Randy Alcorn's Blog

We Are to Draw on God’s Strength and Partner with Him in Our Sanctification

Randy Alcorn — Fri, 10 Apr 2026 00:00:00 -0700

Scripture says, “His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness” (2 Peter 1:3). So what do we need to live righteously that He has not given us in Christ? Nothing.

The source of strength we call upon is not our own, which is insufficient, but God’s, which is infinitely powerful. God says, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9). You bring the weakness, He brings the power.

Does any of this imply that it doesn’t take a lot of effort to live the Christian life? Of course not. But notice the intertwining of effort in this partnership with God—“To this end I labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me” (Colossians 1:29). We must make every effort to be righteous, to obey Him, to avoid sinful thoughts and actions. Yet all the while we must do this appealing to His strength, not our own.

One caution is important here. Some people approach the concept of “allowing God to work through me” as if it were some passive condition whereby God invades you and takes over, automatically causing you to live righteously, bypassing your own will. Not true. The spiritual life is warfare. To win the fight you must take on the armor of God and wield the sword of God’s Word, which requires diligence and hard work (Eph. 6:10-18). As J. I. Packer says in his book Keep in Step with the Spirit, “The Christian’s motto should not be ‘Let go and let God’ but ‘Trust God and get going!’”

In Great Joy, Packer wrote:

Sanctification, we now see, is both a gift (that is one side: God working in us to renew and transform us) and a task (the task of obedience, righteousness, and pleasing God). And we must never so stress either of the two sides that we lose sight of the other. Think only of the task, and you will become a self-reliant legalist seeking to achieve righteousness in your own strength. You will not make any headway at all. Think only of the work of God in your life, and the chances are that Satan will trick you into not making the necessary effort and not maintaining the discipline of righteousness so that, in fact, even as you rejoice in the work of God in your life you will be dishonoring it by your slackness. Hold both sides of the matter together in your mind, if you want your living to be right.

There is no contradiction between God working in you and you working to follow God. This is the nature of the spiritual partnership He establishes with us. He works, and so must we. If you pray that God will keep your thoughts sexually pure, then turn around and look at pornography, you act in contradiction to your prayer, showing it to be only words. You must demonstrate that you are serious about your prayer by taking all the steps to avoid sexual immorality of the mind and body. In other words, it matters what you do.

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 1:5-8)

Notice that it says “make every effort.” The good news is that God makes His resurrection power available to us to walk in victory over sin.

The Christian life is not a choice between loving and trusting Jesus, and making an effort to avoid temptation and sin. It is not either/or—it is both/and.

My New Book All God’s Creatures, Coming This Fall

Randy Alcorn — Wed, 08 Apr 2026 00:00:00 -0700

My latest book All God’s Creatures: What the Bible Says About Animals, Heaven, and the New Earth will be released from Tyndale House on November 17. It was a labor of love for the past three years—especially love for God first, and Nanci second.

I dedicated the book to Nanci, saying:

“To Nanci, my wife, soulmate, and best friend,

now living with Jesus:

Never has a woman had more love in her heart

for both God and his animals.

It was through you that I first came to love God.

When I saw you fall in love with our dogs,

it made me love you all the more.

Of all the books I’ve written,

I know this will be your favorite!”

The truth is, it is also my favorite book I’ve written. And this will be, if I’m counting right, book #67. Certainly, it is my most unique book.

Authors often say, “There’s no other book like this one,” because they aren’t aware of another book like theirs. But almost always a somewhat similar book exists—they just haven’t seen it.

However, I am an avid researcher, and I look far and wide, search extensively, and dig deeply, so very little escapes my notice. I know that while every book I have written is unique in its own way, other books, written by other evangelicals, are at least in certain ways similar to parts of mine.

For the first time in my writing career, I can confidently say there is no other book out there like this one.

Many of the books I’ve read about whether animals are in Heaven are self-published—not written by Bible scholars, but by lay people who dearly love their animals, tell readers their names, and suggest that it’s hard to imagine Heaven without their beloved dog/cat/horse/hamster/goat being there! I don’t minimize these books in any way; they are usually sincere, warm, and moving. But they normally do not argue a case from God’s Word as much from the feelings of their hearts. But I simply cannot name a serious, scholarly, accessible, Scripture-based, evangelical theology of animals.

(However, this is a long—but to me important—parenthetical statement, since I want to give credit where it’s due. In early 2026, pastor Clinton Archer of Christ Fellowship Church of Mobile, Alabama, submitted an excellent as-yet-unpublished PhD dissertation to Southern Seminary which, when he sent it to me, resulted in me extending my deadline an extra week because while our findings were similar in certain areas, he made several important points I hadn’t. I cited his thesis at least a half dozen times, more than any other source, squeezing them in at the last minute. I told Clint that if—I hope when—it is published I will happily endorse it. And when that day comes, I will rejoice that All God’s Creatures will not stand alone!)

One distinctive of All God’s Creatures is that I start every chapter with a compelling animal story and weave in many other stories as the book unfolds. While I wanted the book to stand up to scholarly scrutiny, I also wanted it to appeal to the average person, who loves animals like Nanci and I do! Most religious books on animals of any substance are written by theological liberals because, I think it’s fair to say, theologically conservative scholars have not for the most part taken animals seriously. (Perhaps we imagine if we did so, we would be buying into evolutionary assumptions or saying animals and people are equals or sounding like “bleeding heart liberals.”)

As for the possibility of animal afterlife, we tend to say, “Animals aren’t created in God’s image, so they can’t be in Heaven.” (Never mind that angels aren’t created in God’s image, and they are in Heaven!) Or “Animals don’t have souls or spirits so they can’t have an afterlife,” when in fact, the Bible uses the same Hebrew word nephesh, translated as “soul” for humans but usually not for animals even when used of both in the same immediate context (e.g. Genesis 1:20,24; 2:7). Furthermore, Ecclesiastes 3:21 clearly speaks of the “spirit of humans” and the “spirit of animals,” using the same Hebrew word ruakh and indicating that humans and animals alike have spirits!

I sought to make this book:

Biblically faithful, with careful treatment of Scripture.
Pastorally sensitive, recognizing that people love their animals, especially their pets, and naturally grieve their loss. This is as God would have it, and no one in our churches should be made to feel guilty for doing so! (Unfortunately, people are not always taken seriously when they grieve animals, and sometimes are corrected for it and thought to be unspiritual.)
Theologically corrective, because our evangelical doctrine of animals is so deficient as to be largely nonexistent, and what we have picked up from comments made in churches and seminaries is often dismissive and not grounded in Scripture.
Imaginatively rich while maintaining biblical grounding, demonstrating that while everyone speculates about the question of animals in the afterlife, some speculations are not based on Scripture, while others have considerable biblical support.
Full of true and delightful animal stories that entertain, encourage, and enlighten readers.

In All God’s Creatures, I make a clear biblical argument for animals on the New Earth. Scripture teaches that ultimately God’s people are not destined to a disembodied Heaven, but to a resurrected life on a renewed Earth, where God Himself will descend to dwell with humanity (Revelation 21). This doctrine of the New Earth is the solid foundation for considering the place of animals in eternity. I believe the Bible makes clear there will be animals on the New Earth in Isaiah 11 and 65. (While these texts could partly apply to the millennium, that cannot be their ultimate fulfillment because they are speaking of a time when the knowledge of God will be universal and permanent. For example, see Isaiah 11:9, which will not be true of the millennium and can only be true of the New Earth.)

But this isn’t just about the Isaiah passages. Romans 8:19-23 plays a major role in the book. The New Testament also repeatedly talks about God restoring all things. I explore passages such as Matthew 19:28, where Jesus speaks of the “renewal of all things” which we are to anticipate “until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets” (Acts 3:21). Similarly, Ephesians 1:10 says God’s plan is “to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ,” and Colossians 1:20 speaks of God restoring “all things in heaven and on earth.” These passages indicate a future restoration of life that extends beyond humanity to the entire created order on Earth.

