Chalmers' Blog

Taught in the Valley: Why God Often Uses Suffering to Make Us Depend on Him

There are lessons God teaches us in the valley that we rarely learn on the mountain top.

I wish that were not true. I wish there were easier ways to learn dependence, humility, endurance, compassion and prayer. I wish sanctification could happen without tears, weakness, sleepless nights, hospital appointments, unanswered questions and bodies that do not work as we want them to. But many of us know, not merely in theory but in experience, that suffering has a way of exposing what we really believe about God.

For me, this is not an abstract theological issue.

Since October 2013, I have lived with chronic pain. What began as a severe migraine that would not go away became a condition called new daily persistent headache. In simple terms, that means constant, unrelenting head pain. Twenty-four hours a day. Seven days a week. No day off. No real escape. It affects sleep, energy, concentration, noise, light, ministry, family life and the ordinary rhythms most people rightly take for granted.

I would love to be healed. I still pray for healing. I do not want to pretend that suffering is easy, romantic or somehow less painful if you have good theology. It is not. Pain hurts. Weakness frustrates. Limitations grieve us. Some days the valley feels very dark indeed.

But I can also say this: God has used suffering to teach me lessons I do not think I would have learned otherwise. He has used it to show me my weakness, deepen my dependence, expose my idols, enlarge my compassion, sharpen my hope and drive me again and again to Christ.

The Quiet Crisis of Prayerless Orthodoxy

There is a danger that can creep into conservative evangelical churches quietly, almost respectably. It does not usually arrive with scandal. It does not always look like compromise. It can sit under faithful preaching, sing doctrinally rich hymns, affirm historic confessions, defend biblical truth online, and recommend excellent books.

It is the danger of prayerless orthodoxy.

By prayerless orthodoxy I do not mean that doctrine is the problem. Far from it. Truth matters. Doctrine matters. God has revealed himself in words. The Christian faith is not built on vague religious feeling but on the once-for-all gospel of Jesus Christ, revealed in Scripture, confessed by the church, and entrusted to God’s people.

Saturday Snippets (June 20)

As well as reading a lot of books, I also read a ton of articles every week. Here are some of the articles that I’ve read recently and have found interesting, helpful, challenging and encouraging. I hope that they will be the same for you, my dear readers.

Stop Apologising for Long Bible Readings; Recovering the Lost Art of Public Scripture Reading

“I’m sorry, it’s a rather long reading this morning.”

If you have spent any time in evangelical churches, you have probably heard those words. Perhaps you have spoken them yourself. The Bible reader steps to the lectern, glances apologetically at the congregation, and warns them that what follows may test their patience. A chapter from Isaiah. A Psalm. An entire section from one of Paul’s letters. The assumption seems obvious: people do not really want this much Bible.

Yet it is worth asking a simple question – why are we apologising for the very thing God commands us to do?

Imagine a church service where the preacher stood up and said, “I’m sorry, this sermon is a bit long today.” Or where the worship leader announced, “I apologise that we are singing so many songs this morning.” We would immediately recognise the oddness. The elements of worship should not require apology. So why has the public reading of Scripture become the one part of the service for which Christians often feel compelled to say sorry?

Saturday Snippets (June 13)

Why Pastoral Ministry Can Be Difficult

I love being a pastor. I love opening the Bible week by week and helping people see the glory of Christ. I love sitting at kitchen tables, listening to stories, praying with people, rejoicing at baptisms, grieving at funerals, and watching Christians grow in holiness. Pastoral ministry is a privilege beyond measure.

And yet, it can also be difficult.

Most church members already sense this instinctively. They know the pastor’s role is demanding. But it is not always obvious why it is demanding, especially because much pastoral work happens quietly and relationally rather than publicly and visibly. I’m not writing this post to invite sympathy for pastors. I am writing to help Christians better understand the nature of pastoral ministry, so that churches and pastors can walk together with wisdom, patience, and grace.

God’s Sovereignty and Human Responsibility: Why They Are Friends, Not Enemies

Few doctrines generate more questions among Christians than the sovereignty of God.

For some, it is a source of deep comfort. For others, it feels unsettling. Many believers hear phrases like “God is sovereign” and immediately wonder: What about free will? Are our choices real? Does human responsibility matter?

Three Small Books About Big Topics

We live in an age of information overload. Students today have access to more content than any previous generation in history, yet many remain unsure about the most important questions of life. What does it mean to live well? How can I pursue holiness in a culture that normalises sexual sin? How can I speak about Christ with confidence in an increasingly sceptical society?

These are not merely student questions. They are human questions. They are church questions. They are questions that pastors, parents, lecturers, and Christian leaders wrestle with as they seek to disciple the next generation.

That is why the Track series from Christian Focus deserves careful attention. These short, accessible books are aimed primarily at students, but their usefulness extends far beyond the university campus. They tackle some of the most pressing issues facing young Christians today and do so with biblical clarity, practical wisdom, and pastoral warmth.

Here are three of the newest additions that have come across my desk recently.

Saturday Snippets (May 30)

“Praying in the Holy Spirit”: What Does Jude 20 Mean for Christians Today?

Among the shorter books of the Bible, the letter of Jude contains some remarkably weighty exhortations. Writing to Christians threatened by false teachers and spiritual compromise, Jude urges believers to “contend for the faith” (Jude 3). Yet his final instructions are strikingly pastoral and deeply practical:

“But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit,keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life. ” (Jude 20–21)

For many Christians, the phrase “praying in the Holy Spirit” raises immediate questions. Does Jude refer to a special kind of prayer? Is he speaking about emotional intensity? About mystical experiences? About speaking in tongues? Or is he describing something more ordinary, and yet more profound?

For Christians from a conservative evangelical perspective (like my own), Jude’s words should neither be ignored nor sensationalised. They should instead drive us back to Scripture itself, where we discover that prayer in the Holy Spirit is not an elite spiritual technique reserved for a few unusually gifted believers. It is the ordinary privilege and calling of every Christian.