In this 30-minute zoom seminar, we will explore 5 of the biggest problems in discussion-base groups, including... People who talk too much People who won't talk at all How to handle the know-it all How to deal with groups that are superficial and shallow What to do...

It’s 6:00 a.m. in Hamilton, Bermuda. Ninety-two-year-old Johnny Barnes stands on the edge of a roundabout and waves at people as they drive past. He’s been here since before 4:00 a.m. He’ll be here until 10:00 a.m. He’s not asking for money or begging for food. He’s...

I am mechanically dysfunctional—especially when it comes to cars. My theory is that all car engines are hypochondriacal. If you don’t baby them every time they make a strange noise, they’ll quit whining and get back to work. Of all the teachings Jesus ever gave us,...

Religion in our time has been captured by the tourist mindset. Religion is understood as a visit to an attractive site to be made when we have adequate leisure. For some it is a weekly jaunt to church; for others, occasional visits to special services. Some, with a...

Robert Moffat was a nineteenth-century Scottish missionary to South Africa. He spent three years (1818–1821) just traveling to his assigned mission post. He and his wife labored faithfully for ten years but with no tangible results. But then God began to stir within...

Isaiah’s place in his time The heading of the book (1:1) dates Isaiah’s prophetic ministry to the reigns of four kings of Judah—Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah—a period spanning about one hundred years, from the 790s to the 680s BC Historical detail can be found in...

The Ten Commandments are not to be ignored. It’s important that we study and understand them. But, of course, it’s more important that we obey them. God isn’t impressed by an intellectually careful analysis that puts the Decalogue at the center of Christian...

One of our greatest weaknesses in contemporary Western Christianity is the poverty of our knowledge of God. This is not only doctrinal, in terms of our ability to articulate God’s character and attributes, but essentially practical—we do not know this relationally in...

https://youtu.be/8FKmIDApbe0

If our faith is to be genuine Christian faith, it must be more than faith in faith. The most important aspect of our faith is not how hard we believe, but in whom we believe. There is certainly a subjective element to faith—since we do want to be sincere and...

To begin embracing the stranger is quite simple. Groups only need to make a list of people whom members know in the neighborhood so they can pray for them on a weekly basis. The list need not be long; two people per member is sufficient. From there, the group can host...

From the beginning of his ministry, Jesus’ plan was to leave a force on earth greater than himself. I know something sounds off about that. After all, no one is greater than Jesus, right? (Right. That’s not a trick question.) But Jesus’ words in John 14:12 lay it out...

Let me tell you some of my background to give some insight into why I have a passion for evangelism. I was not born into a family of believers. We were Catholic by name, but we didn’t know Christ; we attended Mass purely out of duty. Ours was a moral home, but we...

https://youtu.be/9R7bdVcK0hk

Being in meaningful relationships is life-giving in the most literal sense. One of the most thorough research projects on relationships is called the Alameda County Study. Headed by a Harvard social scientist, it tracked the lives of 7,000 people over nine years....

https://youtu.be/E4uRWk06Wo0

HER NAME WAS PANDY. She had lost a good deal of her hair, one of her arms was missing, and, generally speaking, she’d had the stuffing knocked out of her. She was my sister Barbie’s favorite doll. She hadn’t always looked like this. She had been a personally selected...

https://youtu.be/XMnjX-VgPMk

In the story of the Creation in the book of Genesis, a little refrain keeps recurring: “And God said…and it was so…and God saw that it was good.” The writer is emphasizing that everything that exists is the effortless activity of an unimaginably powerful God, and all...

https://youtu.be/QiDmtDuMHSc  

What has made the greatest impact on your spiritual growth? If you’re like me, the answer isn’t a sermon, a lesson, or even a book; the answer is a person who was willing to invest time in you. Ron Swiger was one of the first guys who intentionally poured into my...

“The criteria on which a church should measure its success is not how many new names are added to the roll nor how much the budget is increased, but rather how many Christians are actively winning souls and training them to win the multitudes.” —Robert Coleman, The...

Discipleship involves two aspects of our lives. First, it is living in God’s presence. Second, it is how we live on a day-to-day basis: balancing God’s purposes in our lives, relating to others, and seeking to become more like Christ. Here are some practical...

Being for someone means I celebrate their victories and mourn their setbacks. It means I deeply and sincerely wish them well. This is not easy to do. It doesn’t take much truth-telling for me to admit that I don’t want my enemies to succeed. More humbling is the fact...