Articles
Abiding Dependence: The Central Work of Jesus
The central work of Jesus as He lived His daily life was to rest in and to stay with the Father. Jesus held to an attitude of reliance, of abiding, the Father in the Son and the Son in the Father; He breathed, lived, spoke, and moved as one with His Father. Jesus had...
Recapturing Your Calling
One obstacle that every leader confronts is discouragement. I’ve often heard something like this: “Jim, can I tell you something? I’m feeling defeated. I find myself in front of the church preaching, putting on a happy face, but inside I’m discouraged, worn down,...
Bad Motives for Productivity
I love motivational posters. You know the ones; there’s a photograph of a mountain or an eagle above a single word like “Teamwork” or “Discipline.” I find these posters humorous because they’re usually found in spaces that are completely incongruous with the scenes...
When God’s Plan Doesn’t Make Sense
It’s almost anniversary time again. I call it the death-i-versary. The date on the calendar prompts me to take notice of the reality of the fatal crash. A reminder of the motorcycle accident that ushered my husband of 28 years into heaven. Saying goodbye to a loved...
Making Room in Advent
Advent, which means “coming, or arrival,” is a gestation process. It is a season of allowing Christ to be formed in us as we also are formed in him. It is also a threshold time, a season of transition between what is and what will be. As participants in Advent then,...
Jesus-Approved Self-Care
Fausto comes into my office for his therapy appointment balancing his coffee and backpack in one hand and holding his phone in the other. He acknowledges me with an apologetic smile as he ends his conversation, takes a sip of his too-hot coffee, and sits heavily in...
Would You Like God to Give You a Word for the Year?
Holly and Glenn Packiam practice life-giving rhythms to experience freedom and abundance as they abide in Christ. In this excerpt from their book, The Intentional Year, Glenn gives guidance on living into a word for the year. I grew up in a church that believed in...
How Busy People Can Read More
Warren Buffett reads 4-5 hours per day—he considers it an important part of his work. Bill Gates reads an average of one book per week, which is equivalent to what the average CEO does. Rick Warren starting reading two books per week at age 14, and says that at one...
How the Pandemic Led to Greater Collaboration for the Gospel
It’s no secret that the pandemic drastically altered many church plans and ministry efforts, leading many to seek creative ways to continue doing ministry. At Jesus Film Project®, it was no different. Our translation and recording teams could no longer travel to other...
Building Community post-Covid
One of the lessons of the pandemic is how important relationships and social connections are. People don’t do well without them! And more than ever, people are aware of that and are looking for places to connect. “Connection” has gone from a good idea to a primary...
Why Women Matter in Ministry
Women have held some of the most important roles in the story of Scripture. From Genesis to Revelation, there are countless examples of the impact of women in Biblical history. One of the best-known biblical stories about women features Mary and Martha, who were...
Leadership in a post-Covid world
Coming out of Covid, most church leaders are wrestling with how to do ministry in a new world. Covid changed everything, and it happened in a time that was already tumultuous—Black Lives Matter, the transgender debate, abortion rights, economic upheaval, etc. To say...
Subversive Mission
Didn’t Jesus call us to go out into all the world to make disciples and build his upside-down kingdom? Didn’t God call us to bring good news to the poor, freedom for those in captivity, and comfort to those who mourn? In Ephesians 4:11-13, Paul describes five...
Born to Belong
We all have a fundamental human need to belong to a community. We need “our people” who understand us, support us, encourage us, and challenge us to grow. Secular communities fulfill some of these needs. Yet secular communities leave a gap in our sense of meaning and...
Having the Mind of Christ
We're all wearing paradigm glasses of one kind or another. We all see the world not as it is, but from our own perspective. We are finite, embodied beings with specific histories, relationships, knowledge, and social locations. None of us see the world objectively...
Analog Church
A life of increasing contentment, resilience, and wisdom is something we’re all after. And in one way or another, most of us know that the digital age has dangerously undone some of the necessary work of such a life. But there is an ancient and timeless remedy for...
Clinging to The Great Physician
During an outbreak of the bubonic plague nearly five hundred years ago, the no-nonsense leader of the German Reformation, Martin Luther, wrote a practical letter of advice to Johann Hess, a pastor in the city of Breslau. Many of his words relating to Christians’...
Finding Balance in a Teeter-Totter World
Do you ever feel that life is out of tune —a discordant schedule of pastoral engagements, spousal obligations, parental demands, friends’ needs, children’s activities, and church activities expecting your participation? When your head finally hits the pillow, does...
Revival
Who is limiting the opportunities for revival in our area—God or us? We must think it is not us. Why else would we be praying to God for revival and then be waiting for God to act? Of course, there is no revival unless and until there is an outpouring of the Holy...
Help Is Here
“But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be [c]witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Acts 1:8 (NKJV) Somewhere in my midthirties I ran out of fuel. While serving churches...
