The people of Judah wanted to re-build the Temple in Jerusalem, but faced great opposition and had to abandon the task. The Jews were accused of being rebellious, and wanted to undermine their rulers. Because of these reports and the insecurity of their oppressors, building stopped and the attempt to rebuild the Temple failed. So what do we do when God doesn’t answer, or when our hopes are deferred? That’s when our faith can become the strongest.
Kevin DeYoung
In 2002 Kevin was ordained as a minister of Word and Sacrament in the Reformed Church in America, and the newly married DeYoungs moved to northwest Iowa, where Kevin served as the associate pastor at the First Reformed Church of Orange City. Two years later, he was called to be the senior pastor of University Reformed Church in East Lansing, across the street from Michigan State University. In 2015, Kevin and his congregation moved from the RCA into the Presbyterian Church in America. In 2017 Kevin accepted a call to serve as Senior Pastor of Christ Covenant Church in Matthews, NC. Kevin received his Ph.D. in early modern history at the University of Leicester (UK). In addition to his pastoral duties he teaches as an Associate Professor of Systematic Theology at Reformed Theological Seminary (Charlotte). Kevin has written, edited, and contributed to more than twenty books—among them academic books like The Religious Formation of John Witherspoon, popular level books like Just Do Something, Crazy Busy, Taking God at His Word, and The Hole in Our Holiness, and children’s books like The Biggest Story and The Biggest Story Bible Storybook. His books have been translated into more than a dozen languages. Kevin is also a popular columnist, blogger, and podcaster and a frequent speaker at ministry conferences, colleges, and seminaries in the United States and around the world. Kevin and Trisha have been blessed with nine children, five boys and four girls.