Let go and let God? [False ideas Christians believe about…God’s involvement in our lives. Part 4]

I would like to recommend that you not say the following to people going through pain: Let go and let God. This is popularized in Carrie Underwood’s song, “Jesus Take The Wheel.”  Before I explain why this might not be a helpful statement, it is important to note that there is much to commend aboutContinue reading “Let go and let God? [False ideas Christians believe about…God’s involvement in our lives. Part 4]”

How to walk through pain [False ideas Christians believe about…difficulty. Part 5]

How should we respond in the midst of pain? The psalmists often lament, crying out their complaint to God as to why he is not answering their prayer.  This is why we are fact-checking statement about dealing with difficulty. The post you are reading is number 5 of 5. If you’re starting here, I encourageContinue reading “How to walk through pain [False ideas Christians believe about…difficulty. Part 5]”

This too shall pass? [False ideas Christians believe about…difficulty. Part 4]

Are the difficult times in life good or bad? You might read that and think, “How could difficult times ever be good?” Well, when we experience suffering, we tend to feel more helpless and needy and thus we pray more. Increased levels of communication with God, as with any relationship in which greater communication almostContinue reading “This too shall pass? [False ideas Christians believe about…difficulty. Part 4]”

God helps those who help themselves? [False ideas Christians believe about…difficulty. Part 3]

“If you are unemployed and need a job, and you pray for a job, don’t expect God to give you a job if all you do is collect unemployment while you sit on the couch all day watching Netflix and eating chips. Stop making excuses and get to the unemployment office!” What do you thinkContinue reading “God helps those who help themselves? [False ideas Christians believe about…difficulty. Part 3]”

How genre is vital to the Bible [False ideas Christians believe about…the Bible. Part 3]

We read the instruction manual for our car differently than we will read Shakespeare’s sonnets, right?  We read the Declaration of Independence different than we read Huckleberry Finn.  As we should.  The authors of each of those documents are utilizing different literary genres to accomplish a purpose.  Genre is a fancy word that just meansContinue reading “How genre is vital to the Bible [False ideas Christians believe about…the Bible. Part 3]”

The Bible is not the only Word of God [False ideas Christians believe about…the Bible. Part 1]

Did you know there is another more ancient Word of God than the Bible? Keep reading to learn about it. Last week I started a series in which I am looking at common sayings Christians use and believe, thinking those sayings are biblical, but they are actually false, not in the Bible.  OR the sayingsContinue reading “The Bible is not the only Word of God [False ideas Christians believe about…the Bible. Part 1]”

Love the sinner, hate the sin? [False ideas Christians believe about…Sin. Part 5]

Have you ever heard a Christian say, “love the sinner, hate the sin”?  We hear that all the time.  Maybe you’ve said it yourself. On the surface it sounds really good.  We should be a people that love others no matter who they are.  What could be wrong with that?  If that was all itContinue reading “Love the sinner, hate the sin? [False ideas Christians believe about…Sin. Part 5]”

All sins are not the same? [False ideas Christians believe about…Sin. Part 4]

This week we have been fact-checking Christian statements about sin. In part 3 yesterday we looked at the phrase “all sins are the same.” Today we’re investigating its opposite: sins are different. There is an important sense in which sins are very, very different, and they are not the same.   In part 3, we sawContinue reading “All sins are not the same? [False ideas Christians believe about…Sin. Part 4]”