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Paul had a gospel-centered perspective on personal suffering. In 2 Corinthians 12, we learn that the Lord gave Paul a thorn in the flesh. Though we are unsure what his “thorn” was, Christians generally agree that it was a physical debilitation. I have written on connecting the gospel to physical suffering, so here, I am addressing a gospel connection to personal suffering of any kind. Read Here: https://rickthomas.net/how-paul-connected-the-gospel-to-personal-suffering/ Will you help us so we can continue to provide free content to the world? You can become a supporting member here rickthomas.net/recurring-membership/ Or you can make a one-time or recurring donation(s) here https://rickthomas.net/donations/

Parental discipline is not just a behavioral interaction between a parent and a child. There are hearts in play, too—the heart of the parent and the child. If the parent does not connect the gospel to his heart, the discipline will not go well, and there is a high chance that it will leave a negative shaping influence on the child’s heart and life. Read Here: https://rickthomas.net/how-to-connect-the-gospel-to-parental-discipline/ Will you help us so we can continue to provide free content to the world? You can become a supporting member here rickthomas.net/recurring-membership/ Or you can make a one-time or recurring donation(s) here https://rickthomas.net/donations/

Connecting the gospel to physical suffering is one of the most essential things you will ever do. The “good news” is always perfect when there is bad news, but how to make those gospel connections are not quickly apparent, especially when your pain is acute and ongoing. Here are seven practical ways to think about the gospel and physical suffering. Read Here: https://rickthomas.net/how-to-connect-the-gospel-to-physical-suffering/ Will you help us so we can continue to provide free content to the world? You can become a supporting member here rickthomas.net/recurring-membership/ Or you can make a one-time or recurring donation(s) here https://rickthomas.net/donations/

How you think about life determines how you practically respond to life. Living in a broken world is hard, chaotic, stressful, and challenging. And if you have a skewed understanding of the doctrines of man, sin, salvation, and the Lord, you will not engage your life experiences from a God-centered perspective. This reality makes connecting the gospel to everyday life vital. One of the more crucial gospel connections is how you think about loneliness. Read Here: https://rickthomas.net/how-to-connect-the-gospel-to-being-left-alone/ Will you help us so we can continue to provide free content to the world? You can become a supporting member here rickthomas.net/recurring-membership/ Or you can make a one-time or recurring donation(s) here https://rickthomas.net/donations/

You can’t come out of the world because you live in the world. This problem means that we need to make decisive actions about how to guard our hearts against the influences of the culture. Some choose legalistic separation, while others love the world too much. Paul’s plea to the Corinthians applies to us today because the temptations are similar. Will you help us so we can continue to provide free content to the world? You can become a supporting member here rickthomas.net/recurring-membership/ Or you can make a one-time or recurring donation(s) here https://rickthomas.net/donations/ Read Here: https://rickthomas.net/what-influences-you-the-most-is-what-you-love-the-most/

Hold on and brace yourself for these two bold and sobering truths. Today's sophisticated culture does not accept them, and they may offend you. Everyone is going to hell, and the Lord has set up the agency of humankind to let the whole world know there is another option. Now, the big question: Do you believe in the exclusivity (Jesus is the only way to heaven) of the Christian message? Read Here: https://rickthomas.net/the-deadliest-infection-and-greatest-cure-you-can-have/ Will you help us so we can continue to provide free content to the world? You can become a supporting member here rickthomas.net/recurring-membership/ Or you can make a one-time or recurring donation(s) here https://rickthomas.net/donations/

Living in a relationship with someone requires a practical awareness of how to do it well. Each person is on a private and personal journey that is unlike any other, which means there will be times when helping your friends will be challenging. Before I get into the six practical thoughts for helping a problematic person, let me give you three examples of folks who do not know how to live well with others and have relational tension with them. Read Here: https://rickthomas.net/six-practical-thoughts-when-helping-friends-and-enemies/ Will you help us so we can continue to provide free content to the world? You can become a supporting member here rickthomas.net/recurring-membership/ Or you can make a one-time or recurring donation(s) here https://rickthomas.net/donations/

