With the start of the new year, I began reading through the entire Bible one more time. This will make the fifth trip through in the last eight years. The first three times were with the aid of the Bible on CD as I went through the New International Version. My fourth time through I read the English Standard Version with devotional for men. Now I am trying the One Year Chronological Bible in the 2011 New International Version.

I will be the first to admit that after Bible college my Bible reading was limited to what I was teaching for the week or what a daily devotional placed as the passage for the day. I tried reading the One Year Bible along with numerous Bible plans, but I would always stall in Leviticus and Numbers until I finally gave up. I did read through the New Testament a couple of times and thought I was doing well. To be honest, I wondered why it mattered if I read it for a second or third time, I mean, wasn’t once enough. I was familiar with most of the stories and had a general knowledge, and that felt good to me.

On my latest trip through the Bible, I have noticed a few advantages of reading through it one more time.

1. Starting to see the big picture. It is easy to think of the Bible as a collection of books that are disjointed and have little connection. I am starting to see how the law ties to history. I see how the prophets connect to history. I slowly understand how the Old and New Testament tie together. The Bible is one harmonious story and should be read together.

2. Learning theology from the whole Bible. Because of my emphasis on the New Testament, I often saw God and his work in Jesus with no connection to the Old Testament. While reading through those old stories, I am amazed at how many times God’s grace is mentioned. My view of an angry God in the old covenant and a grace-filled God in the new one was shattered.

3. Noticing the details in the stories. When you first read through the stories found in God’s word, there is a focus simply on learning the story. Okay, Jacob and Esau were brothers and didn’t get along. Now I see things like, Esau knew his parents wanted him to take an Israelite wife and yet he purposely married not one but two Hittite women. Recently I have been reading Job, and I notice how much of what he says is true, but how my theology lines up with his friends who are wrong.

4. Greater familiarity. I noticed how much more of the stories are attaching themselves to my long-term memory. I have heard this before, and it is starting to stick. God blessed me with a strong memory, but it is tremendously aided by repetition.

5. I hear something new every time. My personal situation has been different with each reading. My relationships have changed, the people I serve in ministry are involved in different struggles, and my leadership is growing. Because of the changes in my life, I find that different lines and phrases touch my heart more with each reading. I underline different verses with every reading. God speaks to me in just the way I need with every page I read each time.

These are my reflections. Some of you have been through the Bible much more than me. What would you add to my list?

I always encourage people to read their Bible, but I would also suggest you read it more than once.

Working with teenagers comes with a whole host of issues. I have dealt with everything from teens lying to my face, sneaking out to smoke in the bathroom, addictions, and struggles with suicide. Every year comes with a series of stories and adventures that keep teen ministry interesting.

All those adventures keep youth ministry interesting, but they are not the most challenging issue I have to deal with each year. The single biggest struggle is that teenagers only want to be entertained.

Whenever I talk to teens, who quit the youth group and ask them why they stopped I know what response I am going to receive. They will tell me something like, “It’s not that fun” or “A lot of it is boring.” Then I talk to parents, and they give me a similar response. “They just don’t enjoy it,” is the most common answer that I am given.

At first, I tried to do everything I could to make youth group fun and enjoyable. Every week was the most fun game I could find. The leaders and I would brainstorm for hours so that every minute of the group was exciting and memorable. This seemed to work a little, but the competition from the world was always better. TV, school, video games, sports and just about everything else seemed to be more fun no matter how much I planned. It was a battle the Church could just not win.

Here is the reality, our teens do not need more entertainment. They need to know God. They need to learn what the word of God says about life. They need to develop Christian friends who are walking the same path of faith. They need to get connected to mature Christian leaders who model faith. The most difficult part of youth ministry is convincing people that matters of the soul are essential.

The teens today are drowning in a sea of fun activities. At the same time, their spiritual struggles are growing. Words like depression, anxiety, stress, loneliness, and suicide are real problems for teenagers. They need to address the evil and sin that exists in the world and especially inside of their own soul. Teens, like adults, need what faith has to offer.

I no longer try to make youth group “the most fun hour of their week.” Now I am working to connect with the deepest needs of their heart. The work is challenging and frustrating, but when it works, it is the most important work in the world.