Despite writing endorsements myself, I hadn’t sought endorsements for my books for fifteen years. But if they were ever necessary for any book of mine, this is the one, simply because a significant number of people have been taught that there are no animals in Heaven and will naturally push back against the book despite its biblical grounding.

I am grateful that Dr. Wayne Grudem, who became a friend years ago when we taught a theology seminar together at a church, is among the endorsers of All God’s Creatures. (See this clip from when we spoke together, and at the 7:51 mark, he says the Heaven book changed his mind about animals being in the eternal Heaven.) Wayne is Distinguished Research Professor Emeritus of Theology and Biblical Studies at Phoenix Seminary and arguably the leading theological voice among U.S. evangelicals. His Systematic Theology has sold well over a million copies and is the central theology textbook in over forty seminaries and Christian universities. His book Bible Doctrine, an abridgement of his systematic theology, is also widely used. Both volumes are familiar to innumerable pastors, teachers, lay elders, and serious students in churches in the USA and around the world. Grudem kindly wrote of All God’s Creatures:

In this delightful and fascinating book, Randy Alcorn’s thesis is that in the age to come, God will remove the curse on the natural world—placed after the sin of Adam and Eve—so that animals will be “set free” from their current bondage (Romans 8:21) and will regain the “very good” (Genesis 1:31) nature they had in Eden. Alcorn argues convincingly that many friendly animals will inhabit the New Earth. I hope he is correct in his expectation that God, in his goodness, may even bring back to life our favorite pets. I anticipate that everyone who reads this book will gain a deeper appreciation for the wonderful animal kingdom that God created for our companionship and joy.

Another highly credible endorser is Douglas Groothuis, PhD, Research Professor of Apologetics and Christian Worldview at Cornerstone University and Seminary, and author of Christian Apologetics. One thing I love about Doug as a philosopher is his expertise in teaching logic and analyzing arguments to determine whether or not they hold up logically. I knew he would have very high standards, and I could only hope that All God’s Creatures would live up to them. Doug wrote this:

Given his previous work, we should expect Randy Alcorn to address every topic he writes on from a biblically grounded, theologically astute, pastorally sensitive, and well-documented perspective. This book is no exception. I have long leaned toward affirming that animals will be part of the new heavens and New Earth, but now I am sure of it, given Randy's argumentation. Despite how many Christians have ignored it, this topic is no small matter for Christian theology or apologetics. Randy has done us a wonderful service with this book. Ultimately, All God’s Creatures invites readers to rethink the nature of Heaven and the New Earth, deepen their understanding of Scripture, develop a truly biblical theology of animals, and embrace an expanded vision of God’s eternal plan of restoration and renewal—for people, for animals, and for all creation.

I’ll be sharing more about the book—with some excerpts and more endorsements—in the weeks and months to come!

Note from Eternal Perspective Ministries: You can now preorder All God’s Creatures from EPM, and your book will ship by media mail when it releases this fall.

Because of the Resurrection, One Day Everything Is Going to Be OK

Randy Alcorn — Mon, 06 Apr 2026 00:00:00 -0700

It’s been almost three years since author Tim Keller entered the presence of His Lord and Savior. As is said of Abel, so it can be said of Tim: “he still speaks through his faith” (Hebrews 11:4, CSB).

This video clip, and what Tim says about how the resurrection changes how we face challenges, is just so powerful:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ps3C6HVAzqU

Scripture tells us that grasping the implications of the doctrine of the resurrection, and knowing that this present world will end and be resurrected into new heavens and a New Earth, should profoundly affect our daily behavior: “You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God. . . . In keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness. So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him” (2 Peter 3:11-14).

Indeed, the physical resurrection of Jesus Christ is the cornerstone of redemption, both for mankind and for the earth. Without Christ’s resurrection and what it means—an eternal future for fully restored human beings dwelling on a fully restored Earth—there is no Christianity. And the power of Christ’s resurrection is enough not only to remake us, but also to remake every inch of the universe: mountains, rivers, plants, animals, stars, nebulae, quasars, and galaxies.

Nanci and I spoke often about what it will be like to live forever as embodied people on a resurrected earth—a world with trees, rivers, animals, music, literature, eating and drinking, reunions, new friendships, and above all, worshipping God with nothing to hinder us. Because we will continue to be God’s image-bearers, living on and reigning over a risen earth, there’s every reason to believe we will enjoy sports, drama, technology, and everything God designed human minds to come up with. Talking about this was immensely encouraging both to Nanci and to me.

The resurrection means that our grief and sorrow and pain have an expiration date. The world as it is now is under the curse, but God will lift it once and for all: “No longer will there be any curse” (Revelation 22:3). No more sin. No more cancer. No more dementia. No more suffering. No more death. God “will swallow up death forever” (Isaiah 25:8).

The Apostle Paul wrote: “Our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us” (Romans 8:18). This requires trust on our part, since the promised greater good is future and we can’t see it in the present. But instead of trusting ourselves and our limited sight, we can choose to trust the One who has an eternal plan of sovereign grace and has gone to inconceivable lengths to see that it will be accomplished.

For those who have embraced the redemptive work of Jesus, it’s not a fairy tale—we really are going to live happily ever after in Christ’s presence, to His glory and for our good. And as Tim reminds us, that magnificence should permeate our lives and our thinking today.

Resurrection Sunday Worked in Reverse to Make Good Friday Good

Randy Alcorn — Fri, 03 Apr 2026 00:00:00 -0700

Today is “Good Friday,” commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus:

“Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha). There they crucified him, and with him two others—one on each side and Jesus in the middle” (John 19:17–18).

But that torturous death of God’s Son was the single most horrible injustice in human history. So WHY do we call it Good? Why not call it Bad Friday or Horrific Friday?

Because out of the appallingly bad came what was inexpressibly good. And the good trumps the bad because the bad was temporary while the good is eternal. God’s love and grace come to us soaked in divine blood.

The Cross is God’s answer to the question, “Why don’t you do something about evil?” God did do something…something unimaginably great and powerful. One look at Jesus—at His incarnation and the redemption He accomplished for us—should silence the argument that God has withdrawn to some far corner of the universe where He keeps His hands clean and maintains His distance from human suffering. God does not merely empathize with our sufferings. He actually suffers. Jesus is God. What Jesus suffered, God suffered.

A powerful moment in the movie The Passion of the Christ occurs when Jesus, overwhelmed with pain and exhaustion, lies on the ground as guards kick, mock, and spit on Him. A horrified woman, her hand outstretched, pleads, “Someone, stop this!” The great irony is that Someone, God’s Son, was doing something unspeakably great that required it not be stopped. Had someone delivered Jesus from His suffering that day, He could not have delivered us from ours.

The Gospel accounts of the Crucifixion and Resurrection depict Christ’s deep unhappiness in Gethsemane and His anticipation of the Cross. Joy and happiness are overshadowed by sorrow and grief—until the release of death. What follows for Jesus is joy, but for the apostles it is overwhelming grief. Resurrection happiness soon shines its light, pushing sorrow into the shadows. Death is conquered, and our eternal happiness secured.

What would otherwise have been remembered as Terrible Friday is transformed into Good Friday because Christ’s resurrection works in reverse upon death. The hidden purpose in Christ’s suffering is no longer hidden—it becomes a spectacular cause for happiness. This is the gospel’s Good News! In the end, life conquers death, joy triumphs over suffering. Happiness, not sorrow, has the last word—and it will have the last word forever.

