I wonder what percentage of my words each day either function as gossip or flow from a gossip’s heart? What if I valued others’ reputations more than my own? What if I silently asked for a pure heart before speaking negatively about someone? How much would I edit my words if I determined only … More 11 Questions about Gossip
The power of our thoughts cannot be overestimated. The mind is our headquarters, our war room, our Oval Office. Our mental processes drive our attitudes, guide our decisions, and shape our community. Here thoughts coalesce into worldviews, seeds of selfishness or service incubate and blossom into sin or righteousness, and plans are hatched whether for good or … More Stop and Think: The Mind in Life and Ministry (Part 4)
Our mind is mission control center. It fuels, drives, and directs us. The dynamics at play are legion, and are well-worth our careful reflection. In Part 1, I shared the need to tie up the loose ends of our minds (1 Peter 1:13) due to the worldview-creating power of our thoughts. Then in Part 2, … More Stop and Think: The Mind in Life and Ministry (Part 3)
Our thinking drives our priorities, our priorities dictate our actions, our actions form our habits, and our habits reflect our destiny. Therefore, knowing the dynamics of the mind is fundamental for living wisely. 1. The mind is a spiritual battlefield (Gen 4:6-7; Ps 77:1-9, 11-20; Gal 5:16-17; 1 Pet 5:6-7). Conflicting thoughts rage and war … More Stop and Think: The Mind in Life and Ministry (Part 2)
How much of your life is affected by your mind? How much do your thoughts affect your day? To what extent are your attitudes, your perspectives, your relationships, and your communication shaped by your thinking? In 1 Peter 1:13, Peter draws a powerful picture: “Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope … More Stop and Think: The Mind in Life and Ministry (Part 1)
Dear Christian, Please help. Please help the younger generation of Christian high schoolers, college students, recent graduates, singles, and young married’s. Please help us learn to walk with Christ, read the Bible, love one another, develop a prayer life, conquer temptation, make wise decisions, and move in the right direction. We need you. We need the ripeness of … More Mentor: A Plea to Older Christians
1. Breaks invite us to explore new expressions of faith, hope, and love. We are called to trust God in different venues, with fewer of our trusted resources at our disposal, in less comfortable circumstantial climates, with less of a schedule and routine to guide us. We are called to hope in God, his daily … More Seasonal Love: Caring for College Students through the Breaks (Part 4)
1. Breaks tend to conjure up memories — both happy and heartbreaking. Family, home, and holidays all tend to stimulate memories that bring our past to the forefront. And memories are powerful things. There may be memories of sexual sin, wasted years, old romances, broken relationships, parental abuse, damaging choices, untimely deaths, and overwhelming regrets. … More Seasonal Love: Caring for College Students through the Breaks (Part 3)
Winter and summer breaks are unique seasons for Christian college students. Those who minister to them have an equally unique opportunity and responsibility to meet these breaks with seasonal love — personal care that considers the dynamics of the season and the corresponding needs of the person. However, seasonal love does not begin with strategies … More Seasonal Love: The Affections of a Full-Hearted Minister (Part 2)
After ten years of Christian college ministry, I operate in semesters. My year starts in August, breaks for Christmas, relaunches in January, and finishes in May with caps and gowns. There’s a lot that happens in between each segment, but the rhythm is palpable. One unique element of college ministry is the breaks. For faculty and staff, … More Seasonal Love: Caring for College Students through the Breaks (Part 1)
This is the final installment of a four-part series about church planting teams working among unreached tribes. Former 20-year tribal missionary Brad Buser (Papua New Guinea) shared these twenty practical tips with his Cross-Cultural Church Planting class at The Master’s College in 2004. Here are Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3. 16. You’re not asked, … More Church-Planting among the Unreached: Gritty Wisdom from Brad Buser (Part 4)
This is Part 3 of pioneer missionary Brad Buser’s invaluable lecture about relationships between missionary partners doing hardcore church-planting among the unreached. Brad and his family spent twenty years among the unreached Iteri tribe in Papua New Guinea, and his wisdom is at once gritty and golden. Be sure to read Part 1 and Part 2, … More Church-Planting among the Unreached: Gritty Wisdom from Brad Buser (Part 3)
Brad Buser and his family spent twenty years among the unreached Iteri tribe in Papua New Guinea. They learned the language, translated the New Testament, planted a church, and trained indigenous elders before leaving with their work accomplished. Here are points 6-10 of his course lecture entitled “Ministry Team Startup Talk.” Part 1 contains points 1-5. … More Church-Planting among the Unreached: Gritty Wisdom from Brad Buser (Part 2)
Listen to people with scars. That’s become a motto of mine. Brad Buser has scars. In processing some old files recently, I came across one of his handouts from a class on Cross-Cultural Church Planting at The Master’s College around 2004. I never took the course, but Brad and his teaching were so well received by the students … More Church-Planting among the Unreached: Gritty Wisdom from Brad Buser (Part 1)
Here are some wise and seasoned words on corporate singing and song selection from William Gadsby and J. C. Philpot. These quotes appear in the dual prefaces to Gadsby’s Hymns: A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship (chosen by William Gadsby), originally published in 1838. With the glut of worship songs being produced today and … More Wise Thoughts on Corporate Singing & Song Selection
James, some of us are interested in teaching — you know, preaching in church, teaching the Bible, writing good books, leading small groups, blogging biblical insights, posting instructive Facebook notes. What do you think? Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers. Why not? There are two main reasons. What’s the first reason? We who teach will … More A Word to the Would-Be Teacher (James 3:1-13)
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