When I decided to become a preacher while in Bible college, a verse was pointed out to me that I found to foundational to my ministry.

2 Timothy 4:2 Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage – with great patience and careful instruction. (NIV 2011)

Paul underlines that the primary job of a preacher is to “Preach the Word.” It was a powerful charge to a young man going out into the world with a Bible and a hope of making a difference for the kingdom of God. He follows this statement with a series of phrases that drive home the importance of this preaching. Sometimes you preach when people are ready for it and other times they will not. Not only are we to explain the Bible but use its words to correct people’s thoughts and actions along with challenging them to grow. This type of work calls for great patience and careful instruction – what a great word to any young preacher or Church leader.

Somewhere along the way, I lost the next verse. Recently I rediscovered it and the context of Paul’s instruction.

2 Timothy 4:3 For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. (NIV 2011)

Paul tells Timothy to preach the word but then gives him a warning. There will come a time when people will not put up with sound Bible teaching and instruction. Instead, people who claim to follow Jesus will come up with their own ideas; then they will gather people around them to affirm what they want to believe.

These words came back to me recently after several conversations about faith. Repeatedly I have encountered people who have created their own theology and belief system and are just looking for someone to agree with them. To make matters worse, we live at a time where the internet allows us to find a person or a group who does agree.

Since Paul warned us about this type of action, let me ask you a few questions:

1. Do you only read material that you already agree with? Do you expose yourself to a different point of view regularly? What is challenging your thinking from the Bible and theology?

2. What have you changed your mind about lately? What new truth have you learned that has challenged you to change your behavior? How have you been corrected, rebuked or encouraged?

The remedy to bad theology is a better understanding the word of God. So, my final question is the most important, “How much time do you spend on the internet compared to the word of God?”

Every time I go to social media I cringe. People are sharing posts from all kinds of places that they think are wonderful. Many times, they are just affirmations of what they already believe. Many appear to have gathered around them what their itching ears want to hear.

My post last Friday may not have meant anything to you, but it was a milestone for me. It was the 1,500 blog I have posted.

When I started this blog in January 2013, I had no idea where it would go. In fact, I didn’t think I would do it five days a week. I thought I would share a few thoughts on the Christian faith, ministry, and living for God. When moments of insight hit me I would write a little something and post it. Slowly it transformed. I started to enjoy writing and looked forward to it as an outlet each day of my thoughts.

Now I have a notebook on my computer and a brown journal that I keep all of my ideas inside until I am ready to write about them. I have ideas coming to me regularly about things I want to write. It is a discipline I enjoy, and I hope it is a blessing to other people.

As of last Friday, I have sat down at my computer and posted something from a picture to a lengthy detailed article one thousand five hundred times.

Whenever I think about this blog, I am reminded of the power of daily discipline. If someone has asked me to post this many times, I would have been overwhelmed. But taking a few minutes a day to do something repeatedly, over time accumulates to something big. This is true of writing, Bible reading, exercise, prayer, marriage conversations, reading, or any activity you enjoy.

In January six years ago I decided to start doing a little writing and here I am today. What decision are you going to make that one day you will look back upon and smile at how far you have come? Life is altered by little choices that we practice every day.

Over the course of a few months, I met with a couple to offer them some marital counseling. They were like most couples who come to me, about to give up after a long hard struggle to survive. It appeared they had tried everything, and they were going to give it one last shot with me.

In one of my conversations, the problem began to crystallize. The wife was upset about the way he treated her. He was never physically or emotionally abusive, but he seemed to be overly irritating all the time. One example she gave was they he never picked up his clothes. He would take things off at night and throw them in the corner of the bedroom. The next day he would put on clean clothes and leave the old ones in the corner for her to pick up. She had tried everything to get him to change. She left them there until the pile reached enormous proportions. She quietly asked, and she yelled with a loud voice to wake the neighbors. Nothing changed.

The conversation that brought this all into focus was one that I had with him alone. I asked him what he was doing to help his marriage, and he gave me an honest and straightforward response. He said, “I am trying to follow Jesus.” I inquired as to what that meant, and he said something like, “You know I am reading my bible and praying.” I asked what else he was doing. He thought hard and said, “I also come to Church each week with her, and I am trying to attend a Sunday School class.” Once more I questioned him, “Is there anything else you are trying.” He looked at me and said, “Nope, just trying to follow Jesus and asking the Lord to work this out.”

