Articles
Mature Leaders Are Disciples First
Leadership Requires Maturity in Christian Leadership We are in desperate need of leaders who are maturing. We are in desperate need of leaders who are even more fruitful. But what does being fruitful as a leader mean? Leadership Requires Maturity Beyond Church Growth...
Christian Hospitality Matters in Everyday Life
Christian Hospitality Means Welcoming People Into Real Life There’s a scene at the beginning of The Hobbit where a group of dwarves overruns the home of the protagonist hobbit, Bilbo Baggins. Bilbo had sort of reluctantly—and mistakenly—invited the wizard, Gandalf, to...
Studying Scripture Together
Studying Scripture Together Through Biblical Culture Biblical Culture Shock and the Importance of Studying Scripture in Community (1232 words) When I attended seminary, I was given a wonderful opportunity to visit Israel. This life-changing experience impacted me on...
Understanding Church Unity in Christ Through Creation
If you’ve observed a tight-knit flock of birds racing overhead and asked yourself, “How come they don’t hit each other?” or “Which one’s in charge anyway?” you’re not alone in your questions. How do birds coordinate themselves into a united, tightly choreographed...
Understanding Your Child of God Identity
See what great love the Father has given us that we should be called God’s children—and we are! 1 John 3:1, csb I Am Actually His Child I want you to respond to some questions today’s verse that I think will help you understand who God is and who you are. Go ahead and...
Dream Again in Faith Even in Difficult Seasons
No matter how bad things get, you’ve got to keep dreaming. There’s something powerful about writing goals down. It makes them feel permanent, which can be a little scary— but I think that’s the point. Writing it down means you have to hold yourself accountable to...
Heal Spiritual Trauma and Begin Restoring Faith
Beginning to Heal after Spiritual Trauma Ella quit praying and reading her Bible. She’d lost her sense of having a deep and personal relationship with God, and terms such as submission, godly wife, and duties left her feeling bitter toward the church. For years, her...
Biblical View of Work and Our Identity as Royalty
Kings and Queens From the beginning of the story, God has been looking for partners. The imagery of humanity’s relationship to God is not of puppets on a string, with God up in heaven playing around. Rather, it’s of partners, God’s representatives on earth, kings and...
Easy Bible Study Method for Overwhelmed Believers
Have you ever felt so overwhelmed and exhausted that you couldn’t catch your breath? That was me in college. I was knee-deep academically, working toward my undergrad degree in biblical studies at the Moody Bible Institute in downtown Chicago. I was also on a “hamster...
Biblical Knowledge Attention Spans
Biblical Knowledge Attention Spans in a Distracted Age I was a pastor for a long time. Every week I went through the same cycle: Prep eagerly and earnestly, do my best in the pulpit, greet everyone after church, nap, and then immediately start thinking about next...
Living Lasts a Lifetime
I sat across from a young mom in a hipster coffee shop, the kind that serves deconstructed breakfast sandwiches in a bowl for around the price of the down payment of a tiny house. We went to the same church, and although we had known of each other for quite some time,...
Words Create Worlds
How Words Create Worlds Through God’s Design Words Create Worlds God spoke this world into existence. That’s how the Bible begins. God said, “Let there be light,” and BOOM! There was light, then water, land, animals, plants, and solar systems. From the sub-atomic to...
Your Life Is a Good News Story
Living as a Good News Story in God’s Narrative If we want to become more of who God made us to be—both individually and collectively—we don’t need another new strategy for discipleship, we need a whole new narrative. Or rather, we need to return to the Good News...
Radical Transformation in Jesus
Throughout the Bible, we see radical transformation stories of ordinary individuals who played pivotal roles in God’s plan for humanity. These transformations not only impacted their own lives but also influenced countless others who came to faith through their...
Practice Hospitality: Becoming a Person of Welcome
Why We Must Practice Hospitality in a Broken World Family and friends welcomed them to a foreign land. My parents were the first of their families to move across the world to gain access to opportunity, education, and a different life. The United States was a...
Ask Better Questions to Expand Your World
Why You Must Ask Better Questions in Life EXPANDING—OR SHRINKING—YOUR WORLD The dimensions of your life expand or shrink in proportion to the questions you ask. I remember the first time I asked two significant questions. Little did I realize how those two questions...
Pastor as Gardener: A Biblical Model for Ministry
Pastor as Gardener in Biblical Ministry The story of the early church—Mary, Thomas, Peter, and so many more—is a story of lives transformed through Jesus and then becoming more like Jesus in thought, word, and deed. The early Christians, as they lived in resurrection...
Faith Behind the Mask: Finding God in Hidden Pain
Faith Behind the Mask in the Modern Church Have you ever walked into church and wondered if anyone could tell you were wearing a mask? As you leaned in for that infamous church hug (the one that gives the appearance of closeness while ensuring that the two bodies...
God Is Near: Experiencing His Presence in Everyday Life
God Is Near and Invites Relationship God’s greatest desire is that we would reach out to him and connect with him. The Bible calls God our Father, who loves us with a love greater than our minds can comprehend. God wants to connect with you. He’s not hiding. He’s not...
Citizens of Heaven: Living with a Kingdom Perspective
Above all, you must live as citizens of heaven. Philippians 1:27 Citizens of Heaven See Beyond Earthly Circumstances Paul knew a thing or two about citizenship. His status as a Roman citizen served him well on several occasions, and many of his readers would likely...
