I generally expect things to work out – except when I’m traveling. Experience has conditioned me to expect the worst when I leave home. I expect the airplane will be overbooked, the schedule delayed, or the flight cancelled. All these things have...
The speaker’s words were both, familiar and shocking: “Let’s say a quick prayer.” The familiar part came from hearing this many times before and even saying it myself. The shocking part came from realizing how disrespectful this is to God and how...
Peter DeHaan’s Writing Blog Facilitates Reader Interaction and Fosters Better Connections. Mattawan, Michigan, Jun 28, 2013 – Peter DeHaan’s writing blog, Byline, celebrates thirty months of posts and reader comments with a fresh façade...
The Old Testament of the Bible presents God’s original way of interacting with his people (a covenant). It consists of a list of rules and expectations (the law). The New Testament of the Bible introduces Jesus and a new way to interact with God...
I used to do business with an India-based company whose employees ended every phone call by saying “Good Karma.” This perplexed me. How should I respond? Was their ritual sendoff a theological reflection or merely their culture’s accepted way to...
My high school drafting teacher was a patient man – and my classmates sorely tested him in this. They had a perverse enjoyment in pushing him to his breaking point, because when he had enough, he exploded with a tirade of invective. The word...
A friend recently asked for advice about fatherhood. Over the years, I’ve done some things right and some things wrong. I had much to share, but I wanted to reveal the best, the most important thing. Here it is: There will always be time to work...
The phrase “the Lord’s anger” occurs 29 times in the Bible. Is God an angry god, frequently mad at us for messing up? Does he enjoy punishing those who disappoint him? The answer is no. This phrase only appears in the Old Testament of the Bible...
I recently listened to some people talk about spiritual matters. Their language perplexed me. While some of their expressions fit within my worldview, other utterings did not. I resist labeling people, but labels can aid in understanding (though...
Multiply: Disciples Making Disciples By Francis Chan and Mark Beuving (reviewed by Peter DeHaan) Many Christians – and the churches they attend – skip the part about making disciples. Though Jesus commanded us to make disciples and modeled how to...
