The 5 Minute Discipleship Podcast

There are a number of verses in the New Testament that talks about the persecution of believers in Jesus.  For those of you listening from here in America, we know that by and large, this has not been our experience. Many Americans are concerned about our eroding Christian freedoms, but our experiences have been nothing compared to other believers around the world.  Consider these statistics repor...

Let me ask you a question. Do you have confidence in God when you pray? I have talked with people who told me they hoped God heard their prayers. They hoped he would answer their prayers. When I asked a guy if I could pray for him, his response was, “Go ahead. It can’t hurt.”  That doesn't really demonstrate  confidence, does it? I want to remind you today that our God can be trusted. He keep...

Not long ago, I watch a movie called Twister. The film, which came out in 1996 was about a team of storm chasers in Oklahoma. The team was trying to deploy a storm research device up into a tornado.  If you search for storm chasers on YouTube there are some crazy videos of people who actually chase tornadoes trying to get as close as possible for photos and video coverage. I have to admit that sto...

This afternoon I had an interesting discussion with my two teenage daughters. I asked them the question: Is God unfair? This is an important question for them to wrestle with as they work out their faith in God. But what about you? Have you ever wondered about the fairness of God? The same week you get laid of of your job, your friend gets a promotion on his job. Your Dad receives a doctor’s repor...

I’ve been a Christian since I was a young boy. Over the years, I have worshipped God is many different settings. I have worshipped in churches, worshipped in classes, camps, conferences, and conventions. I have worshipped on camping trips, worshipped in the mountains, and worshipped at the beach. I have worshipped on high school campuses and college campuses. I have worshipped with large groups an...

Here’s an important biblical principal…in our weakness we experience God’s strength. Weakness is not celebrated by our culture. It is not praised. It is not valued. You won’t get your face on the cover of a magazine for being the weakest person. But God doesn’t evaluate us the way the world does.  Our weakness opens the door for you and I to experience the strength of God in ways we never have bef...

I was reading this week about students are training to become commercial airplane pilots. They spend many hours in flight simulators. These simulators give the students a chance to experience the challenges and dangers of flying an aircraft—but without the risk. The pilots don’t have to leave the ground, and if they crash in the simulation, they can safely walk away. But while simulators are wonde...

A Sunday School teacher looked at the class of four-year olds and asked this question: ''Does anyone know what today is?'' A little girl waved her hand, ''I know. I know! Today is Palm Sunday.'' ''That's fantastic!'' the teacher replied. ''Does anyone know what next Sunday is?'' The same little girl held up her ha...

Grace is a word we think we understand, especially if we have followed Christ for any length of time.  But I’m discovering as I talk with people that grace is often misunderstood.  And even if we understand it, grace can be hard for us to believe and receive. The word grace finds its way into our vocabulary all the time.  Many people “say grace” before meals, acknowledging daily bread as a gift fr...

Today, as this episode of the podcast is being release, it is Good Friday. It’s the day we remember the crucifixion of Jesus for our sins. But the question often arises: Why is it called Good Friday?  What the Jewish authorities and Romans did to Jesus was definitely not good. The suffering he endured was not good. The crown of thorns was not good. Execution by crucifixion was not good.  However,...

I don’t know if you are average or not, but I read today that the Average American will live 28,000 days (75 years).  23 years sleeping.  17 years working.  11 years watching TV (25 hours a week).  6 years traveling.  1 year in church. I don’t know about you, but I often feel as if I don’t have enough time. The demands of life, family, and ministry run the limit of my time. In reality, we all have...

We can’t imagine sending a soldier into battle without a weapon. To do so would mean certain defeat. The soldier would have no way to defend himself and would be incapable of overthrowing the enemy.  As Christians, we are in a spiritual battle. The Bible is clear on this truth. Luke 4 tells us that even Jesus was tempted by the devil. Ephesians 6:12 says, “For our struggle is not against flesh and...

