Don’t you love it when kids discover the answers to their own questions? A second grade child recently asked me a great question: “What does ‘love the world’ mean?” Soon the class helped answer her question. Our Sunday school that week actually combined two lessons. (We were making up for a week church-wide Sunday school…
Read More
Do you struggle with negative thoughts? God’s been hammering an important truth into me over the past few weeks. I got really sick over Christmas and I think it was (at least in part) a result of stress. So, I’ve been working to address that issue the last several months. I’ve been reading Overcoming Fear,…
Read More
The true story of one traumatized little girl led me to reevaluate the way I teach and celebrate the events of Easter. Next week is Holy Week where churches around the world will be remembering Palm Sunday, the Last Supper, the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus’ trial, His crucifixion, and the joy of Resurrection Sunday. This…
Read More
When tragedy strikes, we want to show love to those affected. Do “thoughts and prayers” help? If you haven’t heard, this past Wednesday afternoon a student opened fire at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. (Learn more here about what happened.) This terrible tragedy has left many people asking: Do thoughts and prayers…
Read More
A few weeks ago my music minister said something about love and worship that continues to echo in my ears. It had been at least three weeks since I’d been in choir because of a terrible bout of bronchitis and common cold. I was starting to feel stronger, but still had a cough and was…
Read More
Thanksgiving holiday is just around the corner. This is a special day set aside to remember and be thankful for physical and/or relational blessings in our lives. Have you ever asked yourself: “Is there one thing above everything else in my life that I should be thankful for?” Another key question for me is: “Can…
Read More
You may have seen us advertising the new Family Advent Readings designed for use in “Big Church.” Today we’re getting a sneak peek at the new Advent Family Devotional which will be available next week. Waiting for Christmas: Weekly Family Devotionals for Advent Advent is the four weeks leading up to Christmas. It usually begins…
Read More
Does your family like candy corn? How about other small fall treats? You can use these treats to teach kids thankfulness. “Give thanks to the God of heaven. His love endures forever.” Psalm 136:26 (NIV) Here’s how the game works: Choose a time of day when everyone (or most everyone) is together. Maybe at dinner?…
Read More
Do you sometimes feel like you’re giving all you have but don’t seem to make any measurable progress? I do. This is why I chose to study the account of Jesus walking on water. It’s true that this was a school assignment, but God used it powerfully in my life and I thought I’d share…
Read More
I’m a big proponent of life-long learning. I know I don’t know everything and I’ve heard senior adults say the same thing about themselves. It’s Scriptural too. Ephesians 4:14-16 (ESV) 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning,…
Read More
