There's no denying Hurricane Harvey was devastating. Many people lost everything and for months, the trash and debris along the side of the roads was a reminder of the devastation this city had experienced. But, those first rays of sunshine after days of rain brought a glimmer of hope. For disasters, though terrible, often bring out the best in humanity.

I read a recent article that said, “A quarter of all parents admit they spend just 34 minutes a day with their children undistracted.” Another article reminded me, “There are only 940 Saturdays between a child's birth and them leaving for college.” This got my attention.

NO TENGO TIEMPO

“Estoy muy ocupado manejando para detenerme a echar gasolina”, Stephen Covey. Suena absurdo que una persona prefiera seguir manejando cuando el tablero le anuncia que la gasolina de su vehículo se está agotando.

En octubre 20, 27 y noviembre 3 de 8:30 am a 4:30 pm. Tendremos otro Seminario de la Biblia Thompson durante tres sábados consecutivos

I wrote this journal article while serving in Africa as a missionary. At the time, I was living in a small village far away from city life. The observations made in my time there profoundly shaped how I understand the Bible. I pray this one does the same for you.

María y su familia eran miembros de lo que ella considera una iglesia hispana saludable. Pero, llorando en mi oficina de consejería, compartió la historia de abusos que su hija sufrió y la respuesta inimaginable de los líderes de su iglesia.

Maria and her family were members of what she considers a healthy Hispanic church but, as she sobs in my counseling office, she shared her daughter’s story of abuse and the unthinkable response from her church leaders.

What are the little things we let divide the church? As small differences carve deeper divides in the church, we must be careful not to turn our eyes and weapons against our brothers as the Israelites were tempted to do. We must fight not to look at those who have been in the trench with us and wonder if they, too, are just a little too dangerously different.

All of us have someone in our lives that we really don’t know how to love—or at least we don’t know how to love them well. Maybe, it’s just someone you can’t love all the time. Both Scripture and modern research show us that loving relationships are key. But what does that look like?

What is persecution? How does it effect the global church, and what should we be learning from them?
Sally Hinzie answers these questions and more as she outlines Dr. Carl A. Moeller & David W. Hegg’s book: The Privilege of Persecution (And Other Things the Global Church Knows That We Don’t).

Far too often, there seems to be a tendency for husbands to get on the other side of “I do,” and put the relationship on cruise control. But how do we keep from getting too comfortable? How can we continue to grow and love well?

“Do you have any good websites I can visit for demographic data on my neighborhood?”

If I’ve been asked that question once, I’ve received it a dozen times. Many pastors and church leaders now understand the need to know their ministry context and contextualize their mission strategy to engage their neighbors in a meaningful way. But how do we find and use those resources?