Recently a member of the church posed a classic question. A relative was ill and she wanted her brother to join the rest in praying for healing. He did not see what good that would do because God already had an outcome in mind. Did I know how to persuade him to join in […]
Read MoreAmerica has approximately 180 denominations. Each was forged out of controversy at some point in its history. Each called on the Bible to mark out its position in the dispute that set them apart. So, which is the true interpretation? One easy response to this confusion is to refuse to choose. This is happening among […]
Read MoreThe Old Testament is written in Hebrew. The New Testament is in Greek. We are reading both in English or in one of the many languages of worldwide Christianity. Good translations are basic to understanding and spreading the Word of God. But the issue is greater than finding comparable words. Hebrew and Greek are two […]
Read MoreSix GROWTH practices: Go, Read, Obey, Witness, Trust, Humble Yourself Humble Yourself Through Discipline During the Pandemic, I would drive by a house that had a yard announcing, “I Am A Health Care Hero.” What an odd thing to boast about. Real heroes don’t brag. Certainly, front-line health providers were heroes, especially in the earlier stages […]
Read MoreSix GROWTH practices: Go, Read, Obey, Witness, Trust, Humble Yourself Trust God in a New Venture Another phrase for Spiritual GROWTH is Spiritual Formation. My focus is on making the basics of such formation as practical as possible. One way is learning to trust God. Everyday life teaches lessons of trust for believers as they learn […]
Read MoreSix GROWTH practices: Go, Read, Obey, Witness, Trust, Humble Yourself Obey the Challenge to Deny Yourself Years as a chaplain in the Navy Reserves taught me the basics of military life. Fundamental is obedience to commands and also saluting the authority of superior officers. Growth is built into that structure. Either get promoted in a certain […]
Read MoreSix GROWTH practices: Go, Read, Obey, Witness, Trust, Humble Yourself Go to God in Prayer and Worship Believers tend to admire those who spend a long time in prayer. They must be especially devout. The rest of us usually feel guilty in comparison. Yet highly admired Christian leaders taught otherwise. Augustine of Hippo (5th century) preferred […]
Read MoreSix GROWTH practices: Go, Read, Obey, Witness, Trust, Humble Yourself Think of spiritual growth as going through stages of development. Martin Luther himself offered a three-stage scheme of faith development. First is learning the external rules of church life. The second is living faithfully but out of guilt with no joy. The third is living with […]
Read MoreAre you interested in growing spiritually? Most Christians are not. The usual category for this topic is discipleship. Believers should want to become more like Christ. However, in my experience, most don’t because they do not understand the benefits of such growth. This is because they do not understand the work of the Holy Spirit. […]
Read MoreWitness Through Servant Behavior Giving witness to young adults is one of the biggest challenges facing churches today. Building up attractional community churches is one answer, and many are doing well. Developing small missional communities beyond the building is another promising approach. What about reaching out through social media? This is the natural habitat for […]
Read MoreAccording to the World Almanac, there are 168 Christian denominations in 13 major groupings in the United States. There is no way to get a total on how many church networks there are in this country. No association of non-denominational community churches exists that could tally their numbers. The best I can do is a […]
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