About the Book
"Not Guilty" by Creflo Dollar is a book that explores the concept of guilt and how it can impact our lives. Dollar argues that through understanding and accepting God's forgiveness, we can let go of guilt and live a more fulfilling and purposeful life. The book provides practical advice and spiritual insights on how to overcome guilt and embrace a life of freedom and peace.
Warren Wiersbe
Dr. Warren Wiersbe once described Heaven as “not only a destination, but also a motivation. When you and I are truly motivated by the promise of eternity with God in heaven, it makes a difference in our lives.”
For Wiersbe, the promise of eternity became the motivation for his long ministry as a pastor, author, and radio speaker. Beloved for his biblical insight and practical teaching, he was called “one of the greatest Bible expositors of our generation” by the late Billy Graham.
Warren W. Wiersbe died on May 2, 2019, in Lincoln, Nebraska, just a few weeks shy of his 90th birthday.
“He was a longtime, cherished friend of Moody Bible Institute, a faithful servant of the Word, and a pastor to younger pastors like me,” said Dr. Mark Jobe, president of Moody Bible Institute. “We are lifting up pastor Wiersbe’s family in prayer at this time and rejoicing in the blessed hope that believers share together.”
Wiersbe grew up in East Chicago, Indiana, a town known for its steel mills and hard-working blue-collar families. In his autobiography, he connected some of his earliest childhood memories to Moody Bible Institute; his home church pastor was a 1937 graduate, Dr. William H. Taylor. After volunteering to usher at a 1945 Youth for Christ rally, Wiersbe found himself listening with rapt attention to Billy Graham’s sermon, and responded with a personal prayer of dedication.
In a precocious turn of events, the young Wiersbe was already a published author, having written a book of card tricks for the L. L. Ireland Magic Co. of Chicago. He quickly learned to liven up Sunday school lessons with magic tricks as object lessons (“not the cards!” he would say). After his high school graduation in 1947 (he was valedictorian), he spent a year at Indiana University before transferring to Northern Baptist Seminary in Chicago, where he earned a bachelor of theology degree. His future wife, Betty, worked in the school library, and Wiersbe was a frequent visitor.
While in seminary he became pastor of Central Baptist Church in East Chicago, serving until 1957. During those years he became a popular YFC speaker, which led to a full-time position with Youth for Christ International in Wheaton. He published his first article for Moody Monthly magazine in 1956, about Bible study methods, and seemed to outline his ongoing writing philosophy. “This is more of a personal testimony,” he said, “because I want to share these blessings with you, rather than write some scholarly essay, which I am sure I could not do anyway.”
At a 1957 YFC convention in Winona Lake, Indiana, Wiersbe preached a sermon that was broadcast live over WMBI, his first connection to Moody Radio. “I wish every preacher could have at least six months’ experience as a radio preacher,” he said later (because they would preach shorter).
While working with Youth for Christ, Wiersbe got a call from Pete Gunther at Moody Publishers, asking about possible book projects. First came Byways of Blessing (1961), an adult devotional; then two more books in 1962, A Guidebook for Teens and Teens Triumphant. He would eventually publish 14 titles with Moody, including William Culbertson: A Man of God (1974), Live Like a King (1976), The Annotated Pilgrim’s Progress (1980), and Ministering to the Mourning (2006), written with his son, David Wiersbe.
In 1961, D. B. Eastep invited Wiersbe to join the staff of Calvary Baptist Church in Covington, Kentucky. forming a succession plan that was hastened by Eastep’s sudden death in 1962. Warren and Betty Wiersbe remained at the church for 10 years, until they were surprised by a phone call from The Moody Church. The pastor, Dr. George Sweeting, had just resigned to become president of Moody Bible Institute. Would Wiersbe fill the pulpit, and pray about becoming a candidate?
He was already well known to the Chicago church—and to the MBI community. He continued to write for Moody Monthly and had just started a new column, “Insights for the Pastor.” The monthly feature continued to run during the years Wiersbe served at The Moody Church. Wiersbe would become one of the magazine’s most prolific writers—200 articles during a 40-year span. Meanwhile he also started work on the BE series of exegetical commentaries, books that soon found a place on the shelf of every evangelical pastor.
