Ask Pastor John

Despite the warnings, cigarette smoking and other forms of nicotine use persist. How concerned should parents be about whether their teens smoke, chew, or vape?

Pleasure in God is not complete unless it overflows in praise to God. And praise to God is not sincere unless it overflows from pleasure in God.

Joy in God was never meant to be a solitary pursuit. Joy sends us out to serve — and serving fills us up with joy.

Few of us feel as attractive as we would like, and some of us feel downright ugly. Why does God allow such unattractiveness in a world that prizes physical beauty?

Fifteen states have now legalized the recreational use of marijuana. What message might God be sending to the church in an age of legal pot?

The boldest people in the world are those who can look into the face of God, in all of his holiness and power, and know that he is for them in Christ.

Whether Old Testament or New Testament, stories fill the pages of Scripture. How can we begin to discover God’s meaning in the Bible’s narratives?

Life’s pressures have a way of exposing hidden sins and introducing new temptations. So how do we know if pressure is making us more holy or more sinful?

Many wish they could have seen Jesus in person as he walked on the earth. But to have the four Gospels is even better than being there.

Until we begin to grasp the infinite worth of God, and the horrific evil of sin, much of the Bible will make no sense — including a book like Job.

Psalm 91 offers spectacular promises for the one who “dwells in the shelter of the Most High.” What does dwelling in the shelter of God mean for us today?

Countless pastors carry out their ministries faithfully — and some abuse their position and cause many to stumble. What does God have to say to hypocritical pastors?

God made marriage to picture the relationship of Christ and his church. Does it follow that a marriage between an unbelieving man and woman is illegitimate?

God has promised never to leave us or forsake his people. So how do we respond when it feels like he has?

If we’re going to parent well through family troubles, we need to know, first, that our own sin is our worst problem, and second, that Jesus’s blood covers it all.

The Bible talks a lot about feasting — far more than about fasting, in fact. So what is feasting, and how might we enjoy it in our Christian lives?

We know from the New Testament that Jesus will return in power and glory. What can we do to prepare ourselves for that long-expected day?

Jesus’s command to love our neighbors as we love ourselves isn’t a call to raise our self-esteem. It’s a charge to seek others’ good in the same way we seek our own.

When the glory of God grows dim in our eyes, bodily appetites become gods. When we lose sight of a big purpose for our lives, sexual urges become too big.

At what point should a Christian woman keep encouraging her spiritually lethargic boyfriend — and at what point should she call it off?