Note: This is an archived article from the old As In Heaven website before it was acquired by The Gospel Coalition. Orlando is a city recently grown up and trying to figure out its place in the world. My maternal grandparents moved here in 1952 when it wasn’t anything more than an orange and cow town with a population of 50,000 filled with crystal clear … Continue reading An Orlando Primer

[Originally published at The Gospel Coalition and co-authored by Justin and Lindsey Holcomb and Angela Davis] Sex is one the most important topics of conversation parents get to have with their children. But it can sure feel intimidating. How do we bring it up? When do we bring it up? How much do they already know? How in-depth do we get? Have we waited too … Continue reading Let’s Talk About Sex

The 20th century, in many ways, represented the climax of Christian influence in the United States as churches established a massive physical footprint, exercised significant social and political power, and sent missionaries to every corner of the map. While there were contributing factors to this rise of Christian influence in the West (mass transportation, telecommunication, urbanization, a strong economy, and a growing sense of American … Continue reading Fruitful Ministry In A Changing Age

[Originally published at The Gospel Coalition] In the early 2000s, Campus Crusade for Christ (now Cru) experienced an inordinate number of morally failing campus ministers. Men and women in various ministries and varied contexts—who’d seemingly followed the Lord faithfully for decades—embezzled money, harbored addictions, and cheated on their spouses. Under the leadership of Marc Rutter, and with the help of Henry Cloud, Cru examined these moral … Continue reading 5 Signs You’re An At-Risk Pastor

As we walk through Joshua at Orlando Grace Church, the elephant in the room is God’s commanding the deaths of entire groups of Canaanite people. Why would God do this? Is the God of the Bible promoting genocide? More than one genocidal movements have pointed back to this book to justify the horrible things they were doing. Is this a God we can trust at … Continue reading Does The Bible Promote Genocide?

The city of Orlando is gearing up for the arrival of President Trump on June 18 when he will come to announce his candidacy for re-election. The Amway Arena is booked, security details are being finalized, news agencies are trickling in, and more than a few of us are hoping to get a good look at Air Force One on approach. Many, though, believe God … Continue reading Is God For A Presidential Candidate?

It isn’t my habit as I preach through books of the Bible to spend a lot of time introducing the book. Maybe a few paragraphs to understand the context, but no more. Some pastors devote whole sermons to introducing a book well and I have benefitted from those types of sermons, but the truth is that there is an abundance of good introductory information at … Continue reading A Primer On Joshua

Christmas is my favorite time of year. In my house, the tree is up the day after Thanksgiving, the fire is going even though we now live in Orlando, the hot chocolate is flowing and, yes, the elf is making his way around our shelves. I love the Christmas season and all its sentiments, stories and traditions. Some of these stories and traditions are so … Continue reading Six Christmas Corrections