Trying to be a good counselor I did not state the obvious and tried to lead him to the truth. No matter how I posed the questions he came back to this singular idea, “I am just following Jesus.” Looking back, maybe I should have said it directly, but I also think he would have resented me for it. I wanted to shout at him, “Why don’t you try picking up your clothes!”

I share this story because it gives us insight into why a marriage crumbles. A marriage usually fails when people fail to put faith into action in the simplest of ways. They have a disconnect between following Jesus and picky up their dirty clothes to make their spouse happy.

Couples fail when one or both of them quit saying, “I love you” or stares at their phone instead of talking. It happens when the things that please my spouse go undone despite their continual requests. Ask someone you know who is divorced and most of them will not tell you about one significant incident that ruined it all. Instead, they will tell you about a flood of small issues that were never resolved.

Truly following Jesus sometimes means doing the little things that bring joy to other people in his name. We can follow Jesus best by picking up our dirty clothes.

What could you do in the name of Jesus this weekend that would help your marriage? The answer might be as easy as a laundry basket.

What does it mean to be a Christian and follow Jesus? The answer to the question is multifaceted. Lately, I am pointing to three different areas that express our faith.

1. How I think. One of the most significant places where Christ must have an impact is in the mind. Paul challenges his readers to transform their thinking by the renewing of their mind. We are called to have the mind of Christ in us. We are to strive to make God’s thoughts our thoughts.

2. How I feel. There is an emotional connection to God as a believer. Our emotions are to be trained to realign themselves from the desires of our flesh into the satisfaction of faith. Our feelings can deceive us because the heart is deceitful above all things, but they can also enhance our spiritual journey when they are lived in faith.

3. How I act. What you do in any given situation is perhaps the ultimate expression of our faith. The words that come from you mouth, the actions of your hands, and the service of your life are expressions of what you really believe.

Here is what I have been noticing lately. All three of these must be working together for us to have complete faith. The Pharisees knew the right thing and even did the right action, but the feelings and intentions of the heart were wrong. They did stuff for self-glory. A hypocrite knows and feels the right things, but the actions do not line up. A moralist can do the right things with good intentions, but not do them for God. There thinking is skewed.

All three dynamics of faith must be in harmony.

If that is true, each one of us must continually ask ourselves honestly, “Which area am I falling down in my faith?” Do you need to learn more? Do you need to develop a deeper emotional connection to God in faith? Do your actions need to change? The temptation is to focus all our attention on the one or possibly two that we like the most and neglect one of these. A complete believer is continuously striving to elevate faith in all levels.

Which one of these needs the most work in your life?

One criticism that has been vocalized against me through the years is that I share too much of myself. I tell stories about my brokenness. A pastor is supposed to have everything figured out and live in a way that shows I no longer have issues. The question is usually asked something like, “How are we going to show people the beauty of faith when you are such a mess?”

Two things I have learned in 25 years of ministry.

One is that all pastors are a mess behind the scenes. We all struggle in our faith, family and with insecurity. We can paint on a happy face, write articles about how we have overcome sin and sing about our victory in Jesus, but is a façade. We are broken people in need of the grace of God at all times.

The second thing I know is that the people we lead are a mess too. Their lives are filled with junk that they try to ignore, avoid and deny. This is true of the good ones who seem to have it all together while leading Church ministries. It is also true for the ones who linger on the edges never letting anyone get close enough to know about their life. The Church is a bunch of broken people in need of the grace of God at all times.

I believe God allows me to lead to that I can use my mistakes to help others. No one is helped in their faith when I am fake. No one is helped when you deny the existence of problems. Everyone finds grace when we are both transparent about our struggles.

The only way we will find healing for our souls is when we bring all our hidden junk into the light. Sin and shame grow in darkness. Healing is located in the light of God’s grace.

It is possible that I share too much, but that is how I have best found to help people while cleansing my soul at the same time. Maybe you should try opening up to someone. Sure, it is embarrassing and messy, but it is the only way we can all find help and healing together.

