Gary Shogren's Blog
Every year I join the Goodreads Reading Challenge (take a look at the wonderful site, http://www.goodreads.com, where you can log your reading). This year, as in the past few years, I have set the goal of reading 104 books, an average of two per week. In addition, my commentary on 1 Corinthians (Spanish version) just... Continue Reading →
Someone in Costa Rica asked me to preach about “John in Patmos.” And I realized that, it’s an excellent subject for bored, shut-in, and isolated people during COVID! First, a little background. John wrote that he was on the island of Patmos “because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus” (Rev. 1:9b).... Continue Reading →
I have a limited number of people whom I would call my heroes. In fact, one time in an interview I was asked to name a hero of mine: "Uh...Abraham Lincoln" was all I could come up with. In fact, it was President's Day, and the picture of Lincoln hanging on the wall of the... Continue Reading →
Beware of those who are trying to resurrect David Wilkerson's The Vision, where in 1973 he supposedly predicted the plague that we now call Coronavirus. He did not, not by a long shot. What he ACTUALLY said was quite different. Most of his "vision" was utterly generic and rambling and could be true for any... Continue Reading →
Every year I join the Goodreads Reading Challenge (take a look at the wonderful site, http://www.goodreads.com, where you can log your reading). This year, as in the past few years, I have set the goal of reading 104 books, an average of two per week. Some are shorter novellas or tractates, some are long novels... Continue Reading →
Remember that whole ‘invaders from Mars’ radio show that got Orson Wells into hot water, for panicking the cattle and stampeding the humans? In was back in '38, but you may have learned about it in school or seen it on the History channel. Well, on advice from the boys down in legal, let me... Continue Reading →
Does the book of Acts intend to tell us a historical narrative, or does Luke tell us how we should be living? In other terms, is it principally or simply descriptive, or is it also prescriptive? One approach is that we should follow what Acts says - or follow it more confidently - only when... Continue Reading →
Fire destroys. But when a building burns, the fire also reveals: old art, former paint jobs, things hidden for centuries. And the most striking thing the flames revealed was how we interpret events. It turns out that we are hardwired away from objectivity in our interpretations, that we will make snap judgments about who did... Continue Reading →
Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers and sisters, you do not need to have anything written to you. For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 1 Thess 5:1-2 "And further, not to know when the end is, or when the... Continue Reading →
This commentary was prepared for Kairos Publications in Buenos Aires. It was composed specifically for the Latin American church. In some cases I have retained the words "Latin America," at other times I have substituted "the Americas." The bibliography reflects what is available to the Spanish-speaking church. We will publish it a section at a... Continue Reading →
Open Our Eyes, Lord! 