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Like most people at the end of the year, I get reflective and try to look back over the ground that I’ve covered. When it comes to the writing and speaking I’ve done for Out of Neutral, I want to try to understand which episodes have had the most influence in people’s lives. To do that, I compare the top performing articles and videos and come up with a combined list. This year, the top 10 are dominated by discussions of emotional needs, spiritual abuse, and the differences between Catholics and Protestants. Let’s walk through them in ascending order.

10. The 4 Voices of Loneliness and How to Answer Them

We can be alone without feeling lonely. God’s Word confronts the thoughts that lead us down the path of loneliness. This episode looks at the different forms that loneliness can take and how to address them from the Bible.

9. How To Avoid Teaching an Unchristian Message From the Bible

Whether you’re a Sunday School teacher, a youth leader, or just sharing the message of the Bible with your own kids, it’s important that what you say is Christian. Often, it’s not. This post outlines how to get it right

8. Catholics and Protestants on Prayer to the Saints

This is the first of several posts on the differences between Catholics and Protestants that made it into the top 10. Most Protestants have never considered the verses that Catholics point to in support of prayer to the saints. And most Catholics have never considered what’s really at stake.

7. Hope When You Feel Hopeless

Feelings of hopelessness can catch people by surprise. And Christians too often turn to Google for answers rather than God’s Word. This post looks at what you can do with the dark clouds when they settle in

6. What Is Spiritual Abuse and How Can I Discern It

For better or for worse, religion can have a powerful influence in a person’s life. Unfortunately, abusive people can misuse that power for their own selfish ends. This post looks at how to discern spiritual abuse and spiritual abusers.

5. The Question Nobody’s Asking About “the Slap”

Will Smith’s slap of Chris Rock at this year’s Academy Awards gave many people an opportunity to do what they love to do: talk about other people’s sin. The more important discussion, however, is what to do when you’re the one who’s made the slap or done something that was clearly out of bounds.

4. 4 Ways God Can Help With Your Anger

If Will Smith’s slap got us thinking about how to deal with the aftermath of an angry outburst, this post looked at how God can keep us from getting there. He truly is just what we need to deal with the root causes of anger.

3. How Abusers Misuse the Bible Against Their Spouses

Merriam-Webster chose “gaslighting” as their word of the year. It describes the way that an abusive person will manipulate someone to make them question their own reality. When that happens in the church, the Bible is often weaponized in the process. This post looks at some of the ways that happens.

2. What’s the Difference Between How Catholics and Protestants Understand Salvation

Catholics and Protestants share much in common, but they differ in their understanding of what we contribute to our salvation and forgiveness. Does Jesus pay the bill, or does He ask us to split it with Him? This post breaks down the two responses.

1. What’s the Difference Between How Catholics and Protestants View the Bible

It was appropriate that the most viewed post dealing with the differences between Catholics and Protestants dealt with their views of the Bible. This is difference behind all the other differences. This post clarifies the two views.

Maybe there’s an article you missed or one that you need to give another read.

Let me know what themes or questions you’d like me to address in 2023.

In awe of Him,

Paul

P. S. The following post was published too late to make it into the top 10, but it is already one of the most viewed of the year. If you missed it, check it out: The Greatest Advance in Biblical Studies in the Last 50 Years Was Also the Simplest.