Have you ever had a good run with the Lord, and then all of a sudden, you were surprised by your lack of faith? Something caught you off guard. It's one of those, "Just when you're doing well, then, bam, something bad happens" scenarios. I'm not pessimistic here, but sometimes our faith is hit from the blindside, and we're perplexed and in need of a reboot. Read Here: https://rickthomas.net/what-to-do-when-you-cant-see-what-you-should-see/ Will you help us so we can continue to provide free content to the world? You can become a supporting member here rickthomas.net/recurring-membership/ Or you can make a one-time or recurring donation(s) here https://rickthomas.net/donations/

What if God is not an American, and His primary concern is not to keep us from having first-world problems? Is it possible that the Lord has another plan than our pursuit of happiness that is not according to each person’s unique desires to have their lives their way? Sometimes we can fall asleep at the wheel of life, and the Lord brings a correction that reminds us where our focus should be. It is in those moments of challenge that we finally realize that God is not an American. Read Here: https://rickthomas.net/when-you-finally-realize-that-god-is-not-an-american/ Will you help us so we can continue to provide free content to the world? You can become a supporting member here rickthomas.net/recurring-membership/ Or you can make a one-time or recurring donation(s) here https://rickthomas.net/donations/

Having two genders is not just a neat way to think about the human family. There are functional and irreplaceable roles for each gender. When it comes to parenting, the dad and mom have unique purposes, practices, and effects on children. In this article, I’m addressing the critical need for fathers to step into the responsibility of rearing their boys and girls in the way that only they can. This job is for him, and the Lord has gifted fathers to do it well. Read Here: https://rickthomas.net/speaking-to-the-practical-role-of-fathers-with-children/ Will you help us so we can continue to provide free content to the world? You can become a supporting member here rickthomas.net/recurring-membership/ Or you can make a one-time or recurring donation(s) here https://rickthomas.net/donations/

The Christian life is progressive and transforming. To hang with Jesus means to be moving, growing, and changing. It’s a privilege of grace to experience a transformation that leads to maturity, but we’re not all in the same place. There are stages of the Christian life. As you read further, assess yourself to see how you’re doing with the four stages of the Christian life. Read Here: https://rickthomas.net/four-stages-to-the-christian-life-where-are-you/ Will you help us so we can continue to provide free content to the world? You can become a supporting member here rickthomas.net/recurring-membership/ Or you can make a one-time or recurring donation(s) here https://rickthomas.net/donations/

There are times in a relationship when winning the argument should not be your first call to action. Jesus talked about turning the other cheek and going the extra mile with some folks. What relationships do you have where it would be a better experience if you could practice these things? Perhaps this advice will serve you well as you seek to connect the gospel to your arguments. Read Here: https://rickthomas.net/here-is-a-useful-way-to-connect-the-gospel-to-arguments/ Will you help us so we can continue to provide free content to the world? You can become a supporting member here rickthomas.net/recurring-membership/ Or you can make a one-time or recurring donation(s) here https://rickthomas.net/donations/

Being right is a tricky thing. Did you know that being right does not always mean you have to communicate what you know to be true? How good are you at discerning when to speak and not to speak as you consider the person who should hear from you at that moment? Did you know there were times when Jesus did not speak the truth because it was not best to say it at that time, even though He was right? Read Here: https://rickthomas.net/sometimes-its-better-to-say-nothing-when-youre-right/ Will you help us so we can continue to provide free content to the world? You can become a supporting member here rickthomas.net/recurring-membership/ Or you can make a one-time or recurring donation(s) here https://rickthomas.net/donations/

