Assembly of God | Craig T. Owens

January 2026
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Links & Quotes

October 14, 2023 — Craig T. Owens

Leaders, you need to determine the coachability factor before you start trying to coach a teammate. Check out our full conversation on The Craig and Greg Show. I have lots of new content every week, which you can check out on my YouTube channel.

Sextortion is when someone demands money or other favors in exchange for not sharing an explicit photo or video of the targeted victim. The sextortion of minor children runs into the thousands every month. Axis reported, “Most targets of sextortion are teen boys, who seem to be more likely than girls to send an explicit selfie to someone they aren’t having a romantic relationship with. Anonymous scammers will reach out to their target over social media, engaging in a flirtation and eventually asking for nudes.” Axis also shared these helpful resources, “Families can prepare by telling their teens about resources like TakeItDown, a free service which will remove nudes from the internet within two days, and the 24/7 Crisis Text Line, which connects teens with professional counselors via text at any time.”

“First, government is not God; instead, government is God’s servant for the good of those served. And second, the people are not God, and therefore must not be allowed the last word on what defines the terms of ‘good’ public policy. Only God can define what is good for people, for He alone is good (Mark 10:18; Psalm 119:68).” —T.M. Moore

“Since the Roe v. Wade U.S. Supreme Court decision more than 50 years ago, almost 40% of all abortions in America have been in the Black community, resulting in erasing the lives and destinies of an estimated 23 million Black babies.” The National Black Fellowship is aggressively working to change this.

Can New Testament Christians claim Old Testament promises? Yes! John Piper shares 8 “filters” to help us with this application.

“You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, ‘I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.’ You must do the thing you think you cannot do.” —Eleanor Roosevelt

J. Warner Wallace uses forensic evidence to demonstrate why we should believe the New Testament was written much closer to the time of the actual event than most skeptics believe. Check out this video.

Links & Quotes

September 23, 2023 — Craig T. Owens

Questions engage people more than statements do. Check out the full conversation Greg and I had on The Craig And Greg Show. I have lots of new content every week, which you can check out on my YouTube channel.

How should Christians engage with artificial intelligence (AI)? This is a very thoughtful and biblically-centric post.

The Bible records the fall of Jerusalem to the Babylonians in 586 BC and to the Romans in AD 70. For the first time, archeologists have discovered evidence of both armies in close proximity to each other. Yet again, archeology confirms the historicity of the Bible.

“In America, we have a tendency to worship our work, work at our play, and play at our worship.” —Lenny Esposito

“Young people are told, ‘You’ve got plenty of time, live a little, first,’ as if life ends after the wedding. The truth about marriage, however, is that it is, statistically, the single best predictor of long-term happiness. Making this even more important to understand is that for at least the last 20 years now, Americans have been steadily getting less happy.” Here’s how John Stonestreet shares this report from the University of Chicago.

T.M. Moore shared an interesting component of early-colonial American lawmaking: “Peruse the civil codes of the American colonies and you will discover a curious phenomenon. Frequently, colonial legislators drafted their civil codes by looking to the Old Testament Law of God.”

Dr. Tim Clarey said, “The global Flood also answers why dinosaurs were still alive and flourishing until the end of the Cretaceous. At that moment in the Flood, they were likely trying to stay on the highest ground available as waters encroached closer, week by week. As the dry land rapidly disappeared, many species herded together. This explains why varied types of dinosaurs were buried together at the end of the Cretaceous. The Flood’s tsunami-like waves eventually crashed over the remaining dinosaurs and entombed them in what’s called Upper Cretaceous strata.” Check out more evidence for the Flood that is recorded in the Book of Genesis.

Links & Quotes

September 2, 2023 — Craig T. Owens

The Holy Spirit who inspired the words of the Bible is the same Holy Spirit in you. He can illuminate the biblical promises for your prayer time, and He can help you apply the biblical principles to your everyday circumstances. I have lots of new content every week, which you can check out on my YouTube channel.

“Carl M. ‘Daddy” Hanson (1865-1954), a spiritual father to many early Pentecostals on the northern Great Plains, earned his Pentecostal stripes on both sides of Azusa Street. He experienced the Pentecostal distinctive of speaking in tongues in the 19th century, and he became an early leader in the Assemblies of God in the first half of the 20th century.” Check out this mini-biography of this Pentecostal pioneer.

