Over the last year, I’ve developed a better understanding of what this ministry is and the role it’s meant to fill in the lives of my brothers and sisters in Christ. While I don’t think what I do is unique, God has used the encouragement of others to show me where he’s uniquely gifted me to serve Him well. So here’s a breakdown of the goal of this blog, and explanation of why that goal won’t let me write 2-minute articles.
The role of Onward in the Faith
One of the greatest problems in the Christian faith isn’t liberal media, an increasingly secular culture, or the attacks of atheism. It’s not failed traditions or outdated beliefs. In the end, the greatest harm to Christianity is the amount of shrugged shoulders and scratched heads when it comes to Christians knowing why they believe what they believe.
The reason many children abandon the faith is that they were often taught what to believe, but never given a balanced understanding of why Christianity is true over other belief systems. They’re told to believe it simply because they should, and often discouraged from understanding any other views. Meanwhile, atheists and other theistic religions are more than willing to give reasons why their own belief systems are worth trusting.
Likewise, many people face a crisis of faith when others press them about their beliefs. Christians struggle when they realize that, outside of their Christian circles, it’s not sufficient to make truth claims without sufficient reasoning. The world isn’t waiting around to pat them on the back for saying the right thing, and that can be a scary thing to deal with regularly.
When these situations occur, it’s tempting to respond in one of two ways. For some, it’s easy to respond with doubt when someone presents convincing evidence that, quite frankly, we don’t understand the things we say are true. For others, it’s easier to just plug our ears and ignore the doubt, continuing in our lack of understanding out of fear of realizing we may be wrong.
Onward in the Faith is meant to help Christians find a better option. One of the greatest ways our faith grows is when we realize we don’t understand something, but we know the answers are out there. We grow closer to Christ when we aren’t content to say “I don’t know,” but instead “I don’t know… yet.”
More than anything, I want this blog to be a resource for you. I want people to trust that they can come here and find thorough, well-reasoned explanations for beliefs about God, the Bible, Christianity, and life in general. Yet even if someone doesn’t agree with my understanding, they can see how I came to my conclusions and use that as a guide for better refining their own beliefs.
On top of that, I want to encourage Christians to engage the world through a biblical worldview. If the Bible contains all we need for life and godliness, then it should radically transform how we view the world compared to those who don’t have the Bible as their ultimate authority. How we respond to joy, suffering, wealth, poverty, family, friends, and everything else should be different than the world because we understand life so differently from anyone else.
Why my articles are so long
When I first started this blog, I tried following all the research and data that pointed to short, punchy articles being required for a successful blog. The shorter the article, the more likely people are to read them. And for most blogs, Christian or otherwise, I can appreciate the need for that.
However, short articles don’t allow this blog to fulfill its purpose in your life. If this is to serve as a resource for people to turn to when they have questions, then people need to understand more than what they should believe. I want Christians to be equipped to understand and defend their beliefs by thoroughly understanding not just what is true, but why.
Now these [Bereans] were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so. (Acts 17:11)
The example of the Bereans has always served as my goal for my own walk with Christ, and one I want to help others desire as well. It’s not enough if our beliefs are based on what’s said by our spouse, parents, friends, or favorite pastor. If we aren’t convinced by the evidence presented in the Bible, then our fragile beliefs won’t stand up to a depraved world that wants to destroy them.
Over the past year, one consistent thing I’ve heard is that my articles are so easy to read. Despite their length and the depth of the content I cover, people “get it.” I’m so thankful that God has developed me to teach in a way that makes Bible topics approachable to anyone, and therefore anyone can find a deeper, more meaningful walk with Christ because they understand Him even more.
I want you to keep moving onward in the faith
The name of this blog truly captures my heart for ministry. I don’t want to just give you encouragement for the day. I don’t want to teach heavy topics that will grow your head knowledge without touching your heart.
This is a blog for your heart and mind. I believe that the Christian life isn’t just a matter of how we feel, but how we let truth impact everything we do. The more we are able to cut through the noise of opinion and get to the heart of what God reveals in His word, the stronger our relationship with Christ will be. Thus, the goal of this ministry is to give you the information you need to decide for yourself why Christ is worth living and dying for.
I want you to know why you believe what you believe.
I want you to know that you have a reason for the hope within you.
And more than anything, I want to equip you to keep moving onward in your faith toward maturity in Christ.
We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ. (Colossians 1:28)
