I am the Lead Pastor of Essential Church in Hudson, FL, Assistant Professor of the Ministry Department at Trinity College of Florida, and just trying to be the Husband and Father that God wants me to be.
I’ve found an interesting trend. I don’t know if it’s new or if my friend group has just expanded, but it does seem to be more pervasive in the Christian community. I feel like Christians are more interested in getting “a word from God” than reading the Word of God. They seem more interested in … More A word from God vs. The Word of God
I think Fellowship has a branding problem. Growing up, a Church Fellowship meant one thing. The Church was going to buy a whole bunch of fried chicken and everyone with the last name A-M would bring a side dish and everyone N-Z would bring a dessert. I’m all about eating 5 different types of Macaroni … More ReBranding Fellowship
I love the Constitution. I think it is a pretty incredible document. I think the first 10 Amendments (i.e. the Bill of Rights) are pretty awesome too. It recognizes that the rights of the individual are greater than the rights of the government and have been naturally granted by God and not bestowed by any … More The Second Commandment: Thou Shalt Bear Arms
To the best of my knowledge every New Testament list of sins mentions sexual sins in some way. The three most common words are porneia, akatharsia, and moicheia. They’re usually translated as fornication, sexual impurity, and adultery. God created sexuality. It’s an important part of His creation. He created us in two sexes. He started … More Why Are Sexual Sins Brought Up So Much in the Bible?
We all know the verse that says, “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” There are quite a few verses that reference the fear of God and even a couple in the New Testament. Often times I hear people just erase the word or change the word “fear” to “reverence.” Obviously we … More Fear of God Is Just the Beginning of Knowledge
I hate war. There’s so much politics. There’s so much suffering. There’s so much death. I never want people to have to experience the horrors of war. As a Christian, I individually want to “turn the other cheek” and “love my enemy.” However, these are instructions for individual Christians, and not written to governing officials. … More 5 Reasons We Should Go to War
So I’m still in Israel as I write this and shawarma and falafel are still working their way through my digestive tracks, but I feel like I have enough ammunition to convince you to go. Speaking of ammunition, I heard so many warn me about coming to such a dangerous and politically explosive place. I … More 4 Reasons Why Everyone Should Visit Israel
Light has an interesting story arch in Scripture. In the first few verses in Genesis our World starts out in darkness until God says, “Let there be Light.” Now there’s no Sun or Moon to produce that light. God must be emanating that light from Himself. The final verses in Revelation 21 says exactly that. … More God is Light
I look back fondly on high school and college. Playing sports is definitely something I miss. Fantasy Football doesn’t nearly cover all my competitive instincts. Scheduled lunchtime with friends every day is pretty great too. Also, I literally took a less paying job in order to get summers off again. I don’t know how regular … More Advice for the Class of 2017
So I spoke on the Tribulation this past Sunday. (Gutsy move, I know.) It’s so easy to get trapped in the weeds when speaking on such a topic and lose sight of things like “application.” But I wanted to make sure I helped clarify things for people and if I fell short at least give … More Rando Q&A on the Tribulation
Joe Allotta 