I love studying the historicity of the Bible! Isaiah is such an important work both prophetically and historically. “Jesus in John 12:37-40, as well as Paul in Romans 10:16, 20-21 both quote from the beginning and ending of the book attributing it to Isaiah the prophet.” Check out these archeological discoveries relating to the Book of Isaiah.

Absolutely astounding! The silk of spider webs has unique properties that medical science is beginning to use in humans. What an amazing Creator we serve!

In my sermon about parenting, I quoted from Proverbs 22:6. Commenting on this verse, Dick Brogden, in Proverbs: Amplified and Applied, wrote, “The principle regarding our children is that the things they are taught early on will give them every opportunity for stability later in life. This reality does not guarantee that they will make right choices (including whether or not to follow Jesus); it does guarantee that they have the resource of wisdom to draw on should they choose. … Whatever their choice, we can rest in the peace that we laid up for them every resource for good. Our peace (regarding our children) comes from what we have done with our heart and resources, not what they have done with theirs.”

Links & Quotes

August 19, 2023 — Craig T. Owens

Salvation doesn’t arrive on Air Force One. This simple but profound reminder from Chuck Colson should send Christians to prayer instead of seeking a merely political solution. Check out my full message about trusting God vs. trusting the government here. I have lots of new content every week, which you can check out on my YouTube channel.

Matthew Walker, director of the Center for Human Sleep Science, says, “Sleep is the universal health care provider: whatever the physical or mental ailment, sleep has a prescription it can dispense.” It’s not just medical science, but the Bible also talks about the value of sleep, as Scott Hubbard explains in this post. I’ve also shared some posts about sleep here, here, and here.

Don’t you love the beautiful melody of songbirds? Being a percussionist, I’m attracted to the woodpeckers. Scientists have found that woodpeckers are the only non-songbird that share an identical genetic marker in their brains with songbirds. That means that the drumming of woodpeckers is actually a song! Check out some additional fascinating insights about our drumming friends in this post.

I love this story from the early 1900s! Small prayer meetings began to converge to become a Pentecostal revival in the Pacific Northwest.

“What is the best thing in the world? To please its Creator. What is His will? To fulfill what He commanded, that is, to live rightly and dutifully to seek the Eternal; for duty and justice are the will of Him Who is dutiful and right. How do we seek this goal? By application. Then we must apply ourselves in duty and justice. What helps to maintain this practice? Understanding, which, while it winnows the remainder and finds nothing solid to rest in amongst those things which the world possesses, turns in wisdom to the one thing which is eternal.” —Columbanus

“Jesus taught us to pray that the Kingdom would come on earth in the same way that it exists in heaven. … Jesus made praying for the Kingdom the highest priority in our prayers after praising and honoring God. The Kingdom is more important than our daily needs. The Kingdom is more to be desired than that our sins should be forgiven or that we should be rescued through temptation [Matthew 6:9-13].” —T. M. Moore

Stephen O. Presley wrote, “If our modern world resembles the ancient one, perhaps we could glean some wisdom from the ways the early church navigated these murky waters. As Polycarp testifies, the Scriptures were essential to the early Christian apologetic. Passages such as Romans 13:1 and Matthew 22:21, alongside the examples of Old Testament figures such as Joseph and Daniel, guided the church’s vision for engaging the unbelieving world.” His post especially caught my eye after I shared a very similar message to my flock this past Sunday.

Sean McDowell sits down with an Old Testament professor to discuss 10 of the most bizarre OT passages (as selected by Sean’s X followers).

Links & Quotes

August 5, 2023 — Craig T. Owens

My courage and my success are directly tied to my obedience of God’s Word. The life of Joshua is just one example. Check out this full message here. I have lots of new content every week, which you can check out on my YouTube channel.

Donald Fairbairn, Professor of Early Christianity at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, presents a brief history of the great Persian persecution of the 4th-century Christians.

“Christ is more of an Artist than the artists. He works in the living spirit and the living flesh; He makes men instead of statues.” —Vincent van Gogh

Bryan Windel echoes something I’ve frequently said on this blog, “The Bible is rooted in real history. This is why archaeology is such a valuable tool; it helps us uncover the biblical world and provides us with important background knowledge about the people, places, and events described in the text.” Bryan was a part of a dig at Shiloh (where Joshua and Samuel play key roles) and he shares some of his observations and discoveries.

