Applied Theology
Several years ago, a pastor friend confided in me. He did not know how to pray. He hated to admit it, but he could not sustain prayers longer than a few seconds. Sustained prayer was for him as foreign as Durian candy in a Michelin five star restaurant. It just wasn’t happening. My friend wanted... Continue Reading →
Just yesterday, my youngest son did something stupid. To tell the truth, his mom and dad often do stupid things, too—daily. But our job is to correct him and help him to be better than we are (which means making him prone to doing fewer stupid things). So we corrected our child. The main way... Continue Reading →
Have you ever sacrificed your time and your energy to invest in other people? You probably spent time with them in discipleship, building them up in God’s Word, only to have them go astray and turn away from all you taught them. It hurts, doesn’t it? It seems like a life-investment with no return. The... Continue Reading →
In Acts 2, the Apostle Peter stood in the assembly and proclaimed Jesus Christ as Lord. Though he had organized no great event, nor had he enlisted an army of volunteers to corral the crowds, Peter saw great fruit as three thousand souls were saved and added to the church in a single day. While... Continue Reading →
Chaos usually ensues after our worship service concludes. It isn’t the chaos of a charismatic explosion, filled with dancing or laughing or strange verbal utterances. It isn’t chaos of any negative sort. Rather, it’s the delightful chaos of slightly uncontrolled children rushing around in search of candy, suckers, and places to run. My children are... Continue Reading →
I’ve been off the grid for a bit, partly because of spending a week at the NorCal Pastor’s Retreat. This retreat, by design, was retreat from everything resembling a normal, daily routine, including cell phones, text messages, internet service, television, indoor plumbing, private bathrooms, etc. For me, the retreat also served as a kind of... Continue Reading →
Working from Matthew 28:18-20, I would say that anyone who is baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and who is obeying everything that Jesus taught—that person is a disciple of Jesus Christ. No doubt, there is room for dispute. But the bottom line is that we must be able to... Continue Reading →
The Nelson Baptist Association is hosting a Discipleship "Inside Out" Conference, February 19-20. You don't want to miss this conference. Dr. Don Whitney, author of 7 great books on discipleship and biblical spirituality, will be presenting sessions on prayer and meditation on Friday night and Saturday morning. His instruction will lead us to greater depths... Continue Reading →
I have a video linked here which demonstrates that the Lord establishes strength out of the mouth of babes and infants. This little girl, Hannah, speaks the truth. She also displays the fruit of a family which has reared this child in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. I post this video today because it... Continue Reading →
Gregory C. Cochran 