In one of his books, Dale Carnegie talks about his visit to Yellowstone National Park.  One night he saw a grizzly bear in a campsite eating some food that had been left behind by campers.  For several minutes the bear feasted alone.  After a few minutes a skunk walked up to the campsite, took his place next to the bear, and began to eat.  The bear did nothing.  Carnegie said he knew why.  “The gr...

When I was growing up I church was our life. In addition to church services and ministries, people shared life with one another. I remember people in our home after Sunday evening services, sitting around the table. The menu was simple fare, usually just sandwiches, chips and iced tea. It wasn’t the food that was important, it was the fellowship. The act of opening your home, inviting others into...

A group of tourists visiting a picturesque village walked by an old man sitting beside a fence. In a rather patronizing way, one tourist asked him, “Were any great men born in this village?” The old man replied, “Nope, only babies.” How true. No one is born fully grown. We are all born as babies. The same is true in our spiritual lives. Every person who is a born-again believer starts life as a ba...

In my adult life I have been an on and off runner. I’ve had season where I ran consistently and seasons where I haven’t run at all. I don’t love running, but I love having ran, if you know what I mean. I do love the mental clarity I experience when I run. Six times the New Testament talks about running. No, not physical running, but spiritual running. Six times the New Testament calls the life we...

I was recently reading about the culture of Israel in the first century to understand what is was like for the 12 disciples who followed Jesus. In the first century a Jewish man who wanted to be a disciple of a rabbi (a teacher) was expected to leave family and job to join his rabbi. They would live together 24 hours a day—walking from place to place, teaching and learning, studying and working. T...

The other day, I came out of my office at the end of the day to find one of the back tires on my car was almost flat. I live close to the church and there was enough air in the tire for me to make it home. After taking off the tire, I saw that I had run over a screw. Slowly, throughout the day I lost air pressure causing the flat tire. I remember reading a statement once that said “moral failure a...

 I’d like to take a few minutes to do something a bit different today. Usually we talk about discipleship and following Jesus, but today is my 50th birthday and if you’ll allow me to, I’d like to share some reflections with you. 50 is an interesting age. I always wanted to live to be 100 years old, so I guess I have reached the halfway mark. I remember think 50 was pretty old. Now I know 50 is not...

Do you like to wait?  I didn’t think so. I can’t remember ever hearing someone say they enjoy waiting.  We know that patience is a fruit of the Spirit, but nobody actually likes to wait. Yet everyday we’re forced to wait – sometimes for things we need and sometimes for things we want, and often we have to wait on people. Statistics show that the average person spends close to an hour everyday wait...

I remember a difficult season my wife and I had some years ago. We were struggling financially and I was deeply discourage. I still had faith in God, but I was struggling. Why were we going through this situation? Why wasn’t God providing for our needs quicker.  I remember an argument my wife and I had where I expressed to her that I didn’t think God cared about us anymore. She responded by saying...

I have a pastor friend who is one of the most generous people I know. He lives his life looking for ways to bless others and to add value to their lives. He speaks words of life and kindness to others. You can’t be in his presence and not be encouraged and uplifted.  I’ll never forget preaching at his church one weekend. Not only did he invite me to stay in his home and share a meal with his famil...

Recently my wife and I reviewed our retirement savings and our financial plans for the future. We took a look at how much we set back each month and how it’s invested. We talked about our plans for increasing our savings and what our financial goals are for our retirement years.  God willing, we still have quite a few years ahead of us before retirement, but we recognize that investing now is esse...

I was reading recently about Samuel Chadwick, a Methodist preacher in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s. He was known to be a man devoted to prayer. Of Samuel Chadwick it was once said: “He was essentially a man of prayer. Every morning he would be astir shortly after six o’clock, and he kept a little room which was his private sanctum for his quiet hour before breakfast. He was mighty in public pr...

Horatio G. Spafford was a successful lawyer and businessman in Chicago with a lovely family - a wife, Anna, and five children. However, they were not strangers to tears and tragedy. Their young son died with pneumonia in 1871, and in that same year, much of their business was lost in the great Chicago fire. Yet, God in His mercy and kindness allowed the business to flourish once more. On Nov. 21,...