The Lord Is My Courage

Nick Minerva • Sep 07, 2022

Psalm 23 is arguably one of the most well-known passages of Scripture. Even people outside of the church are familiar with it. It’s put on wall art, read in hospital rooms, and spoken at gravesides. For many of us who grew up in the church it’s one of the very first passages of Scripture we committed to memory. (Thank you, Awana.) I have personally prayed through this Psalm dozens of times with friends and by myself. So when I began reading this book I thought I knew a lot of what to expect. In fact, to be honest, the reason I chose this book out of the stack I wanted to read was the beautiful cover art. What I wasn’t expecting was to see my own story in K.J.’s. 


In The Lord Is My Courage, K.J. Ramsey walks the reader through Psalm 23 phrase by phrase, often single word by single word, slowly unpacking healing truths that demonstrate why this Psalm is so beloved. She also invites you into her story of experiencing spiritual abuse and religious trauma. As she shares her story she gives the reader space to acknowledge the reality of their story. She gave me space to acknowledge the reality of my story. (There have been multiple times throughout this book that K.J. writes something and my wife and I look at each other and say “that’s exactly what we said!”) As a trauma informed counselor she helped me understand what happens in our minds and bodies when we go through religious trauma and how to experience God as a good shepherd despite previous pastors being bad shepherds. 


The last few years have been such a roller coaster for my family and I. We had been struggling at our previous ministry position for several years and in the summer of 2021 we were convinced that we were needing a change. Since 2018 our eyes had been opening to the lack of integrity, emotional manipulation, and what we are now aware enough and brave enough to call spiritual abuse that had been talking place in our church. (I won’t spell out all the details in this post, but you can read about them here.)


Over the course of 35 chapters (Don’t let that intimidate you. They are short and incredibly accessible.) the truth of God’s character and love act as a balm to the soul of the hurting person. Ramsey reminds us how God pursues us, chases us down, even when we are alone, tired, and afraid. The emotions we are experiencing are not bad. Our bodies and souls are not two enemies at constant war with each other. Using stories from Scripture and neuroscience this book helps us understand how to listen to and better understand what is going on with our emotions and bodies so that we can experience the goodness and love of THE Shepherd who will never leave us or forsake us. 


I love to read and I have a tendency to think everyone needs to read a lot of the books I read. But this is one I really mean it. It’s a sickening reality that spiritual abuse is so prevalent. So if you haven’t experienced it, someone you know probably has. Not only will this book help you navigate your own personal trauma, it will help you better love people who have experienced it. I know how to better love my wife because of reading this book. No empty platitudes or coffee mug theology here. But real help that is pointing us towards the One who can genuinely heal. 

Get your copy of "The Lord Is My Courage."*

*This is an affiliate link.

A Creed To Remind The Gathered Church Of Its New Life In Christ

By Nick Minerva • 14 Jul, 2023
When I was pastoring I wanted to read a blessing over the church that would remind all of us of our new life in Christ. So I wrote this new life creed and every week I would read it and remind us of what Christ had done for us. We gather together as believers professing our great need We acknowledge that we have fallen short We confess that we are rebels who have gone our own way Apart from Christ, we stand condemned, guilty, and unable to save ourselves But what we are incapable of doing, God did In his infinite love, God made a way of salvation for all who would believe Jesus willingly laid down his life and received the just punishment we deserve So that could walk in new life So yes, we confess our great need We humbly recognize that apart from Christ we are incapable of any good thing But we also proclaim that because of the finished work of the cross we will never be apart from Christ We are forever secure in the love of the Father We have been sealed by the Holy Spirit All because of the sacrifice of the Son, Jesus Christ. We are no longer in bondage to sin We are no longer facing righteous wrath We have been declared holy by our King And nothing on heaven or earth will change that reality This gathering is a testimony to our redeemed state We pursue holy living to be an authentic demonstration of the love we have for Christ We believe that we have been empowered by grace to meet our every need And we gladly anticipate the complete fulfillment of our adaption and the remaking of this world at the coming of our Lord To Christ be glory forever and ever Amen

A Praying Church: A Book Review

By Nick Minerva • 23 May, 2023
Prayer is one of those topics that always seems to convict me. I have never heard a sermon or read a book on prayer and not been challenged. Even as I am writing this review there is a bit of imposter syndrome because I know I should pray more. In A Praying Church , Paul Miller writes about how to become a people of hope in a discouraging world through prayer. And he does so in a way that was very authentic and accessible. While I was consistently challenged, I was also consistently encouraged. Throughout the book, he takes you on his journey of developing a personal prayer life plus countless stories of ministries that developed communal prayer as a vital component of their life together. One thing that struck home with me throughout these stories was the reality that prayer always grows out of desperation for God. There were several things that I found very helpful in this book. One of them was the connection between a life yielded to the Holy Spirit and a vibrant prayer life. The power to do anything of eternal importance comes from the Holy Spirit and the Spirit moves in response to prayer. Paul shows us a biblical pattern we see throughout the New Testament. Prayer-Spirit-Jesus-power. However, this is not a simple formula to get God to do what you want. Another thing I appreciated about this book is Paul tells us time and again that the Spirit often moves in ways we don’t expect and that almost always includes difficulties. The Spirit enables us to look more like Jesus and that means joining him in the fellowship of his suffering. So this is not a “how to turn God into your personal genie” scheme, like many books on prayer. God often answers in ways we don’t expect and in places we don’t anticipate. This book is also full of practical help. I’ve already mentioned the stories he tells, but Paul also offers several helpful charts, strategies, and ideas to help put into place what he writes about (and lives by.) At the end of each chapter, he has a section called “A Word To Pastors” with a few paragraphs of wisdom to help them become a person of prayer and then lead their congregation to become a church of prayer. This book also made me thankful that I am a part of a church that has sought to grow in corporate prayer over the last few years. This would be a great book for any ministry leader who is burdened with the prayer life of his or her church. But it’s also a great read for any believer seeking to develop their own prayer life. Crossway was kind to send me a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. You can get a copy of it at the affiliate link below.

Non-Toxic Masculinity: A Book Review

By Nick Minerva • 28 Apr, 2023
Let me start this review by saying everyone should read this book. If you've grown up in Evangelicalism, you‘ve no doubt heard of purity culture. For the last several years we have seen the harm that has come as a result of this sub-group of Christianity. In Non-Toxic Masculinity, Zachary Wagner does an excellent job unpacking its teaching and the damage that has come as a result. He explains so well the angst I've been feeling with the movement and how often the Church falls short and winds up doing more damage. But unlike many critiques, this one also points a way forward. We know what toxic male sexuality looks like. We see it in the news and unfortunately, in the Church. But what does healthy male sexuality look like? What does it look like for me? What will it look like for my boys? In my heart, I know what I want it to look like, but so often I struggle to find the right words to express it. Non-Toxic Masculinity paints a healthy picture that is (re)humanizing and ultimately looks like Jesus, who, like all of us, had a sexual body. Zach is also very transparent in this book and God used his transparency to encourage, challenge, and convict me. As you read his story you will no doubt find yourself resonating with him on some level. Every man should read this book for themselves first and foremost. But if you have sons, nephews, grandsons, or young boys in your life, reading it is a must. Non-Toxic Masculinity is a breath of fresh air that will prove to be a tremendous resource for generations. Thank you Zach for writing it and sharing your story to serve us.
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