This secure future invades our present, so that even while death and sorrow remain, the new normal in Christ isn’t sorrow but happiness. As Easter worked in reverse to make Good Friday good, so our resurrection will work in reverse to bring goodness out of our most difficult days. Faith is a sort of forward memory in which we trust God’s promise of eternal happiness and experience a foretaste of that happiness in severe difficulty.

Have a wonderful Easter weekend with your families, realizing that every joy you experience now and ever will comes out of both the agony of Jesus on Good Friday and the triumph of Jesus on Easter Sunday. And every hardship you experience is something Jesus died to work together for your eternal good.

Moments That Reveal Our Sin and Our Need for a Savior

Randy Alcorn — Wed, 01 Apr 2026 00:00:00 -0700

In Mere Christianity, C. S. Lewis wrote:

When I come to my evening prayers and try to reckon up the sins of the day, nine times out of ten the most obvious one is some sin against charity; I have sulked or snapped or sneered or snubbed or stormed. And the excuse that immediately springs to my mind is that the provocation was so sudden and unexpected; I was caught off guard, I had no time to collect myself. Now that may be an extenuating circumstance as regards those particular acts: they would obviously be worse if they had been deliberate and premeditated. On the other hand, surely what a man does when he is taken off his guard is the best evidence for what sort of man he is? Surely what pops out before the man has time to put on a disguise is in the truth. If there are rats in a cellar you are most likely to see them if you go in very suddenly. But the suddenness does not create the rats: it only prevents them from hiding. In the same way suddenness of provocation does not make me an ill-tempered man; it only shows me what an ill-tempered man I am.

Lewis’s words are a good reminder that we should never excuse away our sins. Rather, we should be quick to recognize them, so that we can confess them to our merciful Savior. We may sometimes be able to fool ourselves and others, but never God. He knows what we’re thinking about and what we’re doing. And it is His appraisal of our life that ultimately matters. He is the Audience of One:

"Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence. If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there." (Psalm 139:7-10)

"Can anyone hide in secret places so that I cannot see him?” declares the LORD. ”Do not I fill heaven and earth?” (Jeremiah 23:23-24).

"The eyes of the Lord are everywhere, keeping watch on the wicked and the good” (Proverbs 15:3).

"My eyes are on all their ways; they are not hidden from me, nor is their sin concealed from my eyes.” (Jeremiah 16:17)

God not only sees our actions, He also knows our thoughts:

"You perceive my thoughts from afar. Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O Lord.” (Psalm 139:2, 4)

"[God] knows the secrets of the heart.” (Psalm 44:21)

"I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind.” (Jeremiah 17:10)

Incredibly, for those who know Jesus as Savior, we can rest assured that God has seen us at our worst, and He still loves us. Arms wide open, He invites our confession and repentance, which He always meets with His grace and forgiveness!

True Happiness Is Only Found in the Last Place Many People Look

Randy Alcorn — Mon, 30 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0700

John Calvin said, “While all men seek after happiness, scarcely one in a hundred looks for it from God.” One reason is because we’re sinners. Another is because the average person wouldn’t imagine that happiness could be found in God. If they know Christians, they may or may not see any evidence that God makes people happy.

Many sense that the clock is ticking, and not only are they not happy enough, but even their present happiness is winding down. There’s a prevailing cynicism about whether lasting happiness can be found. Psychiatrist Thomas Szasz (1920–2012) said, “Happiness is an imaginary condition, formerly attributed by the living to the dead, now usually attributed by adults to children, and by children to adults.” Szasz implied that in our “enlightened” age, people no longer believe that those who have died live on in happiness. According to the naturalistic worldview, life ends at death. And even if those who reject a biblical worldview believed in an afterlife, they’d have no basis beyond wishful thinking to imagine it would be better than this one.

Unlike Szasz, Charles Spurgeon believed in Jesus and God’s Word, including 1 John 1:4: “These things we write to you, that your joy may be full.” Preaching on this passage, he said,

Come, let us be happy and joyful! If we have looked sad for a while, let us now be brightened by thoughts of Christ. . . . Let us not be satisfied until we have shaken off this lethargy and misery, and have once again come into the proper and healthy state in which a child of God should always be found, namely, a state of spiritual joy!

Jesus’ words “Ask . . . that your joy may be made full” (John 16:24) are remarkable. They indicate that joy is a major motive behind prayer. The Christian worldview doesn’t offer some vague, tenuous hope that there might be eternal happiness. It offers the solid promise of an eternal relationship with a happy God whose love is so great it sent Him to the Cross to secure our eternal righteousness and thus our never-ending happiness.

(Historically, there was no distinction between joy and happiness in the church and in the English language. Simply look up joy in a secular dictionary, say Webster’s Dictionary, and you’ll see it defined as happiness and, happiness defined as joy. They are synonyms with overlapping meanings. See this article for more.)

English Nonconformist minister Christopher Fowler (1610–1678) said that God’s children, because of “the love of God in Christ to them . . . have joy and comfort—that joy that angels cannot give, and devils cannot take.”

Jonathan Edwards said, “The enjoyment of [God] is the only happiness with which our souls can be satisfied. To go to heaven fully to enjoy God, is infinitely better than the most pleasant accommodations here. . . . [These] are but shadows; but the enjoyment of God is the substance. These are but scattered beams; but God is the sun. These are but streams; but God is the fountain.”

George Müller said, “I specially commend this point to the notice of my younger brethren and sisters in Christ. The secret of all true effectual service is joy in God.”

But is this “secret” known by young people being trained for church ministry and missions in Christian colleges and seminaries today? J. C. Ryle warned,

True religion . . . was intended to increase real joy and happiness among men. The servant of Christ . . . has no right to hand over innocent recreations and family gatherings to the devil and the world. The Christian who . . . walks the earth with a face as melancholy as if he was always attending a funeral, does injury to the cause of the Gospel.

An Ever-Increasing View of God’s Greatness Is the Path to Peace, Including in Grief

Randy Alcorn — Fri, 27 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0700

On March 13, I lost a dear friend in John Perkins; on March 19, I lost a very close friend, Carlos “Chuck” Norris (I will eventually write my thoughts about him, now is just too soon); and tomorrow, Saturday, March 28 is the fourth anniversary of Nanci's death.

For those who recently began your grief process, I can assure you that if you know Him, and reach out to Him, God will be there for you. “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you” (James 4:8). He'll be faithful. If you’re not certain you know God, you can become certain. See this article, as well as a 90-second explanation of the gospel I gave when asked by Greg Laurie.

The process of grieving is not a sprint; it’s more like a marathon, with plenty of hills, and the need to drink a lot of water along the way. There will be a roller coaster of emotions, and right when do you think you’ve “gotten over” the grief, it comes back with a vengeance. But it does get better in time. (And if it doesn't, please reach out for help from your church, pastor, or Christian friend. I highly recommend GriefShare.)

In a strange way, grief can be a gift—somehow even a privilege—and for me it has been a daily companion. It is much easier to live with now than at first, but even right after Nanci’s death, I always knew that the only cure for my grief would’ve been to have loved her less. But the absence of love isn't a good solution to anything; rather, it is itself a disease. We grieve because we love, and we need to embrace love, not deny it or push it away from our hearts. Pushing your loved one out of your mind is not healthy grieving—it is denial, and actually slows down your ability to grieve properly.

Dr. Colin Murray Parkes wrote:

The pain of grief is just as much part of life as the joy of love: it is perhaps the price we pay for love, the cost of commitment. To ignore this fact, or to pretend that it is not so, is to put on emotional blinkers which leave us unprepared for the losses that will inevitably occur in our own lives and unprepared to help others cope with losses in theirs.

I have much more happiness in my life than I have sadness, but nothing will ever cause me to not miss Nanci. I wouldn't want to not miss her. I will miss her until that glorious day when I first see Jesus and also see Nanci again.

