We need voices that help us critique our social, political, and economic views through Kingdom lenses. The women and men who compose the global body of Christ can help challenge us in very important ways.

I have a book coming out in September, for example, where the plot concerns counterfeiting, and I had to do a lot of research on that. Or on any legal matters, for example, I have to do a lot of research online.

Depending on what I'm working on, I come to the writing desk with entirely different mindsets. When I change form one to the other, it's as if another writer is on the scene.

We need leaders who can reflect theologically and help develop more robust thinking that understands how context affects our understanding of God, humankind, the fall, and redemption.

In conversations and visits with friends from Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe I am often struck by the gaps in our Western theological approaches. The most common texts used in evangelical schools have been written in the US, UK, and Australia. However, they miss some fundamental contextual issues.

I know that all cops are not sterling characters. But you have to have someone to root for. I balance it with rotten cops who will take a bribe, who will beat somebody up.

In the US, we consider our foreign policy as something rooted in the protection of American ideals of democracy and human development. However, we often fail to see the damaging consequences, many of which may be unintended, on others - including Christians - living in other parts of the world.