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Shepherding Thoughts
by Pastor Ben Francis
Welcome to Shepherding Thoughts: An inside look at a Southern Baptist Pastor's comments on navigating popular topics in Christianity and Religion.
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A Christian View of Dieting, Part 1
In this series of posts, I want to think through dieting and its implications, not only for our physical bodies, but for our spiritual...
Ben Francis
Jul 21, 20224 min read
Christians Should Judge each Other...Right?
“Only God can judge me!” That’s what the license tag said on the car parked in front of me. It's not an uncommon thing to hear in the...
Ben Francis
Jul 15, 20228 min read
A Society in Decay…
246 years ago, as America was becoming an official country unto itself, our founders had an idea about what it would take for a free and...
Ben Francis
Jul 8, 20224 min read
The Pastor and the Dietitian...
Over the last year or so—as I have been reading and educating myself about food, diet, exercise, and the like— it occurs to me that...
Ben Francis
Jul 5, 20226 min read
I Love American History!
As we celebrate America’s 246th birthday—a good and proper celebration—we have much to be thankful for, and much to reflect upon. America...
Ben Francis
Jul 4, 20222 min read
What I'm Reading, June 2022
June has been a good month for a number of reasons, but it's been an especially good month in the book department. I’ve been thoroughly...
Ben Francis
Jun 23, 20223 min read
How Should Christians Perform their Weddings?
Thinking through Weddings from a Biblical perspective.
Ben Francis
Jun 21, 202211 min read
SBC 2022 Follow-Up Thoughts
First things first: Southern California is beautiful! Tera and I thoroughly enjoyed our time in Anaheim. The weather was in the upper...
Ben Francis
Jun 19, 20229 min read
Dealing With Food.
I titled it that way on purpose because for me, food has always been something to deal with more than anything else. It's always seemed...
Ben Francis
Jun 9, 20223 min read
Why the Southern Baptist Convention Needs R. Albert Mohler in 2022
The Southern Baptist Convention has entered a period of instability. The cracks have been showing for some time, but the last year has...
Ben Francis
Jun 7, 20224 min read
We're Living in Babylon...Not Heaven.
People Preparing for Exile… Christian faithfulness has taken on various shapes throughout the many chapters of history. In one sense,...
Ben Francis
Jun 7, 20227 min read
Does Social Media Deny my Physical Body?
“Are you angry, Dad?” That’s what my 10-year old son asked me early one morning as I forcibly prepared his breakfast. I had not said...
Ben Francis
Jun 6, 20226 min read
How Should Christians Bury Their Dead?
“Funeral customs and practices show how bodies are regarded in any society. They reveal what is commonly believed about death and what...
Ben Francis
Jun 1, 202210 min read
About Running…
My running journey started a few years ago. Specifically, it started in May/June of 2018. During the early part of 2018, I had developed...
Ben Francis
May 29, 20224 min read
The Incarnation and the Value of the Body.
The Incarnation helps us rightly value the human body. The incarnation of Jesus Christ helps us to understand that God loves and values...
Ben Francis
May 28, 20227 min read
What I'm Reading These Days... May 22'
For my friends who are following along, or to those who want some recommendations for reading, here is the May update on what I’m...
Ben Francis
May 24, 20222 min read
A Sad Day for the Southern Baptist Convention.
The Sexual Abuse Internal Audit At the 2021 Southern Baptist Convention meeting in Nashville, TN, the messengers to the Convention...
Ben Francis
May 23, 20229 min read
Gender and the Christian Worldview.
A Biblical Framework for Understanding Gender: A Christian Worldview. Recently, our Church, along with two other sister Churches in our...
Ben Francis
May 22, 20229 min read
Are Hymns Important? Yes!
We are living in an age when music is doing all sorts of things. Churches are attempting and trying a number of musical variations in an...
Ben Francis
May 11, 20224 min read
“Our Cheap Bodies.” Transgenderism and Reassignment Surgery
Does the Body Matter? Transgenderism Says “No.” An incredible article ran today in the New York Times entitled, “How Ben got His Penis.”...
Ben Francis
May 10, 202210 min read
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