Nanci’s example has continued to impact me and our daughters and their families. What God brought her through the dying process gave her a bigger view of God. That made all the difference in Nanci’s life. (I encourage readers to see this index of what I’ve written on loss, grief, eternal hope, and Nanci’s life and homecoming. There are links to several blogs with wonderful insights written by her.)

She wrote in her journal:

This is my greatest ambition: “…a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised” (Proverbs 31:30).

I want to be a woman who fears the LORD. I want to worship God, and always hold in my heart a desire to fear Him.

And she truly lived that out.

Reflecting on Psalm 25, Nanci wrote, “Psalm 25 shows me that I can wait/trust/ask for guidance after knowing God’s ways.” Read the whole psalm, then come back to read her prayer in response:

Yahweh, I begin by lifting up my soul to you—the God I trust—with great confidence.

May that which seeks my defeat (fear, weakness of resolve, self-pity, impatience, pride, bad/ungodly advice from others) never succeed in causing you or me shame. I thoroughly believe that when I wait for you, I have every reason to put my hope in you.

Continue to make your ways clear to me. I trust that when I know and follow your truth—the truth about you, and your ways—then you will reveal to me the practical day-to-day “ways” I am to choose.

You are the God of my salvation. Therefore, the best and only course for me to take is to wait all day long for you.

May your work in my life be according to your ancient mercy and steadfast love rather than according to my past sins. I am totally unworthy of your grace.

Work on my behalf in your steadfast love and goodness, O Yahweh!

Because you are solely good and upright, you are pleased to instruct me—a sinner—in your way. You delight to do this. You are ready to do this—always! You will lead the humble in what is right. You will teach the humble your way.

For those of us who keep the ways you have shown us—the way of fearing you—those paths are filled with nothing but steadfast love and faithfulness. But fearing you has to come first.

Please LORD, may your Holy Spirit direct my prayers and desires first to knowing you and your ways.

What a Grieving Christian Needs to Know

Randy Alcorn — Wed, 25 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0700

In this video clip from my interview with Costi Hinn, I share the importance of grieving with hope as believers in Jesus Christ:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhCIojCiDBw

I’ve heard it said, “There’s no wrong way to grieve.” I disagree.

Certainly, there are different ways and lengths of time to grieve. We should not rebuke or lay guilt on the brokenhearted! Even knowing He would raise Lazarus, Jesus wept for and with his grieving family.

The Bible says this about grief: “And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with him the believers who have died” (1 Thessalonians 4:13–14 NLT, emphasis added).

This means grieving as if we have no hope is the wrong way to grieve. And grieving while embracing Christ’s rock-solid promise of His second coming and our resurrection—and that of all who love Him—is the right way to grieve.

A grieving father wept as he told me, “I will never again hug my daughter.” I asked, “Don’t you believe in the resurrection?” He said, “Of course.” I responded, “But the resurrection means you will hug your daughter again and again!”

Jesus said, “Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have” (Luke 24:39). Our resurrection will follow the model of His (Philippians 3:20–21; 1 Corinthians 15:49). We will have the same bodies made new and perfect. Those who believe in the resurrection will grieve while consoling themselves that they will live forever with their Redeemer and their redeemed loved ones in their redeemed bodies on a redeemed earth!

We grieve the wrong way when we surrender ourselves to debilitating grief, allowing it to eclipse our love for God and others. Of course, most grief needs time, comfort, and counsel, not repentance. Still, if self-absorbed grief draws us further from Jesus, we need to repent, not only for God’s glory, but for our own good and that of our families. It’s a paradigm shift to learn neither to deny our losses nor be buried by them, but to bring them to the feet of Jesus who sympathizes with us and also empowers us (Hebrews 4:15–16).

Our grief has an expiration date. The world as it is now is under the curse, but God will lift it once and for all: “No longer will there be any curse” (Revelation 22:3). No more sin. No more cancer. No more dementia. No more suffering. No more death. God “will swallow up death forever” (Isaiah 25:8).

We who are grieving need to hear these words: “Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:16, 18).

The Gospel Is All about Jesus

Randy Alcorn — Mon, 23 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0700

Tragically, many reject God because of the behavior of those who profess to be God-followers. I do know many honest and loving and gracious and generous Christians. Unfortunately, you will rarely see them in newspapers and on television, and in my experience, I don’t see all that many online either. This is very sad. I believe it grieves the heart of God.

How should we respond to this, when it’s brought up as an objection to the gospel? First, I think we should acknowledge to our skeptical friends that there are indeed many hypocrites. (And if you are a hypocrite, then repent, ask forgiveness, and trust God to empower you to no longer be one. And if it happens again, repent again, and get help from those walking with Jesus who can help hold you accountable for your attitude, actions, and words.)

But we also need to explain to our unbelieving friends that it makes no sense at all to reject Jesus because some of His followers, including us, can sometimes be hypocritical!

What, after all, is the gospel all about? Is it about us? No! Consider what we’re told in Acts 16:29-31:

The jailer…fell trembling before Paul and Silas…and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.”

It’s notable that Paul and Silas were in jail and instead of complaining about it, were singing songs of praise to God. So yes, their example was important. The jailer wouldn’t have been drawn to their faith had they not been visibly different than the average prisoner. The same is true for us in our neighborhoods and workplaces and locker rooms. People should see Jesus in us!

However, note what Paul and Silas did not say to the jailer: “Believe in us—since we’re so great—and you will be saved.” No, they said, “Believe in Jesus and you’ll be saved.” The Good News is not about how great you and I are (thank God for that). It’s about how great Jesus is and the wonderful things He’s done for us.

Regarding the problem of hypocritical Christians keeping people from believing, we should point out that many people of all sorts, including atheists and agnostics and Hindus, don’t live consistently with what they profess to believe. (For instance, some of the most intolerant people I know pride themselves on their tolerance, and are blind to their own intolerance, e.g. toward the sincere beliefs of Christ-followers.)

In other words, Christians don’t own the monopoly on hypocrisy. Furthermore, there are plenty of humble, loving, and generous Christians. People need to open their eyes and see them. Unfortunately, the attention typically falls on false Christians or loudmouths or hypocrites.

This is all part of Satan’s diversionary tactics. But the gospel is all about Jesus. The Jesus that Christians believe in is good, even when His followers violate His teachings. The Bible never says you have to believe in Christians to be saved. (If it did, I could not believe the gospel!) It says you have to believe in Jesus, who said, “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life; no one comes to the Father but by Me” (John 14:6). He’s the One we’re invited to come and see (John 1:46). He’s the only One who can save and transform us.

As Tim Keller put it, “Jesus himself is the main argument for why we should believe Christianity.” That’s the life-changing truth, and that should be the message we share.

Reaching Readers from Around the World with an Eternal Perspective

Randy Alcorn — Fri, 20 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0700

The international reach of our ministry has been so much further than I ever could have imagined back when Nanci and I started Eternal Perspective Ministries in 1990. My books have now been translated into over seventy languages, and we have articles on our website in 34 languages besides English.

I get excited about reaching people of every tribe and nation and language, and while of course we don’t have resources in every language, we have something to offer in an increasing number, which is very encouraging! If you know people who speak these languages, please share what we have available. We are continuing to translate meaningful articles, and pray that God will use them to reach people around the world.

Here are some notes we’ve received from international readers:

I am from Malawi. I just finished reading your book Managing God's Money, and I must say it has made me look at my life differently. I feel like I have a purpose now. I am currently waiting on God for a new job which I know is coming soon, but this time I want to do things differently. I made mistakes while working at my previous job, and now I have grown and I want to please God in all that I do and everything He entrusts me with. I really want to read The Treasure Principle, but I don’t have access to it. I am reading Managing God's Money again. May the good Lord bless you for all you are doing for the kingdom.

