Black History Month invites all Americans to better understand African-American achievement. For Christians, it is an opportunity to better understand God’s providence and grace as we listen to one another’s story of pain and promise without contempt. In the spirit of African-American historian Carter G. Woodson (1875-1950), students of African-American history learn to view the […]
Clemson, Trevor and Those Who Pave the Way for Influence
For other Cartersville, Ga., residents and me, it was surreal to see Trevor Lawrence, a kid who had just been known around town as “Trevor” since he was 15, on the national stage Jan. 7. It shouldn’t have been. Over four years we saw his talent at Cartersville High’s Weinman Stadium, the spirals thrown at […]
Don’t Like the Song? Sing Anyway!
I’ve been there, and you likely have as well. You’ve never heard the song your church is singing or you’ve heard it but don’t like it. The temptation is to silently mimic the words or not sing at all. But here’s why we need to sing anyway: It’s right to sing God’s praises. Even if […]
A Word of Thanks to S.C. Baptists
On the last Friday of November, we practiced a very old tradition at Anderson University. We call it Christmas First Night. The practice started years ago under president Annie Dove Denmark with the idea of celebrating the first night of December through a Christmas concert and the lighting of a yule log. The event was […]
Guest Viewpoint: Pastors, We Are Called to Counsel God’s People
St. Augustine wrote in his work titled “On Christian Doctrine” in A.D. 397, “Let every good and true Christian understand that wherever truth may be found, it belongs to the Master.” Most committed evangelical Christians will agree that the truth which comes from God, the truth that is provided by Him in His revealed Word, is […]
Guest Viewpoint: 2.8 billion Lost People & You
Have you ever stood face to face with someone who has never heard of the name of Jesus? If so, it is not an experience you will soon forget. Several years ago, a family from our church was serving as Christian workers in the mountains of China. After being on the field for about four […]
Guest Viewpoint: Hatred, Racism, Forgiveness
Do you know the internal struggle of trying to forgive someone who has deliberately hurt you or someone in your family? Reverend Anthony Thompson knows exactly what that feels like. His wife Myra was one of the nine people murdered on June 15, 2015, at Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, S.C. Recently, I heard […]
Church Revitalization: Turning the Church Inside Out
Do you ever feel like the world has been turned upside down? From our culture’s rejection of authority to generational, political and racial divisions, it seems that instead of striving for the American Dream, our society is living an American Nightmare. Unfortunately, this not only describes modern culture but the Christian church as well. Today, […]
Suicide, Depression and Pastors: One Way Church Members Can Help
The suicide death of a young pastor is being felt throughout the world. Andrew Stoecklein, lead pastor of Inland Hills Church in California, left behind his wife, Kayla, and three young sons. I am the father of three sons. I cannot look at a photo of the young family without getting tears in my eyes. […]
Guest Viewpoint: Loving Your Pastor’s Family
Sometimes those who are most vital to a pastor’s ministry — his family — can be forgotten. Yet, they are the ones most often ministering to the minister. As a pastor’s wife, I pray for my husband like no other. I encourage him when he needs to be built up and challenge him when he […]