Nathan Joyce, Union alum and pastor of Heartland Worship Center in Paducah, Kentucky, recently recorded this brief video on the value of Greek for preaching and pastoral ministry for my first year Greek class. In just about 90 seconds he makes the point so well, so I wanted to share it here as well. He …
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I was richly blessed attending the service of thanksgiving for the life of Howard Marshall last weekend in Aberdeen. The service was rich, profound and moving. I may write more about it in days to come, but here I want to share a portion of the prayer given by Professor Andrew Walls. Walls has for …
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My first completed book of the year is Harper Lee’s Go Set a Watchman. Despite all the criticism of the book, I thought it was superb. They say it was a draft. May I be so blessed as to write such drafts! If Lee announced she had a forthcoming volume of scrap stories about Jean …
2015 was marked by the death of three teachers who have had significant impact on my life. First, on June 10, Dr. Louise Bentley died. Dr. Bentley taught me Arts in Western Civilization and has ever since been a model to me for what a teacher ought to be- love of the subject matter, love …
Each year I keep a list of the books I read all the way through, typically with brief notes, as a way of tracking my thoughts and a way to look back on each year and see some of what influenced me. So, in this post I have drawn from that list some of the …
Joy to the World: How Christ’s Coming Changed Everything (And Still Does), Scott Hahn (Image, 2014), hb. 175 pp. I really enjoyed this book where Scott Hahn expounds key texts related to the Christmas story. Hahn writes for a popular audience and provides clear exposition. Of course, in places his Catholic take on things (e.g., …
There have been a flood of memes and other comments this year mocking the popular song, “Mary Did You Know?” “Yes, Mary knew!”, they proclaim, typically pointing to Luke 1 where Gabriel tells her that the child born to her “will be called holy- the Son of God.” I don’t feel the need to defend …
As has now been widely reported, I Howard Marshall, Emeritus Professor of New Testament at Aberdeen University, passed away this weekend. I had the privilege of studying with Howard doing my doctoral work from 1998-2001. Howard was always clear that no one studied “under” him but “with” him. He corrected my use of prepositions early …
For this first week of Advent, my poem of the week is this wonderful 7th century hymn that I have only recently come across. I hope you enjoy it as I have. Creator of the stars of night, Thy people’s everlasting light, Jesu, Redeemer, save us all, And hear Thy servants when they call. Thou, …
Recently I was asked to speak to a class in our Worship Leadership program on pastoral care issues, specifically hospital visitation and bereavement. The professor rightly wanted these students to be prepared to participate in this work of pastoral care. Below are my notes in bullet form for some key, basic thoughts on this realm …
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