do you work devotional time into the seminary curriculum.” When I hear this question, my answer reflects older views of theology: “Study while you pray, and pray while you study.”

I once heard someone define integrity as being the same person in public and private. In this vein, the fruit of the Spirit should mark our conduct in private or public, in person or on the world wide web.

So if you want your children to do a better job of listening to the sermon, have them take notes. But what is good for the goose is also beneficial for the gander. If you find your own attention-span waning, then bring a notebook and take notes.

We must always hold our heroes up to the standard of Scripture and Christ. We can follow them as far as they follow Christ, but when we detect that they cease to follow Christ, on the point in question we must bid them farewell.

In a word, don’t be a bottom feeder. Bird-dog the footnotes! Chase them down! Don’t rely exclusively on the work of others to familiarize you with the great theological works. Dive in, read, mark, learn, and encourage others to do the same.