Articles
Encountering Christ in the Abyss
The grace of God means something like: “Here is your life. You might never have been, but you are, because the party wouldn’t have been complete without you. Here is the world. Beautiful and terrible things will happen. Don’t be afraid. I am with you.” Frederick...
Understanding Bible Laws Today
Making Sense of the Bible’s Strange Laws: A Theologian Dad’s Letter to His Daughter Understanding Bible Laws Begins with Historical Context Dear Lucy, Do you remember the time you read through the whole Bible in just a few weeks during lockdown? What surprised me most...
Find True Sabbath Rest
True Sabbath Rest Frees Us From Restlessness On the Sabbath, we rest We all live with chronically unsatisfied desires. No matter how much we seem to get, it never feels like enough. The Bible calls this inner disquiet “restlessness.” And one of the ways we fight...
Seeking God’s Approval Over Human Praise
International bestselling author and speaker Dr. Miles Monroe once said that a man is drawn to praise. I really resonate with his words because for much of my life I equated praise with success. I was conditioned by culture, movies, cartoons, family, and school to...
Healthy Roots for Faithful Leadership
Healthy Roots for Leaders Matter More Than Visible Success When a tree topples, typically no one is harmed, but a toppling leader brings damage to everyone surrounding the leader: a family, a company, a congregation. Trust is broken. Dreams and goals seem to be...
The Road to Repentance Leads to Freedom
God Uses Conviction to Begin the Road to Repentance One morning I was putting on my makeup when my youngest daughter, Riggin, who was three at the time, came slowly and sheepishly through the door of my room. I excitedly greeted her like I always did. But she had a...
A Prayer for Dating
Seeking God's Wisdom in Dating A Liturgy for Dating Here is where I am, O Lord— I find myself drawn to one in whom I see a striking beauty of personhood, a depth of soul, a sensitivity to goodness and truth, a vibrant intentionality of life and choice. I praise you,...
God Won’t Waste Your Pain
God Won't Waste Your Pain Through Every Season Several years ago, I had the opportunity to spend time in Rome. It’s hard to explain how full of history and beauty that city is. My inner nerd would flare in every direction at some museum, building, or historical site....
A Prayer for Beginning a New Job
Trusting God at the Beginning of a New Job A Liturgy for Beginning a New Job O God Who Goes Before Me, You are present and at work in every age, in every season, in every beginning. So be present to accomplish your purposes now, in me, around me, and through me, at...
7 Ways Church Leaders Can Support People Facing Addiction and Their Loved Ones
Church Leaders and Addiction Support Begin With Compassion Many Christian families are quietly carrying a burden that feels too heavy to name. They love God. They love their loved one. And they still feel stuck. They’re watching someone unravel because of addiction...
Finding Jesus in Others Every Day
Finding Jesus in Others Through Compassion The world is made up of sheep and goats—or maybe I should say sheep vs. goats. There will come a time, Jesus says, when the Son of Man in his glory sits on a throne and divides the people into sheep and goats, one or the...
Christian Peacemakers Reflect the Love of Jesus
Why Christian Peacemakers Matter Today In December 2022, the first Jesus Now Summit was held in Dallas, Texas. Hosted by the Barna Group in partnership with several other influential organizations, about one hundred ministry leaders gathered to consider the why, how,...
Bible Mystery and the Wonder of Scripture
Bible Mystery Invites Us Beyond Easy Answers When my wife and I are enjoying a television series together, I’m simply trying to let myself be hypnotized by the story; it’s one of the few times in my life when I like experiencing in the concrete instead of analyzing in...
Resilient Church Leadership Through Biblical Administration
Building Resilient Church Leadership Through Nested Communities Nestedness is a structure in which similar versions of the same spe-cies occur iteratively as a means of protecting biodiversity. One way to visualize nestedness is to imagine a series of islands...
Release Rest Remain: A Rhythm of Abiding
First, Breathe… Why Release Rest Remain Matters I don’t know what it took for you to carve out this moment. Maybe sitting with this book open on your lap meant leaving the full inbox that demands your attention, taking a much-needed break from your children, or...
Listening Skills That Transform Relationships
Why Listening Skills Matter More Than We Think FIFTY PERCENT IS FAILING If you think about it, listening skills account for at least 50 percent of your conversation, because they require you to be in tune to the information and communication that’s being transmitted...
Pursuing Holiness and Intimacy With Jesus
Pursuing Holiness Means Living in His Presence In my sixty- six years of being a citizen of the USA, I’ve been under the leadership of eleven presidents. I’ve been under their authority; their decisions have affected my life and shaped my community’s way of living....
A Journey Through Doubt Often Begins With Questions
If you were to use one word to sum up your entire faith story thus far, what would it be? Believing, hopeful, trusting, or persevering? What about questioning, waiting, or searching? A Journey Through Doubt Is Not the End of Faith When you think of the apostle...
Practice Solitude for Spiritual Renewal
Why Leaders Must Practice Solitude When we look at the life of Jesus, we see a busy man. He’s healing the sick, he’s feeding the poor, he’s preaching the good news to the world, he’s developing the leaders around him, and he’s fulfilling his mission on earth. However,...
The Power of a Seed and Lasting Legacy
The Power of a Seed Begins With Faith Orthodox Seed In 1963, Israeli archaeologists were excavating Herod the Great’s palace at Masada. As they dug, they found the usual suspects—ancient artifacts, artistic fragments, even some skeletal remains. But the most curious...