Hello Randy Alcorn, I am a 17-year-old Christian. I had the opportunity to become acquainted with your book, and it made me feel both happiness and deep sorrow. This experience was very meaningful to me. The book I read is Heaven: Thoughts on Eternity (Sonsuzluğun Işığında: Cennet Hakkında Düşünceler). I would love to read your other books as well; however, as far as I know, only three of your books have been translated into Turkish, and they are no longer in print. I wish more of your books could be translated. While reading your book, I felt as if I were talking with you personally. I wanted to thank you for the peace and joy it brought me.

I’m a Romanian believer that lived under the iron curtain up until my mid-20s, when the Revolution came. I lived in the Northwest part, close to the Hungarian border, near the city of Oradea. I’ve been reading your book If God Is Good and found out you’ve been to my country in the 80s. Thank you for being there for my brothers and sisters and sharing in their suffering. May the Lord richly bless you!

I am re-reading Safely Home. This story has meant so much to our family. Bedankt! Thank you from Holland.

As we approach the New Year of 2025, we spent time praying with the faculty of our church as we read and impart your book, Managing God's Money. Thank you for the theology of money and concrete instructions that led to many challenges, awakenings, new decisions in life. - 김영규목사, Sandol Church (Sandol means Livingstone) in Suji, S.Korea

Dear Mr. Alcorn, thank you so very much for your book The Purity Principle. We are a couple from Germany and are very thankful, that your book has been translated into German. We are reading this book to our eleven and 13 year old daughters. I just started the chapter where you write about the movie Titanic. Thank you so very much for speaking so openly. I got tears in my eyes because I'm so thankful, your words are so encouraging for us as parents. It's a struggle for us to find good movies that we can watch with over girls. They don't agree with our "narrow mindedness" concerning movies. We are part of Bible-believing conservative Church in Germany, but even dear brothers and sisters watch movies like Titanic and give them to us to watch with our girls. This is quite challenging for us. And now I am so very glad and thankful and encouraged by your book. Your words help us to keep our own hearts and minds clean and the minds and hearts of our kids. The Lord Jesus blesses us through your book. Thank you very much. The Lord bless you and keep you in His presence.

Dear Mr. Alcorn, today I re-read your book Courageous after I finished Safely Home again, after 15 years. It's been a pleasure to read your books, and it encourages me to take following Christ more seriously. I believe, maybe more than ever, especially in the Netherlands, that we need these kind of books to help people not to be lukewarm, but to light a fire in their hearts to follow Christ without reservation and hesitation.

Dr. John Perkins Goes to Be with Jesus, But His Christ-Honoring Legacy of Love and Reconciliation Lives on

Randy Alcorn — Wed, 18 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0700

Last Friday, March 13, 2026, at age 95, Dr. John Perkins, a man I consider a dear friend, went to be with the Lord and Savior he loves. There are perhaps three dozen people I can name that have truly changed my life. John Perkins is one of them.

John lived a remarkable life and is now more alive than ever in the presence of Jesus. In 1930, he was born into extreme poverty to a family of sharecroppers. He lived in the Jim Crow south where racism and injustice were rampant, and the families whose parents or grandparents had been born slaves continued to suffer for decades after slavery had been abolished.

Sharecroppers worked land owned by others and received only a small part of the crop. John’s mother Maggie died of extreme malnutrition that amounted to starvation. Soon after that, John’s father abandoned the family. The children were raised mostly by their grandmother.

John’s older brother, Clyde, a decorated World War II veteran, was shot and killed by a Mississippi police officer while standing in line outside a movie theatre. Clyde died in John’s arms, and his brother’s death affected him deeply. Later John Perkins served his country in the Korean war.

I spent time with John’s son Spencer in 1994 at his house in Jackson when researching my novel Dominion, set in Mississippi, part of a visit where I also was with John. I’ll come back to Spencer.

My first introduction to John Perkins was in Bible college when I’d been a Christian for only four years. I read John’s book Let Justice Roll Down. It stunned me. The book kept me up at night but also won over my heart. I’ll tell some of the story that affected me most.

In February 1970, Perkins was working in the cities of Mendenhall and Jackson with his Voice of Calvary Ministries, helping poor black families and promoting reconciliation between black and white Christians. It was one of the most difficult environments anywhere to do that.

One week, several young civil rights workers connected with the ministry were arrested. Perkins and others drove to check on them and bring them home safely.

When they arrived, police stopped their car. Perkins and the others were arrested without cause and taken to the Rankin County Jail. John was known both as a pastor and a civil rights activist committed to nonviolence.

What happened next was horrifying. In the jail, 40-year-old John Perkins was subjected to brutal torture by officers who beat him with nightsticks and fists, and kicked him repeatedly as he laid on the floor. They stuck a fork down his throat. They threatened to kill him and make it look like suicide. Perkins later said that he thought he would die that night. Some of his family were outside the jail and could hear his screams. (There are many, many good police officers, but sadly, this was at a time and place where there were too few of them.)

While suffering in the jail, Perkins prayed, and later told how God miraculously helped him realize that the same love that kept Jesus on the cross was the love God had for the men who were beating him.

Somehow, by a work of God’s Spirit, John felt pity and compassion for the very men who had tortured him. Then and there he forgave them. He felt the hatred he’d had for white people drain out of him. He would never be the same. And neither would anyone who came to know him.

I knew all this from reading that powerful book. But in 1988, I met John when both of us were speaking at a writers’ conference in Minneapolis. I asked to take him to lunch. He told me he had dropped out of school in the third grade, but our coffee cups weren’t half empty before I realized he was one of the wisest men I’d ever met. (The fact that a man with a third-grade education has nineteen honorary doctorates says so much.)

As he told stories, John smiled a lot and shed a tear or two. When he crossed his legs, his raised pant leg revealed a sizable scar. I don’t know whether that scar was old or new, temporary or permanent, from an accident or surgery or torture—but to me it symbolized what he’d endured and gave power to his words about forgiveness.

I’m not easily impressed, but after two hours, in fact in the first ten minutes, I knew John Perkins was the real deal. Jesus came “full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). Christ’s fingerprints were all over him. He could have been angry and bitter; instead, he embodied gospel grace. He would have been about 59, and was incredibly kind to me, a 34-year-old white suburban pastor trying to understand the world. Jesus flipped a switch in me that day. As I’ve said, I’ve never been the same since.

A year later, not coincidentally, I became involved in peaceful, nonviolent civil disobedience, modeled after the civil rights movement. (I’m not sure I would have if I didn’t know John’s story and his sacrifices.) This resulted in multiple arrests, brief jail stays, the loss of my job as a pastor, and decidedly unpopular news coverage. The cause was different (defending the rights of unborn children), but as Martin Luther King Jr. put it, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

When arrests and lawsuits kept me from continuing as a pastor, I started Eternal Perspective Ministries, which continues to give away all my book royalties to kingdom causes. Besides missions, pro-life work, and helping the poor, some of my other central concerns were racial justice and reconciliation. This came about largely through John’s influence, and Nanci and I were honored for decades to support the John and Vera Mae Perkins Foundation for Reconciliation, Justice, and Christian Community Development.

When writing my novel Dominion in 1995, I made my main character a black journalist who grew up in Mississippi. I immersed myself in black history and interviewed many African Americans (including Reggie White, who was then playing for the Green Bay Packers). I contacted John’s son Spencer, who lived in Jackson with the family of Chris Rice, a white brother. Chris and Spencer had coauthored More Than Equals, an excellent book on racial reconciliation. I asked if I could meet with them. When Spencer was a teenager, John had enrolled him in an all-white high school, and he had his own stories to tell. (Sadly, Spencer died of a heart attack only three years after our meeting, at age 44.)