“I trained four years to run nine seconds, and people give up when they don’t see results in two months.” —Usain Bolt

“Those who have turned the tide of history have turned it by means of prayer. This should be the motto of every follower of Jesus Christ. Never stop praying, no matter how dark and hopeless it may seem.” —Billy Graham

I love these stories of hope from To Write Love On Her Arms. They have lots of great words of encouragement for you to share with others.

“The year was 1932. The world’s economic and political systems were groaning under the weight of an economic depression.” Against this backdrop, Myer Pearlman wrote to Christians about how they should live in those times. His message is just as relevant for us today.

Fight The New Drug shares six ways porn has lied to you about sex.

Links & Quotes

June 17, 2023 — Craig T. Owens

Quite frequently God’s measurement of success is nothing like our measurements. “More” doesn’t always mean success. Check out this example which I unpack in my book Shepherd Leadership. And be sure to check out all of my videos on my YouTube channel.

Living in the Great Lakes state my whole life, I have always been fascinated by the huge bodies of water which surround us—they are almost like mini-oceans. As a result, there have been nearly 600 shipwrecks on our lakes. Check out the history of these wrecks here.

A mini-biography of Robbie Risner, one of our nation’s most decorated pilots in the Korean and Vietnam wars.

In spite of what some skeptics claim, Christianity is not anti-science. In fact, J. Warner Wallace lays out the evidence that shows that Christ-followers have fueled the major scientific advancements of history.

“Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else.” —Judy Garland

Isaac Newton said, “Atheism is so senseless. When I look at the solar system, I see the earth at the right distance from the sun to receive the proper amounts of heat and light. This did not happen by chance. … This most beautiful system of the sun, planets, and comets, could only proceed from the counsel and dominion of an intelligent and powerful Being.” Check out the amazing symmetries in our solar system that Copernicus, Kepler, and Newton all identified.

“The truth is the kindest thing we can give folks in the end.” —Harriet Beecher Stowe

Links & Quotes

May 13, 2023 — Craig T. Owens

Unhealthy leaders don’t admit their need for help, and as a result they put a lid on their leadership potential. Check out more of this message here. And be sure to check out all of my videos on my YouTube channel.

A prominent Chinese scholar, Dr. Wang Yun Wu (1888-1979), abandoned atheism in 1924 after he witnessed the miraculous healing of his sister’s eyesight. Dr. Wang later became Vice Premier of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Check out this miraculous story in the Pentecostal Evangel.

The Culture Translator weekly email from Axis had some helpful information for Mental Health Awareness Month.

What it is: May is mental health awareness month, making mental health and suicide prevention bigger topics than ever. #mentalhealthmatters has around 42 billion views on TikTok, and #mentalhealthawareness has racked up 20 billion.

Why the conversation is changing: The CDC’s Youth Risk Behavior survey showed that suicidal ideation, especially for teenage girls, is continuing on a concerning trajectory. In 2021, 30% of girls said that they had seriously considered suicide in the past year, and 24% said they had an actual plan to end their life. According to data published by Mental Health America, 16.4% of youth reported experiencing a major depressive episode within the last 12 months. This news comes at a time when adults are feeling so lonely that the US surgeon general has declared loneliness a public health emergency. Stigma around mental health topics appears to be eroding, but that isn’t necessarily leading to better mental health outcomes for teens and for the population at large.

Conversation Starter: What do you think are the biggest contributors to mental health issues for your generation? (Check out our new video series on Mental Health for more help having this conversation!)

One of the things contributing to the unhealthy mental state of many people (not just teens) is the negative impact of pornography. Fight The New Drug reports how watching porn hurts self-esteem.

“A pessimist is one who makes difficulties of his opportunities and an optimist is one who makes opportunities of his difficulties.” —Harry Truman

Is pain good or bad? Dr. Matthew Loftus makes the case that avoiding suffering undermines the role of medicine and also stunts our ability to feel and express compassion. Check out this full article and the thoughts John Stonestreet shared about them.