How do you help a teenage son when he does not want your help? You feel him distancing from you and the family, but he won’t communicate with you. Should you relax your expectations? Perhaps a more in-depth question is how is his behavior a reflection of your parenting and, perhaps, your marriage. A supporting member is struggling with her son and wants our help. Read Here: https://rickthomas.net/how-do-i-help-my-teen-when-he-does-not-want-my-help/ Will you help us so we can continue to provide free content to the world? You can become a supporting member here rickthomas.net/recurring-membership/ Or you can make a one-time or recurring donation(s) here https://rickthomas.net/donations/

To believe in someone or something is part of what it means to be human, and there are many options from which to choose. When you think about all the things that you believe, what is the most vital one? What defines you above everything else? There is one right answer to my question, which you can sum up in five words. Read Here: https://rickthomas.net/these-five-words-are-the-most-life-altering-youll-ever-believe/ Will you help us so we can continue to provide free content to the world? You can become a supporting member here rickthomas.net/recurring-membership/ Or you can make a one-time or recurring donation(s) here https://rickthomas.net/donations/

Everyone is carrying a silent disease in their body. You don’t know it and won’t know it until there is a visible manifestation of it. In some cases, it’s too late. The local church is similar. Sin is a silent killer that can infect an entire body. Without careful attention and practical engagement, it can destroy. Your church could become a Corinthian church, and you only wake up to it after it happens. This reality is why Paul was writing to an infected church. Read Here: https://rickthomas.net/excellent-ideas-that-will-help-your-church-before-its-too-late/ Will you help us so we can continue to provide free content to the world? You can become a supporting member here rickthomas.net/recurring-membership/ Or you can make a one-time or recurring donation(s) here https://rickthomas.net/donations/

Social media draws from our hearts a mixture of like and dislike—all at the same time. We are thankful for these media platforms because of our ability to reach others easily, quickly, and helpfully. We struggle with these platforms because of the many inherent problems. For example, a lack of self-control, no social discretion, perpetuating isolation, and other addictive issues, which makes a little honesty about their limitations appropriate. Read Here: https://rickthomas.net/being-honest-about-the-limitations-of-social-media-relationships/ Will you help us so we can continue to provide free content to the world? You can become a supporting member here rickthomas.net/recurring-membership/ Or you can make a one-time or recurring donation(s) here https://rickthomas.net/donations/

When someone does something that you don’t like, you have several options from which to choose. You can consent to what they said or did and be like them. You could confront and rebuke them. Or you can try to ignore what just happened, which typically leads to a weird type of awkwardness. The temptations of fear and insecurity are strong when it’s time to take a stand. How do you respond when friends do things that make you uncomfortable? Read Here: https://rickthomas.net/responding-to-friends-who-do-things-that-make-you-uncomfortable/ Will you help us so we can continue to provide free content to the world? You can become a supporting member here rickthomas.net/recurring-membership/ Or you can make a one-time or recurring donation(s) here https://rickthomas.net/donations/

Conviction is one of God’s kindnesses to His creation. In the spiritual realm, the concept of experiencing conviction is analogous to the pain we feel in our physical bodies. Actual guilt that leads to conviction is God’s way of telling us that something is wrong with us and the vital need to be free. The most common-sense response to conviction is to respond to the Lord’s warning signal biblically. Read Here: https://rickthomas.net/the-ironic-and-liberating-truth-about-feeling-conviction/ Will you help us so we can continue to provide free content to the world? You can become a supporting member here rickthomas.net/recurring-membership/ Or you can make a one-time or recurring donation(s) here https://rickthomas.net/donations/

Dear Gay Friend, as you read this or listen to the podcast, I appeal to you to differentiate between my affection for you and my opinion about your life choices. Agreement with your lifestyle choices and love for you are mutual necessities. Likewise, I do not expect you to agree with my views about everything. I do not hate you. Disagreement and love can coexist. Read Here: https://rickthomas.net/gay-logic-how-in-the-world-did-you-ever-believe-this/ Will you help us so we can continue to provide free content to the world? You can become a supporting member here rickthomas.net/recurring-membership/ Or you can make a one-time or recurring donation(s) here https://rickthomas.net/donations/