What an Understanding God
If your heart is broken, you’ll find God right there; if you’re kicked in the gut, he’ll help you catch your breath. – Psalm 34:18 MSG I think it has been a long, hard winter. Though we haven’t had much …
The Disciplemaker Team
How to Become a Man of Integrity
As a young man, my army chaplain father told me a true story about 672 men who perished in the middle of the night during World War II. On January 23, 1943, the SS Dorchester departed New York City harbor, …
The Gospel According to Buddha
“I’m the most Buddhist person I know.” A college student said this to me, and I knew in my heart I had chosen the wrong person to share Jesus with. “I’m the most Buddhist person I know,” he said. “In …
Hope and Healing from Abuse
I wish things were simple. I wish that difficult problems could all be easily resolved through sincere determination to obey God, regular time in His Word, and fervent prayer. In a sense, they can. The heart that is single-minded in …
How to Help When a Friend is Hurting
When your friend suffers there’s a lot you can do to help, even if you think you don’t know what to say. Life has rough edges that cut deeply. The fabric of human existence is riddled with the dark stain of suffering. …
The Art of Saying Goodbye: 5 Lessons
I remember towards the end of a semester long study abroad trip in college when I read the beginning of John 13. Not the well-read section on Jesus washing the disciples’ feet but the very first verse that introduces why …
Spirituality Gut-Check Test
The writer and teacher Father Richard Rohr referred to contemplation as the lost tradition in Christianity. Contemplation is a radically simple yet perpetually elusive spiritual practice. It is the practice of focusing one’s life on God in the here and …
The Four Nevers of a Good Marriage
Over the course of our marriage, we’ve identified some helpful strategies for dealing with the conflicts we face. Sometimes we pray and try to determine what caused us to continue to be combative in our speech. From our experiences, we’ve …
What Kind of Neighbor Are You?
To live faithfully in your community, you must ask yourself if you’re willing to truly be a neighbor. Are you willing to live out of a posture of generous hospitality? Being a neighbor is something entirely different from merely having …
“Religion” According to the Bible
Oddly enough, there is no Hebrew word in the Old Testament text that corresponds exactly to our word, religion. Of course, there are a number of other words and concepts that certainly illustrate what we mean. Those words, especially within …