I attended a Christian Community Development Association National Conference where John Perkins spoke. That afternoon John became my host, and we walked the streets of Jackson. Life stories overflowed from his heart. He took me into a thrift shop where he found an old hat tagged for twenty-five cents. He tried it on and asked for my verdict. I told him it looked “snazzy.” He loved that description and smiled broadly.

The girl at the counter recognized John as the founder of the ministry that owned the thrift shop and said, “Dr. Perkins, you don’t have to pay for that!” He insisted and then handed her the quarter and proudly put on his hat. I smiled every time I looked at him the rest of the day. What great happiness this man found in something so small—he saw life crowded with God’s kindnesses, which helped me see the same. To be with him was to be mentored in the ways of Jesus.

My favorite character in my novels is Obadiah Abernathy, from my novel Dominion, who played baseball in the old Negro leagues. He modeled dignity, grace, wisdom, and humor. My sports inspiration for Obadiah was Buck O’Neil of the Kansas City Monarchs, but my spiritual inspiration was John Perkins. Whenever I wrote dialogue for Obadiah, I asked myself, What would John say? Any reader who came to love Obadiah Abernathy (and many readers have told me they did) was coming to love John Perkins, without knowing it.

In 2008, the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association honored John Perkins with the Jordon Lifetime Achievement Award. I cleared my schedule to attend the event where he was presented with the award. After John spoke, I waited at a distance. Though more than ten years had passed since we’d last seen each other, his face lit up when he saw me, and he called me by name. A photographer snapped a picture of John greeting me, his hand on my shoulder. The photo appeared on the front page of a newspaper the next day. I still treasure it.

John practiced what he wrote:

Jesus intentionally brought together disciples who were very different—fishermen, tax collectors—not people who would naturally love one another. But he did this to show us what love looks like in practice. We have the privilege of putting this same kind of love on display as we love those in the body of Christ who don't look like us.

I highly recommend his 2017 book Dream With Me: Race, Love, and the Struggle We Must Win, which flowed straight from his heart. It is honest, humble, prophetic, and Christ-honoring, and we need to hear it. He wrote in the book, “At eighty-six years old, people tell you how much wisdom you have. I don't know about all of that, but I do know that God has done much in me and through me, and He's still working on me.” I was honored and surprised when John asked me to write the foreword to Dream With Me. What a privilege.

In December, just three months ago, I had a Zoom call with the Perkins family. John was present, and told one of his daughters he wanted to join the call. He smiled wide and nodded his head when I told a story about our time together in Jackson thirty years earlier. He remembered something he said I had done for him, but we couldn’t quite figure it out. That was alright. His native language was love, and it shined through his dementia.

We talked about a very recent tragedy in the Perkins family. Last summer, on June 22, 2025, John’s granddaughter, 23-year-old Karah Perkins Potter, stopped at a gas station in Jackson. One of her friends was quarreling with her boyfriend, and Karah stepped in to help her friend. During the confrontation, a man pulled a gun and shot her in the head. She died that day. When I talked with her parents six months later, understandably the grief was still fresh. What is worse than the violent death of one’s child, or grandchild?

Three months after that Zoom call, six days before John died, after hearing he was on hospice, I sent this email to his daughters:

Priscilla and Elizabeth and Deborah, I join you and your whole family in prayer for your precious father. Our staff is praying for him. I remember vividly the day my dear wife Nanci went into hospice care, here in our home. So hard, but God did great things through her years of cancer. We can't wait to see her again.

The thought of your dad soon hearing God say "well done my good and faithful servant," is in one way difficult, yet also very beautiful. What a heritage you have. And the thought of John joining other family members already there, including Spencer and Karah, is a reminder that your loss will be Heaven's gain.

Prayers for your dad and mom and for you. To me, John will always be a dear brother and precious friend, and even though there were years when we had no contact with each other, he remained a significant part of my heart. And always will. Can't wait to see him again in a far better world where I suspect he will be wearing that same hat!

After our call, his daughters sent me several of his books, which he had signed with difficulty. Also enclosed was his hat, with his signature on the back of it. And the hat is exactly like the “snazzy” one he was so delighted to buy that day for a quarter. I am not going to part with that hat!

Do especially pray for Vera Mae, John’s wife of 74 years. Their daughter Elizabeth posted this precious photo days before he died, and wrote, “One moment that made me smile was when Moma joyfully called out, ‘Hello, baby!’ and Daddy turned toward her. It was such a tender reminder that love still speaks so clearly. This picture holds so much tenderness—Moma’s hand resting lovingly in Daddy’s, a simple but powerful image of love, faith, and the gift of being together in this moment.” I was so touched looking at that photo, and it reminded me of how long I spent looking at Nanci’s and my hands being held together on her last few days here. We were married 47 years, but it’s hard to believe that John and Vera Mae were married nearly 30 years longer!

The greatest compliment I can give John is to say that he showed me Jesus. Thousands, if given the chance, would gladly tell their stories about John and the ways he changed their lives—and one day, at great banquets with Christ at the head of the table, they will.

I may see him first in the present Heaven, but I especially look forward to the resurrection and spending time with John Perkins on God’s New Earth, where love, justice, and joy will be the air we breathe (see 2 Peter 3:13). Maybe he will live in the New Jackson and take me for a long walk again. But wherever he lives, I will not be surprised at all to see him smiling widely and wearing that same kind of snazzy hat (just like the ones in the photos) he bought for a quarter! I imagine John will be thanking God for His goodness and for how his heart, that was once full of hate, will forever be overflowing with love.

The Chair of Honor

Randy Alcorn — Mon, 16 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0700

While my novel Safely Home shows some suffering in China, it’s ultimately an encouraging book, full of hope and anticipation. I want readers to see events on Earth with an eternal perspective. I pray they’ll come away with a greater love for their brothers and sisters overseas, and with a deeper sense of anticipation for Heaven.

This is one of many responses to the book that our ministry has received over the years:

One day a young philosophy student from the University of Nairobi came into the shop and asked for a book that was a good read, and not the usual religious stuff. He wanted something stimulating. After asking a few questions, the young Kenyan who was tending the shop suggested Safely Home, guaranteeing that he would be captivated, challenged, and have lots to think about. So the student bought the book, came back within 2 weeks saying he had gone to church the following Sunday after reading that book, and had met Jesus Christ personally. He was thrilled and wanted another book. He had passed Safely Home on to his parents and siblings. Within a month or two he returned to say that his whole family had come to Christ and were growing, having involved themselves in an alive evangelical church.

Here are a few excerpts from my novel Safely Home, starting with American Ben Fielding visiting the home of his old friend Li Quan in China and encountering a chair that, to his surprise, is never sat in:

“Please sit down,” Quan said, stretching out his hand. There were five chairs, two partially broken, which were quickly taken by Quan and Ming. Shen took another. This left two chairs—one mahogany, large and beautifully handcrafted, with embroidered velvety cushions on the seat, back, and arms. It had an almost regal look, entirely out of place in this modest home. Assuming it was the chair of honor intended for the guest, Ben started to sit in it. Quan quickly stood and pointed to the other chair, the second-best one of the lot.

“Please sit here, my friend.” Ben sat next to Quan, directly across the table from the unoccupied fifth chair.

Who else is coming?

“This is xigua, correct?” Ben asked.

“Watermelon. Yes!” Quan smiled broadly. “Join hands, please.”

Ben swallowed hard and felt Quan’s and Shen’s hands touch his. He held them lightly but felt them both squeeze.

“Thank you, Zhu Yesu,” Quan said fervently, “that you have brought to us my friend Ben Fielding. We pray he will enjoy this visit with us. And that you would bless his wife, Pam, and their children and comfort them in his absence. Amen.”

Ming prayed, then Shen, both in Chinese. Ben fidgeted but kept quiet. He didn’t understand some of this unique spiritual vocabulary.

