The spiritual gift of discernment shows up twice in the Bible and with very little for a working definition. This has left a lot of room for people to interpret and put their own experiences into what this gift could be.

Can I trust my favourite Bible teacher? Perhaps a friend of yours has questioned your favourite Bible teacher. How do you move forward? With three simple steps.

Have you gotten off track with your Bible study habits? When my twins were born, my habits were quickly uprooted. But when my life quieted down again, here's how I rebuilt my quiet time routine and got back into God's Word.

Should you use a commentary when studying the Bible? Isn't that cheating? Here's why I use a Bible commentary (plus some recommendations!).

Once you know the whole story, you'll look at Leviticus differently. And you'll be looking at your story, too.

With the gospel as our backdrop, we need to engage discernment as whole people. God created us with minds, souls, and bodies. When we only engage one of these, our discernment is lacking. It’s weakened because we’re only engaging part of us, rather than our entire selves.

We’re exhorted to seek solitude, journal towards holiness, go on nature walks to connect with God, and take extended periods of silence to listen and clear our minds. Do all these practices and more, they say, to grow closer to God and be holy. Dear reader, do all these checklist items miss the theological and even practical mark that the Bible lays out for us?

You’ve been told all your life that God’s Word will put your mind at peace and calm your fears, yet they still rage no matter what you do. Even as you repeat Bible verses to yourself, your heart stamps in your chest. You try to focus on the text before you, but anxiety fogs and clouds your brain. How do we stay in God’s Word while anxiety fills us?

Growing up, I always craved the intimate relationship I saw that others had with God. But it seemed like this intimate relationship was always out of reach. What I didn’t realize is that in Christ, God has provided the way for me to have an intimate relationship with him—one of speaking and listening, of learning and growing in love.

In Christian spheres, people paint curiosity a few different ways. In some circles, it’s praised almost as a spiritual discipline that we should partake in if we wish to know God and grow in holiness. In other circles it’s a dangerous practice. But what if the faithful Christian can be both curious and discerning?

Do you wonder why God never speaks to you? Pastors, conference speakers, mentors, and friends all hear from God. But all you hear is the humming of your dishwasher. You never feel any nudges or hear any whispers. Maybe you’re starting to wonder if God loves you less.

A book review of Zach Keele’s book, The Unfolding Word. The Unfolding Word seeks to help us see how the entire Bible unfolds as one unified story held together by the gospel.

Have you ever sat across from a friend and felt your theological disagreements strike up between you like a jagged fence? Perhaps it felt like a crack in the foundation of your friendship, and your heart ached a little—from wonder at how she disagreed with you to fears of losing your friend. How do we move forward?

Church can feel like an add-on to our weeks. We’ve already invested so much time in going to small groups and other activities. Is church even important? We have the music, the teaching, the Word, and the fellowship all contained in our pockets. Is it really worth waking everyone up early and piling into the car to drive to church each Sunday to do what we’ve already been doing all week?

False teaching should make us mad. It should make us indignant for God’s glory and the souls of the lost. But does it ever cause us to mourn? If we felt this kind of grief, how would that change our words and actions towards false teachers? Perhaps we’d be better proclaimers of the truth they need.

Each of us is faced with decisions in life, and the hardest ones often involve people we love and know to be faithful. But have you ever felt this tension between Bible teachers you know and love? How do we discern what’s true even among the best of Bible teachers?

I have memorials in my home. I have pieces that provoke feelings, memories, and thoughts. For each one that brings grief, I have another that gives me a glimpse at eternity. But even these memorials are temporary. I also need something that doesn’t tarnish. Something everlasting. I need to treasure God’s Word in my heart. Perhaps in physical ways that I can see and tangible ways I can touch.

False teachers are everywhere. How do we grow in discernment to know truth from error? First we must lay a foundation. Here’s how.

Just as the Old Testament saints and the Early Church had to watch closely for false teachers among them, so we still do today. We can’t rely on our pastors, mentors, teachers, or favorite bloggers to tell us who is false and who isn’t. We need to be equipped to discern for ourselves. Here’s how.

Most of us have learned to be careful with the term “heretic”, reserving it for those who are far from orthodoxy, but perhaps some of us (myself included) are still a bit too quick to stick the label “false teacher” on others’ backs. Can you relate? How do you know when to call someone a false teacher?