Category: Christian Living

Prayer in Life and Ministry – 1 Timothy 2.1-7

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The Apostle Paul’s letter to his spiritual son, Timothy, holds powerful truths for us today. Prayer is indispensable in life and ministry. Let’s study it together.

By Mark D. Harris, MD, MPH, MBA, MDiv, ThM, PhD, DBA

How many of us have ever had a “Sweet Hour of Prayer?” How would our lives be changed if we did? Reflect on the words of the old hymn:

  • Sweet hour of prayer Sweet hour of prayer
  • That calls me from a world of care
  • And bids me at my Father’s throne
  • Make all my wants and wishes known
  • In seasons of distress and grief
  • My soul has often found relief
  • And oft escaped the tempter’s snare
  • By Thy return, sweet hour of prayer
  • Sweet hour of prayer Sweet hour of prayer
  • The joys I feel, the bliss I share
  • Of those whose anxious spirits burn
  • With strong desires for Thy return
  • With such I hasten to the place
  • Where God my Savior shows His face
  • And gladly take my station there
  • And wait for Thee, sweet hour of prayer
  • Sweet hour of prayer Sweet hour of prayer
  • And wait for Thee Sweet hour of prayer

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God’s Design for Men and Women in the Church

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America and much of the world have undergone a sexual revolution. The Church and the Family have often followed. How is it working out? Why are relations between men and women so infrequent, and so toxic? There is another way, God’s way, and we will discuss it here. 

By Mark D. Harris, MD, MPH, MBA, MDiv, ThM, PhD, DBA

How are relations between men and women in American society? How about the rest of the world? Are they better than they were one thousand, one hundred, ten, or even two years ago? How are relations between men and women in the Church? Are they as God intended?

Is the Bible a misogynistic book? How can Paul, and the Scottish Presbyterian Preacher James Fordyce (1720-1796, in his Sermons for Young Women), and ministers like me even talk (“mansplain?”) about the differing roles of men and women in the Church?

We can, and indeed we must, because the Bible is the word of God, profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Long after our bodies, and those of our adversaries, return to dust, His Word will remain. In these and all other areas, the Word burns within us (Jeremiah 20:9). Whether male or female, no one is permitted to change or ignore the word of God.

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Reviving the Saints – Jeremiah 15

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Life is exhausting for all. Christian ministry sometimes makes it worse. How can Christians be revived on our life’s journey?

By Mark D. Harris, MD, MPH, MBA, MDiv, ThM, PhD, DBA

Life on earth is exhausting, whatever one’s sex, health, race, socioeconomic status, religion, or anything else. Followers of Christ grow weary and sometimes fall away:

  1. Normal ups and downs of life and ministry – To be human is to encounter sickness, injury, and disappointment. Things break, opportunities vanish, relationships wither, and hopes fade. In ministry, people we love and serve angrily resist and reject. We labor for years with seemingly little effect.
  2. Major hurtful events and people in our lives – Sometimes even friends and loved ones succumb to the pressure of the world and reject us and our faith. Sometimes they end their own lives.
  3. Discrimination against and persecution of Christians throughout the world. This includes the United States (academic, political, economic), although the fact that I am able to write and publish this article reveals that Americans still have more religious freedom than many others. Still, Christians lose jobs and other opportunities due to the practice of the faith. Christian schools are threatened with loss of accreditation, and Christians are seen as unfit for political office because of their beliefs.[1] Christians have become criminals simply for reading a Bible passage or saying something that others don’t like.[2] For example, H.R.5 – Equality Act 2019 – LGBTQ rights states “The Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. 2000bb et seq.) shall not provide a claim concerning, or a defense to a claim under, a covered title, or provide a basis for challenging the application or enforcement of a covered title.” Whatever one thinks about LGBTQ rights, religious beliefs would be no defense to prosecution (and persecution). Christians who believe what the Bible states about LGBTQ issues are specifically targeted.

Non-Christians encounter issues one and two, but increasingly Christians are facing problem three as well. It is so easy to despair. Amidst these challenges, how can believers in Jesus Christ be revived?

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When God Arises – Isaiah 33

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Look for God to arise and do great work in our days. But beware, we will get more than we bargained for when He does.

By Mark D. Harris, MD, MPH, MBA, MDiv, ThM, PhD, DBA

Believers in the Living God since the Exodus have prayed that God would arise, smite evil, and deliver them from their troubles. In His patience, the Lord delays His judgement, giving each man every opportunity to believe. But eventually, He brings to people what they deserve: disaster to the wicked and blessings to the righteous. Asking God to arise is a dangerous business. We may discover, as Habakkuk did, that God’s plan is neither what we like nor what we want. We will also discover, as Isaiah did, that we are not as righteous as we think we are. When God arises, though our salvation is sure, we will encounter pain and trouble, just like those we oppose.

Do you ever wish that God would arise and oppose evil? Do you wish you could see it? How do we know that God will arise? How do we know that the wicked will be punished? Why does it take so long? This article will examine Isaiah 33:1-17 to discover what happens, and what Christians must do, when God arises.

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Rotten Wood – Keeping sin in our Lives

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How to eliminate rotten wood – the thoughts, word, and actions that drag you down, whether they seem big or small – in your life.

By Mark D. Harris, MD, MPH, MBA, MDiv, ThM, PhD, DBA

The wooden plank on the deck gave a soft “squish” as I stepped down. I pushed a little harder with my heel and the wood collapsed, leaving a hole in the deck, and exposing the dirt several feet below. “Ugh” I thought, and began to check the rest of the deck for rotten spots. In total, only five boards needed to be replaced, all touching each other in the same part of the deck. I looked up. There was a leak in the gutter above the rotten spots, and I recalled seeing a nearly continuous stream of water hitting this part of the deck during several rainstorms over the past several months. While working on the deck, and lying in bed thinking about it, I recognized many parallels between rotten wood and sin in our lives.

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Zedekiah – Discontent, Disobedient, and Destroyed

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The last king of Judah, Zedekiah, was discontent and disobedient to his God. It destroyed him and his whole nation with him. How does his tragic experience inform and challenge us today?

By Mark D. Harris, MD, MPH, MBA, MDiv, ThM, PhD, DBA

Few Christians look at Jeremiah or the Old Testament prophets for guidance in modern life. Fewer still look at the wicked kings of Israel and Judah. But their folly and failure contain powerful lessons for followers of Christ today. Zedekiah is a good place to start.

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