Kept for Jesus: A Review Essay
by Matthew McAffee [The following is an adaptation of a review recently published in the Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 58 (2015): 858-61] Kept for Jesus represents Sam Storms biblical-theological treatment of the Reformed doctrine of eternal security.[1] I appreciate his warm and approachable writing style, which produces a conversational tone for the book. In the introduction he outlines a two-fold...
Christianity and Technology: A Primer
Many years ago, various circumstances led me to focus my research and reflection on technology. In reality, what led me down this rabbit hole was observing the rapid change in the world around me. I saw its influence on Christian thought and practice, and I was curious as to why much of the best literature on technology and social change was not produced by people of traditional religious faith.[1] A recent CNN Films documentary...
Book Review: Gospel-Centered Youth Ministry: A Practical Guide
In my job to teach future youth ministers, I come across a myriad of different youth ministry resources. The majority focus on the practical: how to equip volunteers, how to organize amazing lock-ins, etc. In their own right, these books are often very helpful. However, a variety of these books focus on the theological side. These often offer helpful, theological principles for ministry, but they often fail to lead the reader into a...
Shaping Culture One Classroom at a Time
Over 60 years ago, Carl F. H. Henry questioned whether evangelicals could justify having so much money invested in church buildings that were only used a couple of days per week. He wrote, “The day has now come for evangelicalism to rethink its whole building program. By tremendous outlay of funds, most church communities provide a worship structure which usually stands idle except for two Sundays services and a midweek prayer...
Pathways to Truth: The Importance of Books in the Life of a Child
by Christa Hill I have loved books for a long time. From the time I was a toddler, my parents read to me and took me to the library for reading programs and armloads of borrowed books. In elementary school, I was (and, admittedly, occasionally still am) the girl who searched the back of many closets hoping that I would finally get to Narnia. During my middle school years, I dreamed of being a brilliant ace detective like my favorite...
Ministering in an Age of Distraction
An image has recently surfaced on Twitter showing the intense hold that electronic media has on children The picture portrays a gathering of students in front of one of Rembrandt’s most famous and moving pieces, The Night Watch, at Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum.[1] What’s interesting, although not surprising, is that none of the students are observing the painting, but all of them are looking at their phones. With the opportunity to look at...
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