A friendly Reminder

Authored By: Mike Sonneveldt Mark Driscoll knows how to make a splash.    Recently, at the Stronger Men’s Conference , Driscoll took some time to point out what he thought was a dangerous display of idolization.    What was he going on about?    The event featured a man named Alex Margala performing on a raised platform. Margala took off his leather shirt, performed some acrobatic moves on a tall pole, and eventually swallowed a sword.    Margala has competed on both “America

Authored By: Mike Sonneveldt 5 Things To Know About Ministry   Are You Called To Ministry? A lot of people claim they are called to ministry. After all, they received a word, a dream, or a feeling in their heart. Such an event permanently changes the course of our life. But there are a lot of things a person needs to understand before answering the call into ministry. We decided to give you 5 things to know about ministry before you start your international ministry.   No one

Author: Andrew Alleman Missionary Heroes: 7 Great Missionaries that Changed the World   This is our curated list of 7 great missionaries who changed the world. Most people do not hear about the work and effect missionaries have across the world, and we felt it was time to shine a light on the legacy just a few dedicated Christians have left on the world at large.     1) George Muller: Faith For All Our Needs   George Muller was a missionary, evangelist, and caretaker whom wou

Author: Andrew Alleman Were the Founders of the United States simply “deists”? Debunking this modern myth.    Most who are even somewhat familiar with apologetics and debate concerning political history may recall the common assertion: “the Founders certainly weren’t Christians! They were only diests!” Such is a phrase often repeated with zealous gusto. It seems the only time the term “deist” even appears in contemporary conversation is in the context of the United States Fou

Author: Andrew Alleman Christianity’s Fight to End Slavery   “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” Galatians 5:1   One of the crowning achievements of Christianity in the discussion of its legacy and influence throughout history is undoubtedly its systematic opposition of slavery since its beginning roots. The initial question starts with: does the bible oppose slavery directly? The

Author: Mike Sonnevedlt Are you being pressed right now? Times exist in our lives, in which the pressures and struggles of life seem to come crashing down on us all at once. While a lot of times we can navigate life with a few issues cropping up, here or there, we will periodically come across the avalanche of “all at once.” These times are perfect for us to truly test our strength, and see where our real convictions sit. Most of us believe that we carry the foundational trut

Author: Mike Sonneveldt Being accepted into the social group seems to have some type of biological inspiration behind it. We look at social acceptance, and recognize that it's extremely scary for a person to be cast out of the social group.   Imagine, if you will, a tribe in the middle of the jungle. They're surrounded by all kinds of dangerous animals, plants and terrain. To walk out of the protection of the circle is to invite many different dangers to prey on you. So you c

Author: Mike Sonneveldt I spend a lot of time writing when I'm working on Self-Evident material. Most of you have probably already learned that a large amount of content produced by Self-Evident has been written in some way, shape, or form by yours truly.  Producing content continues to be a passion of mine. I enjoy the research, I absolutely love to write, and I'm spiritually motivated. I want to go after all areas of society and culture. I want them for Christ, and if I get

Author: Mike Sonnevedlt How do you keep going? Honestly, this article isn't written from the mountain top, looking down with the wise vision of 20/20. I'm writing from within the trenches. There are times where the feelings can begin to overwhelm, pushing you to wonder why it matters, what it's worth, or why keep going. Points exist on the journey within which you sit in the mud on the side of the road, wondering whether to bother standing back up. The emotions boil through y

Author: Mike Sonneveldt You may notice that unlike most articles posted on Self-Evident's website, this article is a direct result  of a Podcast episode. I thought writing this would be useful for people who may want to look back on the topic, do some research, and spend a little more time with the information.   We pray that this Discipline Series that we're doing on the Podcast would benefit you greatly. Our goal is to help disciple you in every area of your life, be it gov