“What a sweetness lies in the little word ‘our’; how much is God’s glory endeared to us when we consider our interest in Him as ‘our Lord’ [Psalm 8:1].” —Charles Spurgeon, in Spurgeon and the Psalms

Links & Quotes

April 22, 2023 — Craig T. Owens

Leaders always go first. I want to develop myself so that I have something to give to other emerging leaders around me. If I’m not growing, I’m not going to be able to help others. Check out this full conversation Greg and I had our on leadership podcast The Craig And Greg Show. And be sure to check out all of my videos on my YouTube channel.

“The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing. One cannot help but be in awe when he contemplates the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure of reality. It is enough if one tries merely to comprehend a little of this mystery every day. Never lose a holy curiosity.” —Albert Einstein

This is sort of gross, but kind of cool at the same time. “A new study in the journal Scientific Reports concludes that 12 severed hands discovered in 2011 at Tell el-Dab’a (the site of the ancient Hyksos capital of Avaris) constitute the first bioarchaeological evidence of the gruesome ‘trophy taking’ practice of amputating the right hands of defeated enemies.” Read more about this find here. This is a corroboration of the ‘trophy taking’ David performed for King Saul in the Bible.

The more scientists learn about Creation, the more in awe of our Creator I am! Recently, researchers have discovered even more happening inside our cells that keep everything operating optimally. And then there’s this: “Besides the origin of the eye, Darwin had a problem with the origin of flowering plants (angiosperms—plants that produce seeds within an enclosure, i.e., a fruiting plant), known as Darwin’s abominable mystery. The biblical model of origins maintains that the first forms of life created by God were land plants on Day 3 of the creation week. Land plants were fully-formed and functional—‘in the beginning.’”

Dan Reiland encourages leaders to look at their weaknesses differently. “The chinks in your armor allow you to develop empathy and compassion. They give you insight to human nature. They help you genuinely connect with people. Without these things it’s difficult to lead with God’s heart.”

I am a proud member of the Assembly of God fellowship, so I especially loved reading this report on Breakpoint:

“According to recent research by pastor Ryan Burge of eight major Protestant denominations, only the Assemblies of God has seen a steady increase in church membership since 1987. Each of the others, mostly denominations that are fully progressive theologically and culturally, are experiencing steady decline.

“Denominations like The Episcopal Church, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and the Presbyterian Church (USA) began long ago to move away from orthodoxy and capitulate to new ideas about sex, gender, and marriage. On the other hand, the Assemblies of God (AG) remained committed to orthodoxy on matters of Scriptural authority, the Deity of Christ, the Resurrection, and on sexual matters. It supports the protection of life at all stages, marriage between one man and one woman, and it insists that the body determines identity as male and female.

“Christians are constantly pressured, within the Church and without, to evolve on these issues or, we are told, we will die out. It seems however, that biblical orthodoxy draws people in. Maybe because it provides an anchor in confusing times.”

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: 1 Samuel, Albert Einstein, archeology, Assembly of God, biology, Craig And Greg Show, Creation, Creator, curiosity, Dan Reiland, entomology, Greg Heeres, historicity, leadership, personal development, quotes, video. Leave a Comment »

Links & Quotes

March 11, 2023 — Craig T. Owens

When you say, “I don’t know how to do this,” your mind stops looking for answers. But if we simply add one word—“I don’t know how to do this yet”—your mind will stay active. Adding this one word will unleash the creative, solution-finding part of your mind.

“Our preaching ought to have a voice for all classes, and all should have an ear for it. To suit our word to the rich alone is wicked sycophancy, and to aim only at pleasing the poor is to act the part of a demagogue. Truth may be so spoken as to commend the ear of all, and wise teachers seek to learn that acceptable style.” —Charles Spurgeon, Spurgeon And The Psalms

“How did Jesus live among us? He was different things to different people. See if you find yourself on this list.

To the victim, Jesus defended.

To the rebel, He held out mercy.

To the brutalized, Jesus comforted with kindness.

To the questioning, He spoke truth.

To the fearful, Jesus stood beside.

To the lonely, He nodded, ‘I’ve been there.’

To the sick, Jesus revitalized.

To the outlier, He welcomed in.

To the forgotten, Jesus remembered in detail.

To the filthy, He washed clean.

