A Change of Mind
Raised in a dispensational framework, Doug has since moved to a more covenantal reading of the Bible. “I believe there’s one covenant of grace from before the foundation of the world,” he explained, “and the Bible unpacks that through different epochs.” The covenant with Adam, the Noahic covenant, the Abrahamic covenant, the Davidic covenant are not separate systems but layers of the one onion of the covenant of grace, a single thread running through to the new covenant.
That shift rippled outward. His eschatology moved from dispensational premillennialism to what he now describes as “a sometimes post-millennial, sometimes optimistic amillennialism.” Either label, he says, would be fair. His soteriology shifted too from an Arminian position to embracing the doctrines of grace: total depravity, unconditional election, particular redemption, irresistible grace, and the perseverance of the saints.
Even his view of church governance changed, from a single-pastor-and-deacons model to a firm conviction in the plurality of elders. These are among the many significant changes he has embraced in his theology and pastoral practice.
The Hardest Passage to Preach
As a genre, the prophetic books present the greatest challenge, particularly the Major Prophets. Keeping track of which king and which nation is being addressed at any given point can be difficult. Take Ezekiel, for example. While Doug loves the book of Revelation, which draws heavily on Ezekiel, and feels he has a good handle on it, the prophetic book’s more obscure sections—especially chapters 40–48, with their detailed temple vision—remain genuinely difficult to exegete. Is the temple a picture of the church, or something else entirely?
Topically, two subjects stand out as particularly hard to preach: eternal condemnation (“a very sobering matter to deal with”) and the doctrine of the Trinity—clearly taught in Scripture, but notoriously difficult to explain from specific texts.
The Biggest Misconception About Being a Pastor
The second misconception is that pastoral work is a one-day-a-week job. Sermon preparation alone can take upwards of eighteen hours, before counselling, hospital and home visits, and administration are factored in. In smaller churches especially, Doug noted, a pastor tends to carry far more administrative load. Related to this is the misconception of the pastor as a kind of CEO—a business-and-leadership figure rather than someone entrusted with the care of souls. “Some pastors see themselves as CEOs,” Doug said, “and that’s just not healthy.”
Handling Doubt and Spiritual Dryness
His answer to those seasons is simply to keep going. Every morning begins with Bible reading and prayer, a discipline he has maintained for years, regardless of how much he feels he’s getting out of it in any given sitting. When the low periods are particularly heavy, he makes a point of running to get the endorphins going and of showing up to church even on the Sundays he’d rather not, because engaging with other believers “primes the spiritual pump.”
Reading biography has also been a significant help, particularly the lives of pastors, missionaries, and other believers who have weathered hardship. He described discovering unexpected encouragement in a biography of Patrick Henry, drawing insight even from George Washington’s reflections on leadership.
One Book for Every Christian
Pressed for an answer suited to a desert island scenario—one book, no limit on size—Doug named Calvin’s Institutes. Even though it was written 500 years ago, so much of it is just so relevant and well systematised. The Christian life is laid out with remarkable clarity, prayer included. For a shorter alternative, he named J. I. Packer’s Knowing God.
Tommie pressed further, asking for recommendations by reader type:
- Advanced or general reader: Calvin’s Institutes. Even a non-advanced reader can work through it slowly, a few pages a day over a year, and benefit.
- Middle/average reader: Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress, alongside Packer’s Knowing God both offer good summations of the Christian life.
On a resource for church leaders, Doug recommended Iain Murray’s two-volume biography of Martyn Lloyd-Jones, which he credits with changing his life when he first read it in the early 1990s.
Asked for a favourite author, Doug named several: Martyn Lloyd-Jones, R. C. Sproul (particularly Chosen by God and The Holiness of God), David Wells, Sinclair Ferguson, Kevin DeYoung (“he just gets right to the point”), Carl Trueman, and Michael Reeves, whose Unquenchable Flame was his introduction to the author.
Bonus Question: The Boat or the Wilderness
Doug chose the boat without much hesitation. “It’s quicker,” he reasoned—even accounting for the fact that the ark’s occupants were aboard rather longer than the forty days of rain alone. The wilderness, he admitted, has its moments of excitement, but also its frustrations—serpents included. “I’m not much of a camper.”