If you believe your church is missing something and youth ministry might be the something your church is missing, know that you are not alone. Many pastors are striving to find answers to the very same question, “How do I create a youth ministry?” … read more
I’m sure many of you have had the experience of making a phone call and then being put on hold for a while. You wait and wait until eventually even the nice music doesn’t seem to be soothing anymore. You wonder what is going on. You resist getting frustrated. Can anyone relate? Have you ever been excited about what is in your heart, but at the same time felt boxed in, trapped, on hold, or on a plateau in life? Welcome to the crowd! … read more
Being an effective leader in the church is different from the military or business world. In the military, a private has many people telling him what to do. As he receives promotion, he gains rank and soon begins to tell the ones below him what to do. Jesus says, “It shall not be so among you.” He explains that in the world, Gentile leaders exercise dominion over those who are in the ranks. … read more
Regardless of your position in life, you can choose to serve others. If you are married, you can definitely focus on serving your spouse. If you are a parent, you can focus on serving your children. If you work, you can focus on serving your company or employer. … read more
While working at the International school in Nigeria, I met the children of various Embassies, United Nations and European Union officials, and even the Nigerian President’s children. Though many of these parents were not Christian, their children were being educated to lead the next generations. Many had attended school in several different countries, spoke up to five different languages and were being groomed for similar careers as their parents. … read more
Several years ago my wife and I went through what the Bible calls an “evil day” (Ephesians 6:13). The challenge with our “evil day” is it lasted almost two years. The church my wife and I served as pastor went through an involuntary church plant, otherwise known as a church split. …read more
Every worship leader will go through this at one time or another, but I have good news: If you continue to seek God and you are persistent, you will eventually come out of that condition and begin to sense His presence and anointing even stronger than before! …read more
Let’s take a closer look at what the Bible says in Matthew 24:14, “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” In this verse, the word “nations” in the original Greek language means “Ethne.” This is where we get the English word “ethnic,” or “ethnic group.” …read more
February 20, 2016 marks the 40th anniversary of the death of the world-renowned Christian evangelist, Kathryn Kuhlman. Kathryn passed away on February 20, 1976 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, leaving behind both a church and world impacted by her massive ministry. …read more
I can feel fear trying to trap and suffocate me like a spider’s web. The doctor is fiddling with the ventilator, trying to reset it to bring up Mike’s O2 count, and all I can hear are the doctor’s words on repeat as I stare at each machine and digital display, each one shouting out, “He’s going to die. He’s going to die!” NO! Mike will live and not die. He will live and declare the works of the Lord. I keep repeating this over and over while the doctor and nurse adjust the machines and talk together. The readings keep dropping, dropping to even more dangerous levels. Sally Ann is frozen, her eyes fixed on the numbers … read more
Since we are getting close to the end of the year, now is the time to make last minute preparations and planning steps for the annual ritual of the dreaded United States income tax return. Once you provide your information to your CPA to prepare your income tax return, it is too late to take any tax planning/tax saving steps for the prior year (aside from possibly contributing to an IRA).
“I have depended on you my entire life, yet I have never seen you with my own eyes. You have served me faithfully and yet we have never spoken. You have helped me every day to reach out and touch the world but I have never thanked you. …read more
God’s plan is to bring multiplication and increase into our life. Each of the seven Laws of Increase defines a different aspect of increase according to God’s definition, challenging our existing definitions, presumptions, and motivations to pursue increase. … read more
Your ability to connect with people and stay connected with your spouse will be directly determined on how approachable you are. People will marginalize you if you lack approachability. Your spouse will disconnect from you if s/he cannot trust you, if you are moody, or come across with a chip on your shoulder. … read more
There’s power in praise. Some would probably call this a cliché, but I don’t know of a statement that holds more truth. I think sometimes we forget that praise is more than just a part of our church services. Amazing things happen when we praise. …read more
Today’s American church culture does not lend itself to having a Healing Service on Sunday service meetings, nor does it lend itself to long, protracted services. But, healing the sick was a large part of Jesus’ ministry and purpose of His redemptive work on the Cross. …read more
Recently, I read an article that stated between 1,700 and 1,800 pastors leave their assignments each month, most due to burnout or marital stress. Honestly, I read statistics like this and tend to think they will never affect me, my circle of friends or my sphere of influence. Recently, however, I had a big wake-up call. …read more
Solomon gave us some insight concerning leadership, and its effects on people, organizations, and nations. He said, “A good leader motivates, doesn’t mislead, doesn’t exploit.”(1) He went on to describe good leadership by saying, “Good leaders abhor wrongdoing of all kinds; sound leadership has a moral foundation. …read more
In 2004, I began experiencing some nagging abdominal pain in my lower abdomen. I went to my family doctor who is also is my cousin. She felt I needed to have an MRI on my abdomen. So, it was scheduled for the next week at North Carolina Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, NC. …read more
There are basically two types of people on the planet. Those who insist, and those who assist. One type insists everything goes their way, and insists things are done the way they want them done, and if they are not, then you are going to hear about it. They are not looking to add value to anyone, they are takers, self-absorbed and self-consumed. For them it is, “my way or the highway.”… read more
The last few days of February and the first few days of March, 2015, found me shredding the slopes of Vail Mountain in Colorado. For the past few years, my wife and I have spent a week with our oldest son, his wife, and their two boys skiing somewhere in the Rockies. …read more
As we look at the world around us, there is little doubt that our culture has changed dramatically in the last several years. When I first attended Bible school back in 1979, the training I received was fine for that day but there was no way of knowing what significant changes would take place in our world in the more than thirty years following. …read more
Despite all the negative things that we are hearing and seeing happening, God is miraculously expanding His Kingdom in the hearts of Iranian Muslims in Iran under the strict ruling of Islamic government, which harshly opposes the Gospel and openly persecutes Christians. Even with all these challenges, Iranians are coming to Christ at an unprecedented rate. Read this article by Massoud Sadeghi