Author: Mike Sonneveldt A rush of consecration seems to be making its way through the church realm, and I find it a breath of fresh air. I've recognized in many people, within my own circle, the deep desire to consecrate themselves for the Lord. That word, “consecration” tends to get a bad wrap. Images of monks tearing their backs apart with flogs, and people fasting for 40 days and nights bounce around our heads at the mere mention of the word. Our hearts recoil at the thoug

Author: Self-Evident Supporter During last convention season, we built a relationship with an amazing couple, who shared some deep truths that astounded us. It revolutionized how we saw judgment and God's wrath on the world. I asked the husband if he would be willing to write down his story in a blog post to share with our faithful listeners and supporters. This is his story, and his own teaching on the topic.    At World's End? In the early months of 2021 I was looking on in

Author: Mike Sonneveldt It's done. It's over. You can take a deep breath, and now you can relax. Or, if weeping and gnashing your teeth is more your thing, then go for it. But, for the next year and a half or so, you can rest and keep your mind on other things than a mid-term election. I'm glad it's over. I've been waiting for this moment. I understand the importance of an election, and the absolute necessity of getting involved in the whole process, but it brings out the wor

Author: Andrew Alleman 50 World Accomplishments of Christianity Throughout History “You gave me life and showed me kindness,     and in your providence watched over my spirit.” (Job 10:12)   Introduced the highest value of sanctity of life, true equality among people regardless of their birth or social status, and transformed countless people across millennia spiritually, physically, and mentally through the life and ministry of Jesus Christ.   Roman Empire Transformation Est

Author: Mike Sonnevedlt Perhaps one of the most difficult things for the Christian to do is to love, and to have mercy.  While I think being righteous is extremely important in our lives, and deserves its own discussion, I wanted to examine the topic that seems to be on everyone's lips these days. Christians are told that they aren't loving enough, that they're close-minded and that they don't follow Christ's teaching in accepting all people.  Many times, one group or segment

Author: Paul Garner LIBERTY AND OUR PROPERTY By Paul Garner, author “Yearning to Breathe Free: Questing for Liberty in a World of Authoritarians”.    Without the ownership of private property there can be no freedom. Our bodies, labor, earnings, and our property are private.   Everyone has property.  Bodies, labor, earnings and property.  The only question is whether we have sovereignty over that property.  Without the ownership of private property, there can be no liberty. J

Author: Andrew Alleman The Victory of Faith:  How the Spirit of God Built Civilization and Transformed Your World   “Give thanks to the LORD, call upon His name; make known His deeds among the nations…”  -Psalm 105:1-2   “I remember the days of old; I meditate on all Your works; I consider the work of Your hands.”  -Psalm 143:5   “History is the True Demonstration of Religion” -John Dalberg-Acton, Catholic Historian, (1834-1902)   By: Andrew Alleman Its influence is all aroun

Author: Mike Sonneveldt The Power of Scripture   I've been witnessing a new movement cropping up in the more charismatic areas of the church that I can't help but pause and wonder about. I don't appreciate the church pointing the finger at others in the church, so I'll attempt to avoid doing it. Instead, I want to give a bit of a warning to those of you who are hearing these voices, and to ask you to discern whether it's a pathway that you feel you really should work down. I'

Author: Mike Sonnevedlt Ever find yourself falling down a rabbit hole online?  Is the sky blue?  Of course. We all have. Our first reaction might be to believe that falling down a rabbit hole means coming across crazy conspiracy theories, like Elvis shot JFK or alien lizard people wrote Shakespeare.  Thankfully, I will not be reporting to you about Hitler still being alive in Argentina or bases on the dark side of the moon. My rabbit hole goes deep into the labyrinth of helpf

Author: Mike Sonnevedlt I debated whether to broach this topic with you. After a long talk, Massey and I decided that it was in our best interest to not do a podcast on this subject. We felt, “What does this win us? What does this get the listener? Is this a positive topic to cover, or are we just giving doom-and-gloom?” After talking it through again (20 minutes before the podcast was about to start...) we decided that perhaps we would be careful on how we broached the topic