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We may want to turn away from world suffering and refuse to reflect on the significance of our own pain; we just want it to go away. But despite the superficiality of our culture, we remain God’s image-bearers—thinking and caring people, wired to ask questions and seek answers.

Earlier this month, I visited First Baptist of Leesburg, Florida and spoke at their weekend services. I also did an evening Q&A with Pastor Cliff, and we covered a range of topics and questions. The ministries on that church campus are remarkable!

When I taught a theology of Heaven class, I was asked, “How accessible will Jesus be to us on the New Earth?” On the one hand, Jesus is a man, and man is finite and limited to one location. On the other hand, Jesus is God, and God is infinite and omnipresent.  

Several years ago I shared on my blog about Christopher Yuan’s story of God’s grace, and his deliverance from homosexual sin. He posted on Twitter on February 15: “Today marks 22 years since I walked out of prison and my parents drove me to the halfway house in Chicago. Praise God for His faithfulness!”

During Randy’s visit to First Baptist Church in Leesburg Florida, he spoke with Pastor Cliff Lea in a question-and-answer session. They talk about grief, Heaven, if we can know when the Lord is going to return, and more.

Randy visited First Baptist Church in Leesburg, Florida, where he spoke on the subject of heavenly treasure: “You can’t take it with you, but you can send it on ahead.” He talked about having a right perspective on the things that God has entrusted to us, as well as the joy to be found in giving.

The basic problem with the health-and-wealth gospel is that it is man-centered rather than God-centered. When approached from the prosperity posture, prayer degenerates into coercion, where we “name it and claim it,” pulling God’s leash until He comes through. We attempt to arm-twist the Almighty into underwriting comfortable, suffering-free lifestyles.

People define the good life in different ways, but everybody wants to live it. After all, what’s the alternative? Living a bad life? A pointless, guilt-ridden, or miserable life? We’d all choose the good life any day, and yet we often don’t understand how to make it happen.

“To die will be an awfully big adventure,” says Peter Pan. But it will be a wonderful, big adventure only for those who are covered by the blood of Christ. Those who die without Jesus will experience a horrifying tragedy. Of course, dying is not the real adventure. Death is merely the doorway to eternal life. 

I wrote 50 Days of Heaven by selecting the material most suitable from my book Heaven for a devotional, then rewriting it in a different style. Why write different sized books on one subject? Because they’re designed to reach different audiences with varying interests and preferences. 

Charles Spurgeon loved to connect the gospel and happiness: “There is nothing that more tends to strengthen the faith of the young believer than to hear the veteran Christian, covered with scars from the battle, testifying that the service of his Master is a happy service...”

I think this article by Abigail Dodds is wonderful. Having raised two daughters, I’m deeply grateful for our sons-in-law, and their families who raised them to be men of character and faith. And now Angela and Karina are the moms of our five grandsons, who they are raising to know and love Jesus.

I always enjoy anytime I get to have a conversation with Sean McDowell, who teaches at Biola/Talbot and has a very engaging and helpful YouTube channel on apologetics. Sean and I did another Q&A on Heaven recently, with some different questions and answers.

Some Christians struggle with the idea of believers participating in glory because they think glory belongs to God alone. But future glory also belongs to those on whom God chooses to endow it—His children and especially His most faithful children in this life.