To the broken, Jesus empathized.

To the doubting, He listened.

To the isolated, Jesus joined company.

To the discouraged, He drew near.

To the cynic, Jesus answered.

To the rejected, He restored.

To the anxious, Jesus calmed.

To the betrayed, He identified.

To the betrayer, Jesus forgave.

To the wounded, He sympathized.

To the wanderer, Jesus pointed the way.

To the shattered, He rebuilt dreams.

To the lost, Jesus led home.

To the abandoned, He was home.

To the destitute, Jesus deepened.

To the single again, He completed.

To the tempted, Jesus was available.

To the courageous, He gave purpose.

To the one in trouble, Jesus led out.

To the exhausted, He was wholeness.

To the hurried, Jesus patiently waited.

To the over-committed, He built margin.

To the weak, Jesus fortified.

To the one in debt, He released.

To the searching, Jesus satisfied.

To the foolish, He said, ‘Turn around.’

To the pure in heart, Jesus blessed.

To the one who keeps on going, He rewarded.” —He Gets Us (part 2) reading plan on YouVersion

This is a pretty long article, but it’s quite fascinating to see the engineering behind the artificial intelligence (AI) of ChatGPT.

“God is not afraid of my questions. Am I afraid of His answers?” —Betsy Owens

C.M. Ward was the speaker for the Revivaltime radio broadcast for a quarter of a century. Dan Betzer, who was also involved in these broadcasts, once said that he heard Rev. Ward preach on the story of the prodigal son in Luke 15 more than a dozen times without ever repeating himself. Here is a quick biographical sketch of this influential man’s ministry. I have also shared before my brief encounter with Rev. Ward when I was a young man.

A bonus quote from Charles Spurgeon: “‘No God’ means no law, no order, no restraint to lust, no limit to passion. Who but a fool would be of this mind? What a bedlam, or rather what a battleground, would the world become, if such lawless principles came to be universal!” —Charles Spurgeon, commenting on Psalm 53:1

A reminder of just how amazing our Sun is! Our Creator perfectly fashioned our Sun and Earth and solar system to sustain the life we enjoy. Check out this amazing article from The Institute for Creation Research.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: abundance, Assembly of God, astronomy, Betsy, C.M. Ward, Charles Spurgeon, creativity, Creator, Earth, foolish, God questions, Gospel of Luke, Jesus Christ, pastors, preaching, Psalm, quotes, Sun, video, YouVersion. Leave a Comment »

Links & Quotes

February 25, 2023 — Craig T. Owens

I’m really excited for this! On March 9, I will be a guest on The Church Lobby podcast with Karl Vatters! Check it out wherever you get your podcasts.

T. M. Moore has been presenting an outstanding series of posts in the series To Stop The Lie. In his most recent post, he wrote, “Winds of false doctrine blow across the sails of the Church continuously, bringing lies against the ship of truth to drive it off its Kingdom course. Wafting in from worldly thinking, these false doctrines downplay the Word of God, make the needs of people rather than the glory of God the focal point of religion, introduce alien practices to worship and church life, and becalm the Body of Christ into complacency. Such lies must be exposed, deconstructed, and stopped.” Check out the post from which this quote came by clicking here, and then you can follow the thread to read the other posts in this series.

“We are more fulfilled when we are involved in something bigger than ourselves.” —John Glenn

NASA has a really cool interactive map that allows you to track the flight of asteroids and comets as they orbit around the sun. You can go forward or backward in time, zoom in or out, and angle the solar system to see the flights and orbits from a different perspective.

John Stonestreet has a good history lesson for us of past revivals on American soil, and the transformation that came about as a result. If you are a pastor and would like to join other pastors once per week for prayer for revival, please check out this prayer group.

Doug Clay has a reassuring post about the blessed hope Christians should have concerning Christ’s Second Coming. He writes, “Will Jesus return in 2023? That question stirs hope in some and anxiety in others. … The Rapture should calm anxious Christians rather than causing anxiety. No matter how bad things get, we know that our Blessed Hope is imminent!”

Too many people in leadership positions think that leadership means that others do things for them. In actuality, godly leaders view their elevated position as an opportunity to serve more—to do more things for more people. I dive deeper into this in my book Shepherd Leadership: The Metrics That Really Matter.