Christian Living, Culture, Politics, Spiritual Growth
John Beeson
Vulgar Authenticity

Who is your favorite celebrity? Your favorite political pundit? Your favorite politician?

Why are you drawn to these individuals? Maybe it is their personality. Perhaps it is because you respect their convictions. Possibly, it is because of their unique style.

Taylor Swift might be the most beloved celebrity in the world. Many have commented that one of the reasons that Swift has cultivated such a devoted following is her accessibility and down-to-earth qualities, from what she wears to the love stories she writes about in her music.

Vulgar Authenticity
Christian Living, Biblical Studies, Religion, Spiritual Growth, Theology
John Beeson
The Faith of Unbelief

Bart Ehrman has perhaps done more to undermine the credibility of the Bible than anyone else in my lifetime. But his story didn’t begin that way. Ehrman is a New Testament scholar and skeptic. Ehrman grew up in a Christian home, attended a conservative Bible school, and then found his way to a liberal seminary where his faith in the God of the Bible unraveled. That seminary happens to be the seminary I would attend a couple of decades later.

For Ehrman, everywhere he looks he sees holes in the biblical story. The inconsistencies that he sees have led him to determine that he cannot trust in the God of the Bible.

The Faith of Unbelief
Christian Living, Culture, Spiritual Growth
John Beeson
Don't Numb Your Feelings

“Don’t listen to your feelings; remember what Jesus did for you!”

“Don’t be guided by your feelings; listen to what God commands you to do!”

In just the past week, I heard both of these warnings. Two very different Christian speakers urged their audiences to shut down their feelings. These admonitions resonate. They contain truth. It is correct that our feelings don’t override truth, nor do our emotions negate what God has done. Neither do our feelings give us an out for what God commands us to do.

Don't Numb Your Feelings
History, Spiritual Growth, Suffering, Wisdom
John Beeson
Lord, Reach Your Justice Down

I had outsized emotions as a child. Games, especially, would get the best of me, whether cards or boardgames or sports. In response to a stroke of bad luck, a hot surge of anger would erupt, followed quickly by tears and then embarrassment.

Emotions are God’s gift to us in many ways. They are one of his kind ways of showing us where our deep attachments lie.

Our son started his freshman year at the University of Arizona this fall. It’s been a great experience for him, but not without its adjustments. The climate of a secular school is quite different than the Christian school he graduated from

Lord, Reach Your Justice Down
Culture, Generosity, Nature, Relationships
John Beeson
Marshmallows and Friends

Most have heard of the famous Stanford marshmallow experiment. In 1970, psychologist Walter Mischel invited kids into his lab. A child was offered a marshmallow that they could eat, or, if they waited until the researcher returned, they were given a second marshmallow. About one-third of the kids waited approximately fifteen minutes for the additional reward.

The study then tracked those children over time and found that children who waited for the second reward tended to have higher SAT scores and lower body mass indexes. Later tests have challenged those outcomes, but it hasn’t stopped parents everywhere from running the experiment on their kids, often with humorous results.

Marshmallows and Friends

Blogging for Gods Glory

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What I Read in 2020 (and What You Might Want to Read in 2021)

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What I Read in 2020 (and What You Might Want to Read in 2021)

In 2019 I read 101 books, which was a personal high for me, at least since I’ve been keeping track. I expected to tail off that number in 2020. And then COVID-19 struck. With fewer social gatherings than ever and more quiet nights at home, my reading actually increased. A new high-water mark for books resulted: 115.

2020 was also a year that provided plenty of internal reasons to need the companion of books. I read loads from other pastors and leaders on how they were navigating leading through COVID (given the immediacy of the issue, most of that was by way of blogs, not books). The fracturing of the nation over issues of race and racism had me diving deep on that topic. I’m still processing much of that, but I do plan on sharing more about what I’m learning about race and racism on my blog in the future.

2020 also saw the publication of my first book (co-authored with Benjamin Vrbicek), giving me a new appreciation for the labor of love every author has in bringing a book into the world. Thank you to those who read Blogging for God’s Glory in a Clickbait World. I’m grateful you let Benjamin and I spend several hours with you.

Let me start with my three favorite books of 2020.

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How to Find Your Purpose as a Writer

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How to Find Your Purpose as a Writer

About four years ago, my co-author, Benjamin Vrbicek, helped me think through what it would take to launch a blog: navigating me through the logistics, the challenges ahead, and my reasons for blogging.

Today, Blogging for God’s Glory in a Clickbait World releases. The seeds of this book were in those conversations. Our hope is that the book would serve as a guide for other writers and aspiring Christian writers. Have you ever considered blogging? I think this book will serve you well.

Below is the first chapter, a chapter that addresses these questions: why am I blogging, and who am I trying to reach?

Blogging for God’s Glory in a Clickbait World

CHAPTER 1: PURPOSE

I got the itch to write when I was a fourth grader in Ms. Reeves’s class. We had free writing time and once a week we read our creations to the class. I was reading J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit for the first time and had a serious case of Middle-earth-itis. Another boy in my class had caught the Middle-earth bug as well.

We were off, each of us writing facsimiles of The Hobbit. Only, he had the imaginative horsepower to create something that could stand on its own two feet. He wove into his story students in our class, our teacher, and our principal. When he took the storytelling stool, he sat up straight, his eyes sparkled, and the class leaned forward in anticipation.

Is Blogging Dead?

Is Blogging Dead?

On November 3, my friend Benjamin Vrbicek and I will release our book Blogging for God’s Glory in a Clickbait World. Our prayer is that the book helps encourage aspiring Christian writers to blog, provides them guidance along the way, and makes sure that all the while, our eyes stay focused on God and his glory.

One of the most fun parts of this project was the communal aspect of the book. Benjamin and I were able to have conversations with dozens of Christian bloggers who were so generous to offer their wisdom and perspective. Blogging for God’s Glory in a Clickbait World offers not just Benjamin and my knowledge, but input from some of the best bloggers we know and follow.

One question that we asked everyone in this group was whether or not they believe that blogging is dead. Is the era of blogging past, replaced by Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube? Are we crazy to write this book? We received such thoughtful engagement around this question, we included it as an appendix in the book.

Enjoy the free download below. And if you have ever considered blogging, or know someone who writes, maybe you might consider grabbing Blogging for God in a Clickbait World.

Want to Join the Team?

Want to Join the Team?

On November 3 my first book will hit the shelves. Whether you know it or not, you’ve been an important partner in writing this book. The book is co-authored by my friend and fellow blogger, Benjamin Vrbicek and it is on the topic of blogging. Blogging for God’s Glory in a Clickbait World is a guide for bloggers or aspiring bloggers, pointing them back to the goal of Christian blogging and providing helpful practices and tips.

For those of you who have an itch to write, I hope this book provides a nudge and a road map. For those of you who have friends who are bloggers or who might blog, I hope that you consider gifting this book to them as an encouragement.

You’ve been here with me through this journey of blogging and I would be honored if you would consider joining our Launch Team. Here is what it will mean.

If you are willing to serve on the launch team, we will send you a digital version of the book in the next few weeks to give you time to read it before its November 3 launch.

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