His ministry to pastors continued as he spoke at Moody Founder’s Week, Pastors’ Conference, and numerous campus events. He also inherited George Sweeting’s role as host of the popular Songs in the Night radio broadcast, produced by Moody Radio’s Bob Neff and distributed on Moody’s growing network of radio stations.
Later in life he would move to Lincoln, Nebraska, where he served as host of the Back to the Bible radio broadcast. He also taught courses on preaching at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and Grand Rapids Baptist Seminary. He kept writing, eventually publishing more than 150 books and losing track of how many (“I can’t remember them all, and I didn’t save copies of everything,” he said.)
Throughout his ministry, Warren Wiersbe described himself as a bridge builder, a reference to his homiletical method of moving “from the world of the Bible to the world of today so that we could get to the other side of glory in Jesus.” As explained by his grandson, Dan Jacobson, “His preferred tools were words, his blueprints were the Scriptures, and his workspace was a self-assembled library.”
Several of Wiersbe’s extended family are Moody alums, including a son, David Wiersbe ’76; grandson Dan Jacobsen ’09 and his wife, Kristin (Shirk) Jacobsen ’09; and great-nephew Ryan Smith, a current student.
During his long ministry and writing career, Warren Wiersbe covered pretty much every topic, including the inevitability of death. These words from Ministering to the Mourning offer a fitting tribute to his own ministry:
We who are in Christ know that if He returns before our time comes to die, we shall be privileged to follow Him home. God’s people are always encouraged by that blessed hope. Yet we must still live each day soberly, realizing that we are mortal and that death may come to us at any time. We pray, “Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom” (Psalm 90:12).
How to Pause in the Middle of the Pressure
“You should really just take a break.” I remember when he said those words. Then, I remember the overwhelming urge to punch him... in the face. “You have no idea how much pressure I’m under,” I thought. “If you carried the weight I carry, you’d never say such a thing.” The call to rest felt like just one more thing to do. Eventually, self-pity and self-aggrandizement partnered together to create a flurry of excuses. But a few months later, my friend was right. I did crash. Stuck in the pit of a depression, I learned the hard way what my friend was hoping to show me in an easier way. Because I didn’t know how to stop in the middle of the work of life, I crashed. I’m not alone, though. According to the CDC (American Center for Disease Control), we Americans work more than anyone else in the Western World. Presumably, this is to pursue the American Dream. But for many of us, busyness overtakes the dream, and, in a strange twist, becomes the way we determine who is important. For the people of the world, this is terrible. For the people of God, it’s unthinkable. So here are three ways to overcome the temptation to resist the urge to ignore rest: Realize You Need to Stop Of course you’re busy. Let’s just agree to agree on that. But the Scriptures don’t demand our ceaseless work. In fact, that’s one of the main differentiating features of the God of the Bible. He’s not like the pagan gods of the Ancient world, He doesn’t demand work from us. And He isn’t Pharoah either, so He doesn’t need us to toil for him so he can luxuriate. The exodus story tells us of a God who rescued his people from that kind of slavery. We need to stop to remember that we’ve be delivered from such bondage. Knowing this will change how you work, even in the busiest of times. Resist The Worship of Work Work is a wonderful gift, but it’s a terrible god. In the West, we’ve turned restlessness into a status symbol. But as the people of God we have our statuses secure, and we have our own symbol that points to it—the cross. It reminds us that God has done all the ultimately-justifying work for us. That frees us to be both diligent and done, to work hard and then stop. You can’t truly take up the yoke of Christ if you’re still peddling to find your purpose in work. Even in busyness, you really can put your labor down. Rework Your Schedule Everyone goes through seasons of busyness—moving, having a baby, starting a new job... But the thing about seasons is that they’re seasons, not lifestyles. I’d challenge you to take your newfound realization that you need to rest and place it in your calendar, regularly. You made room for the Yoga class, the extra meeting, and the soccer run. I’ll bet you can make room for rest. My friend was right. I needed to stop. But I only learned to pause in the midst of pressure only after first being crushed by it. Maybe you’re stronger than me. Maybe you’re better at getting things done. But, I doubt it. The crash is coming, so consider this bit of advice from a friend, “You really should just take a break.” Adam Mabry
