Terry Pruitt's Blog

Text: Job 2 Main Idea: You and I need to receive both good and evil from the Lord. Introduction Probably one of the most prayed for requests in the American church is the request for healing. Some churches are looking for dramatic healing each week. Other feel it is a good thing to do just so one show he is concerned for the other party. It is good because it shows symbolically that one cares. Whether a prayer for healing is offered with skepticism or faith does not negate the fact that some of the most common forms of suffering in America are health related. This sort of suffering shakes us to our core. Unless the Lord returns, chances are most of us we die from an accident or a disease that causes our health to fail. Some people suffer life long illness while others suffer just a little at the end of a long life. Our health will be an issue. Will it cause us to be bitter or will we be someone who flourishes spiritually as the physical man is passing away. I have a great-...

The problem of evil is not one that is easily solved by the Christian apologist. The blog post is intended to spur on further thinking but does not pretend to solve the problem. Posing the "problem of evil" is not mortal wound to Christian faith, but is a common element that contributes to individual Christians to lose their faith. Rather than hide our heads in the sand like the proverbial ostrich, Christians should deal with the issue forthright. In some sense the question is really not about simply the "question of evil" but how does one define evil and describe suffering as it corresponds with our world. What is Evil and What is the Nature of Suffering? It is somewhat amusing that Christians from the suburbs who live a relatively safe and prosperous life are the same ones who are bothered the most by the "question of evil". There is an expectation that God of the Bible is also the one who should promise the good life. Christians from these suburb...

On my trek through the Bible, I'm in the book of Job once again. Most evangelicals feel that the message of Job is simply that there are unseen issues happening in heaven so we can not understand suffering. However, we have a lot of chapters in Job (41) for that simple message. That's right, people who wrestle with the idea of suffering know nothing. The thinking is that all these orators and thinkers in the book of Job got it wrong and God has it right. Could we not have done as well by a poignant proverb in the book of Proverbs if that is the long and short of it? "Suffering is not understandable; quit trying to figure it out unless someone mistakenly think that you communicate with the transcendent one and understand the meaning of your life." III Evangel-Christian Chapter1, Verse 13 A part of our evangelical philosophy of life is mistaken by thinking that things like beauty, meaning, and righteousness are somehow less true than things that are provable via ...

We were studying Acts 14 where Paul and Barnabas are stoned by the people in Iconium and greatly misunderstood in Derbe. Never the less the two messengers rejoiced that they were able to give the good news of Jesus Christ to others. What follows is my outline of thoughts on the chapter. Benefits of Suffering for Christ We participate in the sufferings of Christ. (Colosians 1:24) The suffering becomes non-verbal preaching It is a pragmatic way to take up our cross daily and follow Christ (Matthew 16:24) Benefits of Preaching in a Hostile Environment Your message is tested for the audience Is the gospel true? Are you motivated by pure motives? You as the messenger must rely on power from above The struggles heightens the importance of the message for the hearers Benefits of Preaching in an Environmental Context that Distorts the Message of the Gospel It forces the messenger to discern what is timeless and abandon those things that are temporal and fleeting It forces the messenger to s...

Mark Driscoll at the Mars Hill tells his story of exhaustion from overextending himself. His post reminded me of a conversation at work. A coworker was telling me of a couple that sailed their boat up to coast of Canada and back. Three months after their return the wife found out she had pancreatic cancer. She told her husband that she was really glad they had retired and spent their time sailing together. I can take the story one of two ways. The first is noble, she was glad to spend her last days with her husband. I think that is a sweet thought. The second is that we need to get as much pleasure our of life as possible. This one just sits counter to what I believe. At the end of my life I will not measure it by the amount of pleasure I have had but if I have suffered for the right things and have I served God and the people in my life. We don't just go around once in life, what we do matters for eternity, not in terms of salvation but in terms of glorifying God. Ther...