Author: Seth Barnes
In the Hugh Grant movie, “About a Boy,” Grant was a superficial womanizer who could never commit to anything or anyone. He lived in his own self-contained shallow world until a twelve-year-old...
It’s good for your children to be poor
Our grown kids are away from home, but their bank statements arrive here. One just arrived – a balance of $8.15. Some parents would look at that and shake their head, but I think...
Looking for manure to roll in
Last night I let Whimsy out to “go to the bathroom” (what kind of a euphemism is that? There is no bathroom out there, nor could the dog use it if there were one, unless...
A demonstration of power
The Power Team comes to town and gives a demonstration of power. People come to watch them bend iron bars and tear phonebooks in half. Paul’s evangelism in Corinth was like...
Fathers, bless your children
When my children reached the age of graduating high school and going out into the big, bad world, I knew that of all the graduation gifts I could give them, nothing was more important...
Preoccupation with evil
I have seen people oppressed or even possessed by demons get set free. My first encounter came 16 years ago. The hair on the back of my neck stood on end as I prayed a woman whose...
Wildlife in extremis
Recently as I was driving, I saw a mouse running along the bridge on the side of the road a couple of feet from where my tires rolled by at 55 mph. He was running for all he was...
Indian martyrs vs. American Christianity
In India, 70% of the orphans in a Hopegivers orphanage end up going to Bible School. And when they graduate, they take a martyr’s oath. Hopegivers founder, M.A. Thomas, has a goal...
Giving your children their inheritance
What are we passing on to our children? Wealth? Values? Relationships? What an irony that in passing money on to their children, wealthy people may be inadvertently deprive them...
Why one-on-ones?
There are a hundred reasons why people don’t do one-on-one discipleship. In England, I met a vicar who wouldn’t meet on a regular basis with young people because of sexual...
Andrew Shearman – example of a spiritual father
Discipling is about relationship – it’s spiritual fathering, a relationship where one person sees Jesus in another person and says, “Oh, that’s what he looks...
The kingdom of God needs you
I got up at 3:45 this morning with this thought buzzing in my head: “Go ask someone who reads your blog to help you.” I don’t know if it was God or the chili I...
My miserable experience with discipleship
As a junior in high school, my mom encouraged me to go on a two-month mission trip to Guatemala. That took a lot of effort on her part, because I was shy and had no desire to do...
Spiritual coaching
To learn something, a coach really helps. A teacher may lay out the facts and the principles, a trainer may spell out the procedures, but it all comes together as life change when...
At death’s door in Swaziland
The danger in America is that we become self-absorbed and miss God’s heart for the poor that Bono pointed us to Isaiah 58 (in his address at the National Prayer Breakfast)....
A great marriage
Karen and I celebrated 25 years of marriage in December. She’s been a great partner. We’ve shared so many adventures together. I’ve watched many of my friends struggle in their marriages....
Living well/dying well
“All men die, but how many truly live?” William Wallace asked in
Braveheart. The paradox is that to live well, we must make our peace with death. If death terrifies me, then I will...
What makes me cry
Few things make me more uncomfortable than crying in front of other people. In private, especially in the dark, I’m OK. But I find it embarrassing in public. Our girls don’t...
A movie to teach parenting
Nanny McPhee is a cute little movie – a parable about parenting that those of you who have children should use as a discussion-starter with them. I did this yesterday with my youngest...
Andrew Wyeth and Swazi orphans
Yesterday I went to an exhibition of America’s most prominent living painter, Andrew Wyeth. He has spent much of his life in Maine and his paintings reflect that lonely landscape....
The ministry of believing in people
On a scale of 1 to 10, when asked, “How do you feel about yourself?” People answered an average of 2.7! What is really sad in this hectic non-affirming world in which...
Confronting chaos
The natural state of things is to move toward chaos. That’s entropy. Periodically in our house, my grip on the order of things begins to slip. Take this morning for example....
Killing Christians
Karen and I watched “Born Into Brothels” last night, a documentary about the children of Indian prostitutes. The 60 million prostitutes in India have a lot of children,...