Christian Living

110 of 218 items

Shepherding People Who Can’t Get Along

by Tyler Dirks

Years ago I arranged the content below in an effort to help some people repair a broken relationship. It didn’t work. The people decided not to repent and reconcile, and they haven’t spoken to each other for over 3 years now. However, perhaps God used that volatile & estranging situation to organize and publish the […]

Jegar Sahadutha / Galeed …Mizpah

by Tyler Dirks

Have you ever been in a situation where someone stopped regarding you with favor? And God told you to leave the presence of that person? So you gather up your wives and concubines and livestock, and you leave. But then the person you’re fleeing from follows you for 7 days to confront you. And God […]

relentlessly, imaginatively, curiously

by Tyler Dirks

Here is the most recent text exchange between BFW and I: Yesterday, 5:45 PM Bronco: Even though you don’t officially hold the rising adult position anymore :-)… I still have you on my calendar for tomorrow. I cannot do lunch, but if you want to meet up for breakfast, Sammies at Common Market, I’m game. […]

A Book That’ll Imaginatively Immerse You In The Story of Jeremiah

by Tyler Dirks

I recommend you read THIS BOOK. Below you will find an assemblage of quotations from the book to get you excited. “We underestimate God and we overestimate evil. We don’t see what God is doing and conclude that he is doing nothing. We see everything that evil is doing and think it is in control […]

What The Boss Said…

by Tyler Dirks

Here are the primary takeaways from my morning meeting with The Boss today… Elders must hold firm to sound doctrine and the trustworthy Word as taught and emphasized by Jesus of Nazareth. The protocols, norms, and decorums of American Christianity don’t get to dictate what is truly and forcibly meant by ‘sound doctrine’, but rather […]

Missive to Peeps in Colossae

by Tyler Dirks

A couple of days ago I read an account of Jesus having a breakfast meeting with His friends around a campfire. So last night before bed I checked the weather and saw that the temp was forecast to be 57 degrees in the morning, and I resolved to have my morning breakfast meeting with The […]

Hometown

by Tyler Dirks

Driving the kids to school on Wednesday, we were listening to “Hometown” by twenty one pilots. Having recently read Amos and Ezekiel the following lyrics were particularly engrossing: Put away, put awayAll the gods your father served todayPut away, put awayYour traditions, believe me when I sayWe don’t know, we don’t knowHow to put back […]

Disappointment & Joy

by Tyler Dirks

I have always hated disappointment. I live as if man’s chief end is to avoid disappointment at all costs. My intuitive belief is that joy and disappointment are completely at odds with one another, and thus I am compelled to develop robust systems of defense against disappointment. For example, the devil prowls the earth like […]

Curing Lukewarmness

by Tyler Dirks

Carrie & I were on a walk yesterday and we crossed paths with our neighbor (and ECPC regular attender) Jacob. We stopped to chat with Jacob and his buddies for a few minutes, and Jacob asked, “How do I avoid being a lukewarm Christian?” How should we answer Jacob’s question? Let’s start by rejecting any […]

A Point Of Emphasis For Fyodor

by Tyler Dirks

“The more stupid one is, the closer one is to reality. The more stupid one is, the clearer one is. Stupidity is brief and artless, while intelligence squirms and hides itself. Intelligence is unprincipled, but stupidity is honest and straightforward.” – The Brothers Karamazov [Fyodor Dostoevsky] Tyler’s commentary… truth is often disdained and dismissed in […]