I had the privilege of praying with Jon and Kristine last night to dedicate our second grandchild—Delanie Lynne—to the Lord. Baby dedications at our church are always special to me, but this one was especially precious. There is nothing like dedicating your own grandchildren!

With the spirit Hannah had many years ago (1 Samuel 1:11, 27–28), Jon and Kristine prayed months ago, “Lord, if You give us a child, we will give that child back to You.” I’m thankful for Jon and Kristine’s commitment to raise Delanie for the Lord.

Delanie’s name means “victorious,” and we look forward to the day when she finds her true victory in Christ by trusting Him as her Saviour. We are praying that she will be saved at an early age. (more…)

I wonder what my spirit would have been like as a fourteen year old boy if I had been abducted by invading conquerors and taken seven hundred miles from home to serve in a foreign country.

I’m amazed at the response of Daniel and his three Hebrew friends—Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah—to that very scenario. In every way, these young men responded with excellence.

These four young men were surrounded by heathen influences and commanded to blend in. They were pressured from every angle to compromise their convictions. Apparently, all the other Hebrews around them yielded.

The culture today is no less ungodly. We are inundated with opportunities to conform to the world. In appearance, in activities, even in methods of ministry, pressure abounds to “fit in.” Other Christians do it. We fear losing influence if we don’t. (more…)

Every January—since 1987—Lancaster Baptist Church has had winter revival services. Each year we’ve had the same preacher—Dr. John Goetsch. And every year God has used this time in a mighty way in our church.

Perhaps one reason God has so profoundly blessed these meetings over the years is because of the intense desire our church family has to see God work in their hearts. At the beginning of January, we ask every able member of our church to join together in a month of prayer and fasting. And every year, hundreds of our members participate. (more…)

Incredibly, God invites us to bring any need we face directly to His throne: “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God” (Philippians 4:6).

This invitation is especially remarkable when we consider that it is from the God who:

• created the universe with mere words (Hebrews 11:3).
• raised Christ from the dead (Ephesians 1:18–20).
• already performed a miracle of rebirth in our lives (Ephesians 2:1–6).

This is the God who has the obvious creativity and power to care for any need we have. And He invites us to bring our needs before Him.

Why, then, do we not pray? (more…)

People in our church often let me know they are praying for me, and I am deeply grateful. Sometimes people ask for specifics on how they should pray for the pastor. At a recent meeting with our church’s Pastor’s Prayer Partners, we gave out the following acrostic with the prayer needs of a pastor:

Personal life—walk with God, family
Administration—counseling, leadership
Study—time, message preparation
Trials—grace, growth
Oversight—church ministries, care for the flock
Resources—strength, wisdom, building projects

I’m very thankful for the intercessory prayer of our people. James 5:16 promises, “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much”!

(Note: The Pastor’s Prayer Partners is a ministry in our church for which I am deeply grateful. One of our assistant pastors organizes this group so each person has a partner. These faithful intercessors work out a time to meet each week with their partner and pray for me, my family, and our church. A couple of times a year, we have a group meeting to re-partner and include new members.)