Most of us agree with John Maxwell’s well-known adage, “Leadership is influence, nothing more, nothing less.” By that definition, the pastor’s leadership influences the ministry of the local church. This is particularly true in building a culture of prayer. Your culture determines your future, so it cannot be left to chance. A culture of prayer […]
Frederick Douglass was born a slave to an enslaved Black mother almost 50 years before slavery ended in America. School for slaves on the plantation was out of the question, so he learned to read when others helped him understand the letters on signs and posters on barn doors. He eventually escaped from slavery and […]
Have you ever seen the bumper sticker that says, “If you can read this, thank a teacher”? Maybe we should say the same thing about prayer. Jesus is addressed 90 times in the Gospels, and 60 of those times He is referred to as “Teacher.” Jesus had a lot to teach, but His disciples asked […]
Americans are surprisingly optimistic about answered prayer. In fact, nearly 25 percent of people who pray told Lifeway that all their prayers are answered! The majority of people, 58 percent, report that “some” or “most” of their prayers get answered (“Americans Pray for Friends and Family, but Rarely for Celebrities or Sports Teams” – Lifeway […]
Judith Greenberg, Ph.D., is not an evangelical. In fact, she is not even a Christian. She claims to be an atheist. Professor Greenberg studied at Yale and described herself as “a New York Upper West Side liberal, [and] a firm believer in science and rationality.” A nagging sense of what she calls “survivors’ guilt,” however, […]
Charles Spurgeon was right. He once said, “He who prays much will pray more and he who prays little will pray less.” In fact, a new survey finds that the Americans who want to pray more are the people who already pray. Since the poll was taken in December 2023 and related to “New Year’s […]
After Daddy died, I had another 12 years with my mama. Even though I didn’t live close, we kept up with each other, and I’d make it home when I could. One thing that bugged me, though, is that anytime I was at her house, the television would be tuned to one of the 24-hour […]
In preaching a sermon a few years ago on Numbers 20, we ran into something known as typology. As it has been variously defined in church history, typology occurs in the Bible when an historical person, event, or institution — in this case, a water-giving rock — foreshadows the coming Son of God. As with […]
It’s that time of year when people make goals. I’m of the mind that a few small goals at the beginning of the year are wiser than a list of 17 milestones you’ll forget by February. I’ve come to believe this after reading Drew Dyck’s book, Your Future Self Will Thank You, a few years […]
While the nature of Baptist polity allows for varying perspectives on many issues, there was one resolution that stood out when messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention’s annual meeting in New Orleans almost unanimously voted in affirmation: A resolution “on wisely engaging immigration” passed with incredibly broad support. Those outside of the SBC or of […]