Christian Living, Biblical Studies, Religion, Spiritual Growth, Theology
John Beeson
The Faith of Unbelief

Bart Ehrman has perhaps done more to undermine the credibility of the Bible than anyone else in my lifetime. But his story didn’t begin that way. Ehrman is a New Testament scholar and skeptic. Ehrman grew up in a Christian home, attended a conservative Bible school, and then found his way to a liberal seminary where his faith in the God of the Bible unraveled. That seminary happens to be the seminary I would attend a couple of decades later.

For Ehrman, everywhere he looks he sees holes in the biblical story. The inconsistencies that he sees have led him to determine that he cannot trust in the God of the Bible.

The Faith of Unbelief
Christian Living, Culture, Spiritual Growth
John Beeson
Don't Numb Your Feelings

“Don’t listen to your feelings; remember what Jesus did for you!”

“Don’t be guided by your feelings; listen to what God commands you to do!”

In just the past week, I heard both of these warnings. Two very different Christian speakers urged their audiences to shut down their feelings. These admonitions resonate. They contain truth. It is correct that our feelings don’t override truth, nor do our emotions negate what God has done. Neither do our feelings give us an out for what God commands us to do.

Don't Numb Your Feelings
History, Spiritual Growth, Suffering, Wisdom
John Beeson
Lord, Reach Your Justice Down

I had outsized emotions as a child. Games, especially, would get the best of me, whether cards or boardgames or sports. In response to a stroke of bad luck, a hot surge of anger would erupt, followed quickly by tears and then embarrassment.

Emotions are God’s gift to us in many ways. They are one of his kind ways of showing us where our deep attachments lie.

Our son started his freshman year at the University of Arizona this fall. It’s been a great experience for him, but not without its adjustments. The climate of a secular school is quite different than the Christian school he graduated from

Lord, Reach Your Justice Down
Culture, Generosity, Nature, Relationships
John Beeson
Marshmallows and Friends

Most have heard of the famous Stanford marshmallow experiment. In 1970, psychologist Walter Mischel invited kids into his lab. A child was offered a marshmallow that they could eat, or, if they waited until the researcher returned, they were given a second marshmallow. About one-third of the kids waited approximately fifteen minutes for the additional reward.

The study then tracked those children over time and found that children who waited for the second reward tended to have higher SAT scores and lower body mass indexes. Later tests have challenged those outcomes, but it hasn’t stopped parents everywhere from running the experiment on their kids, often with humorous results.

Marshmallows and Friends
Christian Living, Culture, Politics
John Beeson
Uprooting Our Political Identity

Happy election day!

In 2016, data scientists Eitan Hersh and Yair Ghitza analyzed data among registered voters to determine how often Democrats and Republicans married. They learned that 9% of marriages had the spouses registered in the two parties. Over the next four years that meager number would drop precipitously, down to 4%.

 As Jonathan Haidt and others have successfully argued, the ideological disparity between FOX News and CNBC are child’s play compared to the engineered social media algorithms that create hermetically sealed echo chambers for our political views.

Uprooting Our Political Identity

Gratitude

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An Upside-Down Guide to High School

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An Upside-Down Guide to High School

I vividly remember freshman year, walking into the big leagues with 6-foot-tall basketball players roaming the same halls as myself. Looking to these 18-year-old giants, nay, men who had seemingly figured all things out as they were so very close to tasting the real world. The crowds of friends blocking the hallways, (would I ever be a part of that?), the guy and girl walking side by side, (will I ever have that?), the announcements of the valedictorian over the loudspeaker, and the waves of congratulations that followed their steps, (I wonder if people will ever recognize me?).

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The Danger of Nostalgia

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The Danger of Nostalgia

What’s your favorite family memory? What is your favorite memory of church? What is your favorite holiday memory? Recollecting can bring warm feelings toward people and fond memories of places. Nostalgia can stoke gratitude. It appears that God rejoices in godly nostalgia. Take a look at Psalm 78 or Psalm 105, where God takes his people on a tour of their past, and we see his faithfulness on display.

Last week we enjoyed time together on a family vacation: we ate good food, laughed, and played lots of games. I lingered on each moment. Angel and I have been holding tightly memories these days. Our son (18) and daughter (20) are home for the summer.

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The Request

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The Request

Who can forget the Genie?

Mister Aladdin, sir, What will your pleasure be?
…take your order, Jot it down
You ain't never had a friend like me

If you were granted one wish, what would you wish for? Maybe you would wish for superpowers. Perhaps fame, money, or love. For many, the answer would be happiness.

There once was a man who was offered a wish by God. God came to King Solomon and offered him whatever he wanted. “At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night, and God said, ‘Ask what I shall give you’” (1 Kings 3:5).