Fifteen years ago, there was a moment when I sat on the floor of my garage weeping uncontrollably. I had just gotten another phone call attack, and the weight was more than I could bear. I had been holding back emotions for months, and at that moment the dam burst and all I could do was moan and cry. It was one of the four darkest seasons of my life. Through the years I have dissected those times to see patterns that emerge and use those to help myself and others.

1. I Begin to Personalize Issues. If you make any decisions in life, someone will hate you for it. This can be with your spouse, your children, your job or even a volunteer group. Someone is not going to like what you did, and most will be sure and tell you about it. There is this smooth transition from “they don’t like my decision,” to “they hate me.”

2. Listening to the Wrong Voices. Whenever I have been questioned, I look to people for validation. It is amazing how their words seem biased and too loving for me to hear. They have to say these things because they are my family. “Surely the mean people are just honest,” we think.

3. The Voice in My Head Turns Evil. Slowing everything going in my head starts to turn ugly. Shame, remorse, regret, and feelings of inadequacy fill my every thought, even when I have done nothing wrong.

4. Self-Fulling Prophecies of Ugliness. Before I leave the house, I have already convinced myself that something bad is going to happen. I know that when I see them, they are going to say something mean. Worse yet, they are going to see me and try to go the other way. I know the worst is coming in every interaction. I hear everything with a negative twist in each conversation.

5. Why Try? I start asking fatalistic questions of my actions. If nothing is going to work out for good, why keep doing anything?

6. Isolation. Deep down I think that if I want the pain to stop it comes from eliminating other people from my life. Avoid people, and all will be fine. Instead, the voices in my head get louder until the darkness overtakes me.

These have been the steps that seem to emerge every time my life slips into a funk. Maybe you have experienced similar things in your life? Perhaps you are experiencing them now?

For me, there have been two remedies that have helped me to overcome the darkness that always seems to be lurking. First, I need to be aware of these patterns. I need to process my thinking and be knowledgeable of the path I am walking.

Second, I need to work hard to do the opposite at each point. I need to not personalize everything. I need to more people around me who love and support me. I need to fill my head with positive thoughts and voices. I need to see the good in every situation and expect things to work out for the best. I need to keep doing the right thing every day. I need to bring people into my life when I feel like pushing them away.

I once went on a week-long fishing trip with a group of guys as part of a Christian camp. I talked to one older gentleman an extended period as we drove the twenty-four plus hours to our camp. He told me about a time in his life that he was so down that he considered suicide. He was a farmer, and everything had gone wrong that year with his crops, his family and for him personally. At the end of the conversation, he said, “You never know how dark it can be until you get there.”

Well, I have been there. I sat on the floor of my garage crying while calling out to God. He began to show me the light, and I finally moved out of that painful place. It took months to completely recover, but I made it. I am praying that if you are reading this, that God will help you find the light again. It is possible. I know it was true for me and it can happen for you too.

The journey of faith is not always a clear track as we walk the narrow way. Frequently there are objects in our way that cause us to stumble and make some missteps along the path.

Some days the temptation is overwhelming, and we are tripped up by our desires.

Some days shame and regret feel bigger than grace.

Some days the voice in my head shouts louder than the words of God.

Some days the people in our life let us down just when we need them most.

Some days the steps are steep, and there is no one to hold us up.

Following Jesus is not a perfect journey made without mistakes. The sin in our hearts misleads us, and we stumble. Pain, remorse, regret become familiar feelings. The people you hoped would give you strength allow you to fall. There you lie flat on your face.

The key to making this trek a success is that you get back up every time you fall. You do not stay down wallowing in the fact that you are once again on the ground. You must get up, learn from the experience and keep walking the path toward God. True faith pushes us forward day after day ever toward eternity.

Right now, you might be down. That’s okay. Pick yourself up in faith and move farther down the path that leads you closer to God. A successful Christian life involves failure, but it is not permanent unless you allow it to become that way.

Here are a couple of the best posts I’ve read over the previous weeks. Enjoy and see you on Sunday.

Wine, Women, and Social Anxiety: Helping Women Who Use Alcohol to Inoculate Fear

10 EXCITING DISCOVERIES IN BIBLICAL ARCHAEOLOGY IN 2018