“Tell me about your father’s imprisonment,” Ben said. “I mean, if you feel up to it.”

“I am honored you would ask,” Quan said. “My father first went to jail in the early days of People’s Republic. He was imprisoned again in the sixties during the cultural revolution. I was eight when Li Tong went to jail for the last time. I was permitted to visit him a few times a year, though they would not let me touch him. But by the time I was twelve my heart had turned away from him. I was a proud little Communist, and I refused to visit my shameful father anymore.” Quan winced at the memory. “Then when I was fifteen, my mother forced me to visit him in prison.”

“What was it like?”

“The man I saw did not look like my father. His face was like a pale, twisted mask. But I could recognize his eyes. The last thing he said to me that day was ‘Zhen jin bu ba huo lian.’’’

“Real gold fears no fire,” Ben said.

Quan nodded. “And he added, ‘One day you will die. You must spend your life preparing for that day.’ I have often asked myself, ‘Is this the day?’ ”

“What did your mother do after he died?”

“She had already taken over my father’s job. They called her ‘the smiling pastor.’ She was a good preacher. She preached at me many times! I regret I did not listen. Not even the night I came home and she’d been beaten. They knocked out two of her teeth.” Quan trembled. “Even in her pain she managed to smile, but it hurt me to see the missing teeth.”

“Who beat her?”

“PSB.”

“Why?”

“Because she was a Christian. Even worse, a pastor. God’s enemies need no more reason.”

“How old were you when she died?”

“Eighteen. I was off with my friends when the earthquake happened. When I ran through the rubble to my house, I saw smoke rising. It had collapsed and was burning. In it I found my mother’s body. She had done every thing for me. No son had a mother so kind, so filled with the joy of Yesu. But I did not appreciate her as I should have. Yes, I wept for her, but more for myself, because I had no home.”

“Where did you go?”

“To my mother’s parents. They were Christians. They did not know what to do with all my arguments against Christianity, which I got from school. I was even angry I wasn’t allowed to sit in our beautiful chair, made by my grandfather. When we had company, I sat on the hard floor many times while that chair sat empty.” He pointed to the large mahogany chair at the table. “I saw no point in having a beautiful chair no one was allowed to sit in.”

“What was the point?”

“Do you not know?”

“I’m not sure.”

“Then it is best for you to learn for yourself.”

“What is your important question, Ben?”

“You have to tell me about that chair!”

“What chair?” Li Quan asked, unable to keep the corners of his mouth from twitching.

“You know what chair. The mahogany chair, the empty one, with the high back. Ming and Shen say you have to tell me. I can’t get a word out of them.”

“Li Wen built the chair. He was a master craftsman, known throughout the province. It took him more than a year. He built it first in honor of his father, Li Manchu. But then it became for him the chair of Yesu. When others claimed to rule the world, it reminded him who was the true King.”

“That’s why it’s almost like a throne?”

“A very modest throne. But yes. There is only one who is worthy to sit in it. That same one is always present in the house of Li. My father learned that as a child. I should have, too, but I was very slow to learn. Shen understands already.”

“He’s had a good teacher.”

“Not good enough, I fear, though Ming has made up for my shortcomings. The chair is a remembrance of the Li family line of believers, going back to Li Manchu. But most important, this chair is a remembrance of Yesu’s promise to always be with his children. At every meal we have, we remember he is with us. When we sit in the evening, when we go to sleep at night, we remember he is there, watching over us. No matter what.”

“Has no one ever sat in the chair?”

“My father said his father, Li Wen, taught that Yesu was truly in the chair, that though he was everywhere and the chair was but a symbol, it was a very important symbol. As Li Wen did not let anyone sit in it, neither would Li Tong. He said if we sat in the chair we would forget its meaning. Whenever we had too many guests, the chair sat vacant while my father or I sat on the floor. I resented him for expecting me to sit on the ground rather than on a good chair. I was a young fool.”

“Better a young fool than an old fool,” Ben said.

“Yes.” Quan smiled. “This would make a good Chinese proverb. There is hope for Ben Fielding. Tell me, old friend—how was Christmas?”

“I got oranges for Ming and Shen. And bananas and grapes.”

“Ben Fielding is a worker of miracles,” Quan said. Tears formed quickly and dripped freely down his cheeks. “They must have been very happy.” He looked skyward. “Thank you for this kindness, Yesu.”

Ben pushed his hand harder into the wire fence and wrapped his fingers around Quan’s. Just then the guard came and herded him away to the black hole. Li Quan walked back to his desolate cell, singing. Ben Fielding, realizing he had never thanked God for a piece of fruit, walked back to his beautiful vehicle, despairing.

Quan’s house was nearly empty. Ming and Shen were gone, setting up new living quarters in their half of Zhou Jin’s tiny place. Ben sat on his bed, the only one of the three still there. He was about to make the final drop-off to Zhou Jin’s. Only the bed, the mahogany chair, and a few odds and ends remained.

A cockroach skittered across his bed.

“You didn’t get the eviction notice, huh, buddy? Well, I guess you’ll be getting some new roommates. I’ll miss you.”

I’m talking to a cockroach. It could be worse. At least I haven’t named him.

The draft was worse without furniture and bodies. Despite his jacket and the blanket covering his feet, Ben trembled.

After a few minutes he got up, crossed the room, and knelt in front of the empty chair. He wept. He opened his Bible in front of him and reread a line from First Peter he’d underlined, one that Ming had showed him that morning. “‘Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about what happens to you.’”

Having done everything he could think of and still not getting the desired results, Ben laid his head on the soft untouched material of the chair. He felt comforted.

Well, I guess if I’m not in control, the next best thing is knowing you are. Come to think of it, that’s a whole lot better, isn’t it?

He laughed. Then he spoke some more to the Owner of the chair.

What Does It Mean to Have God as Our Heavenly Father?

Randy Alcorn — Fri, 13 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0700

I grew up with a dad who slept at home, but generally wasn’t there for me or my brother. He was a good provider, and I was proud of his extraordinary physical strength, but he didn’t come to my games or any school activities. I never had the experience of playing catch or going camping or fishing with him. He was a skilled mechanic, but didn't take the time to teach me how to work with my hands. He was always off to work or when he was home, working on something else or reading the newspaper. Beyond telling me to do various chores, he rarely spoke to me, and I had little access to him. While my mom was always there and approachable, it seemed my father wasn’t interested in me.

Everyone is different, but what happened to me was that my earthly father’s absence made me all the more appreciative when I entered into a relationship with Jesus, and thereby into a relationship with my Father in Heaven. This Father loved me unconditionally, and despite His high expectations, He never told me to do anything that He didn’t give me the strength to do, and was quick to forgive me when I failed, which I often did.

I found God the Father 100% trustworthy, an infinitely powerful provider who created the universe itself, not only for His glory but also for my good, as His son. I believed Him to be, and do now more than ever, personally and genuinely interested in my life. He wired me a certain way, and when I use my gifts and abilities to serve Him, I am His apprentice, having learned at His feet, under His guidance. It is an honor and joy when I show some resemblance to my Father in Heaven. He means everything to me.

I base these concepts not on wishful thinking, but on God’s revealed Word, and its blood-bought promises. I am a child of God, born into His family: “Yet to all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God—children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God” (John 1:12-13, NIV).

But as if being born into His family weren’t enough, Scripture says He also chose to adopt me: “You have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’” (Romans 8:15). He’s not a distant and unapproachable Father. I am delighted to call Him “Abba, Father.”

I always have access to Him, the King of the universe. His throne room is continuously available to me, His child, and He always has time for me: “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16, KJV).