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The Best of the Bee Hive in 2023

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The Best of the Bee Hive in 2023

Writing is part of the ministry God has entrusted me with. I blog first to pastor my dear congregation New Life Bible Fellowship through the ministry of words. My hope is that the three additional touchpoints during the week allow those God has entrusted to me as an under-shepherd to grow in their love for God, their wisdom, and to foster unity. I’m grateful for the many who read who aren’t part of New Life. I pray that my writing encourages and strengthens you in your walk and in your heart for your local church.

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This Week's Recommendations

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This Week's Recommendations

Thankfulness (and other habits): Marli Scarborough says our gratitude is tied to our identity, “So when [Paul] says “don’t BE anxious,” he’s not saying “don’t FEEL anxious,” or “don’t have anxiety.” He’s saying that anxiety doesn’t have to be your identity. Your identity is in Christ. Joy and gentleness and peace are already yours for the taking.”

  1. Before you gather, mourn your sin: Paul Tripp offers a surprising recommendation for how to make your Thanksgiving special. He begins, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted” (Matt. 5:4). We don’t tend to like to be sad. We hate bad news. We work to avoid problems. We apologize when we cry in public. Being depressed scares us. In our avoidance of sadness, we often numb ourselves to death with endless social media fluff and vacuous Netflix entertainment.”

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The Danger of Ingratitude

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The Danger of Ingratitude

There is a deadly toxin that contaminates the air we breathe. It’s a poison that, if we are aware of it at all, seems innocuous to us both because everyone else is breathing it in, and as far as we’re aware of it, others are breathing more of it in than us.

The poison is ingratitude. And it is everywhere.

Everything (that I don’t have) is Awesome

Psychologists agree that social media has made us less happy. Why is that? Because the constant access into others’ lives taps into our propensity toward ingratitude. We are surrounded by neighbors with nicer cars, friends who take better and longer vacations, couples who are happier, and everyone seems to be fitter and better dressed than we are. And it’s all there for us to see tucked into that powerful, shiny rectangle in our pockets. Every minute of every day.

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Sabbatical Gratitude

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Sabbatical Gratitude

I’m back! My first sabbatical was a wonderful experience. We spent twenty-four days on the road visiting eight national parks. Beauty met us at every turn. Many have asked what I learned on sabbatical. I’m not sure I can answer that question. But I’ve experienced truths about who I know God is more deeply: his grandeur, his bigness, his beauty.

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The Power of Encouragement

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The Power of Encouragement

We are called to be those marked by encouragement. So, why is encouragement so hard for us? Why do we withhold praise? For some of us, we withhold encouragement because we just get busy. I like to write encouragement notes to volunteers and co-workers at New Life, but it’s surprising how quickly the weeks (and sometimes months!) go by between when I write them.

Some of us withhold encouragement because we are too focused on ourselves. It requires a humble heart focused on others and not ourselves to offer encouragement. To the extent that we are self-focused, we will never be able to be strong encouragers.

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Praises From India

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Praises From India

I had the blessing of just returning from an amazing trip connecting with our brothers and sisters in India.  

It’s always impossible to put into words what it is to see a glimpse of God’s miraculous work. India is one of the most challenging places for the gospel in the world. Christians are suffering in ways it is hard to imagine from our Western context.  

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This Week's Recommendations

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This Week's Recommendations

  1. Help! My Employer Celebrates Gay Pride and Pays for Abortion Travel: Miranda Carls steps into a conversation that impacts many. She wisely treads lightly, “Christian decision-making doesn’t rest squarely on the shoulders of human understanding. It doesn’t fit into a neatly organized decision tree of binary questions.”

  2. Harvesting Idols: Chris Thomas warns us, “Though I reason with myself that money is not the problem, but instead the love of it, the very presence of wealth is a danger to my soul.”

  3. Why the Church? HB Charles shoots straight, “’Unchurched Christian’ is not a biblical category. Ask Paul, John, or Peter what they think about unchurched Christians and they would have responded, ‘Why are you calling them Christians, if they are not a part of the church?’”

  4. Remember: Glenna Marshall reflects on a hard year, “I want to always remember. Pain teaches us to be thankful. Grief keeps us near the cross. Remembering recounts God’s faithfulness. While there are events people experience that cause levels of trauma that must be counseled and handled delicately, what I’m talking about are those significant sequences of suffering that the Lord draws us through that change us, sanctify us.”

  5. Comedy Wildlife Awards: I always enjoy these. How about that squirrel or the big cat’s face plant into the tree?

  6. It’s a Wonderful Telescope: A fun and beautiful connection between the classic Christmas movie and the James Webb telescope you probably didn’t know (I didn’t!).

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