While my earthly father often seemed impossible to please, my heavenly Father seems eager to say to me, “Well done.” Not only is He willing to spend time with me, He’s also eager to do so, and went to incredible lengths that I might spend eternity living with Him in His place, with Him always there for me, and me always able to proudly serve under Him. It’s my privilege to worship Him, and call Him my Father.

I later had the privilege of leading my dad to Jesus when he was 84 years old. For the final five years of his life, when he was failing and needed my help, at last we became close. (Read the full story.) I can’t wait to reunite with my earthly father in Heaven, transformed into the image of our mutual Father in Heaven.

Are We Willing to Be Unpopular or Even Hated for Speaking the Gospel Truth?

Randy Alcorn — Wed, 11 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0700

Years ago, when prolife speaker Gianna Jessen shared at our church, she said many memorable things. The one that has stuck with me is that to be a follower of Christ you need to be willing to be hated.

I agree, and that's what I want to talk about. Of course, this does NOT mean being hateful. Nor does it mean seeking to be hated. Or having a persecution complex, so you think people don’t like you because you’re following Christ, when they actually don’t like you because you’re just rude or obnoxious.

I am all for graciousness, kindness and servant-hearted love as we speak the truth. I seek to practice this with the nonchristians I’m around. But at some point the greatest kindness we can offer them, coming out of a life of humility and faithfulness to Christ, is the good news about Jesus. (That good news actually involves some very bad news about human sinfulness, which is what makes the cross offensive, meaning that it ticks people off).

The danger comes when we live in such fear of being mislabeled that we don’t step forward as unapologetic and unashamed all-out followers of Jesus. They can call us Jesus freaks or ignorant or uncool or intolerant or anything they want, that’s fine. We should do what we believe pleases our Lord, regardless of how it pans out in opinion polls. That includes loving others and giving radically and ministering to the down and out and addressing addictions and saying we think it’s wrong to kill children of all ages and helping people find alternatives. We do such things not seeking the approval of our culture, but of our King.

If we seek our culture’s approval, we’ll either never get it or get it only at the expense of failing to represent Christ. We are promised, that if we “live godly lives in Christ Jesus” we “will suffer persecution.” If we’re not suffering persecution, at some level, then what does that suggest?

We should certainly be nice, and it’s sad when Christians aren’t. But it’s also sad when we imagine “niceness” has greater impact than it really does. Niceness is not the gospel. Some modern concepts of evangelism are little more than being nice to your neighbor and loaning him your hedge clipper and hoping that somehow he will come to Christ without you actually having to say the WORDS of the gospel which would run the risk of him thinking you’re weird. Our good example is important, but it’s not sufficient. There are actual truths that must be grappled with in surrendering to Jesus (1 Corinthians 15:1-6). And these truths are expressed in words.

I’m all for audience analysis and understanding the perceptions of this generation and speaking in a way they can understand. But instead of letting the world set our agenda and the ground rules of what we can and can’t say, let’s ask the Lord how best to take the timeless message of the gospel to these people.

But—and I say this coming out of some of the conversations I’ve had with cool Christians—the answer is not altering the contents of the gospel to make it something everyone can easily agree with. If the gospel becomes nothing more than the reflection of a worldview they already have, it has nothing to offer them. It’s God’s gospel. Given the price He paid on the cross to offer it, He has the right to say difficult things such as Jesus is the only way to the Father and we are hell-bound without Him. That message is not popular and never will be. Our job isn’t to edit the message, but to deliver it.

Among some believers, the definition of a good Christian is holding your beliefs privately, not challenging those who publicly share beliefs that dishonor Christ, and avoiding controversy at all costs lest we be perceived as “those kind of Christians” who supposedly favor inquisition and live to burn witches. We so much want the world to like us that we end up distancing ourselves from the historic Christian faith, from biblical doctrine (including hell), and from churches (because they’re all hypocrites except us). We end up making ourselves indistinguishable from the world, and therefore have nothing to offer the world.

Sometimes we assume the moral high ground by rolling our eyes at those street preachers, congratulating ourselves that we aren’t like that. Street preaching’s not my thing, but I can give you names of people who have come to Christ through street preaching. It’s more of a stretch to name those who’ve come to Christ through Christians who think it’s not cool to tell people the biblical truth that they need to repent of their sins (a synonym for evils; basically a big insult), and turn to Christ to be saved from hell.

It’s not our job to be popular. We are not contestants on American Idol. And we are not Christ’s speechwriters or PR team, airbrushing Jesus so He has greater appeal to people who don’t want to hear what He said about sin and hell. He’s the King, He calls the shots, we’re just His ambassadors. So let’s represent the real Jesus, the whole Jesus, not just the culturally acceptable one.

There is nothing new or postmodern about the gospel turning some people off. That’s always been true, just as it’s always been true that some people are longing to hear it and will deeply appreciate it that you had enough courage to tell them about Jesus.

As D. L. Moody said when someone criticized his approach to evangelism, “I like the way I do it better than the way you don’t do it.”

It is not gracious and kind to withhold the gospel from those who, according to Jesus, are going to hell without Him. Sometimes what we imagine to be our graciousness and kindness is actually indifference or cowardice.

“All men will hate you because of me.” (Mark 13:13)

“If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first.” (John 15:18)

Imagine the Thrill of Seeing Christ Face-to-Face

Randy Alcorn — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0700

One day in Heaven, we will see Christ in His glory. The most exhilarating experiences on Earth, such as white-water rafting, skydiving, or extreme sports, will seem tame compared to the thrill of seeing Jesus. Being with Him. Gazing at Him. Talking with Him. Worshiping Him. Embracing Him. Eating with Him. Walking with Him. Laughing with Him. Imagine it!

In my novel Dominion, I picture one of the characters, Dani, seeing Christ as she enters Heaven:

At the doorway into life stood a shining being of natural radiance, but with the brightness of a million klieg lights. The radiance threatened to blind her, but somehow her new eyes could endure it. This was more than a man, yet clearly a man. She knew at once who it was. He who had been from eternity past, He who had left His home in heaven to make one here for her. He who spun the galaxies into being with a single snap of his fingers, who was the light that illumined darkness with a million colors, who turned midnight into sunrise...

“Welcome, my little one!” He smiled broadly, the smile teeming with approval. “Well done, my good and faithful servant. Enter into the kingdom prepared for you. Enter into the joy of your Lord!”

He hugged her tight and she hugged him back, clutching on to His back, then grasping His shoulders. She didn’t know how long it lasted. These same arms had hugged her before, somehow—she recognized their character and strength—but she enjoyed the embrace now as she’d never dreamed she could enjoy any embrace. It was complete, utterly encompassing, a wall of protection no force in the universe could break through. His was the embrace she was made for. He was the Bridegroom, the object of all longing, the fulfillment of all dreams.

“My sweet Jesus,” she said…

“Your hand.” She looked at the other. “Both hands. And your feet.” He allowed her to contemplate what she saw.

These were the hands of a Carpenter who cut wood and made things, including universes and angels and every person who had ever lived. These same hands once hauled heavy lumber up a long lonely hill. These same hands and feet were once nailed to that lumber in the Shadowlands, in the most terrible moment from the dawn of time. The wound that healed all wounds could make them temporary only by making itself eternal. Hands and feet of the only innocent man became forever scarred so that no guilty one would have to bear his own scars.

She saw His pain. An ancient pain that was the doorway to eternal pleasures. Understanding rushed upon her and penetrated her mind as the howling wind had penetrated every crack in her bedroom in that old ramshackle Mississippi home. She wept again, dropping to His marred feet and caressing them with her hands. He put His fingers under her chin and turned her eyes up toward His.

“For you,” He said to her, “I would do it all again.”

…They talked long, just the two of them, without hurry and without distraction. A circle of people surrounded them, waiting for them to finish. But she did not want to finish. She was held captive by one face.

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