Practical Application

The Call for Social Justice

The Good News
26 Jun 2017
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We live in an imperfect world with a huge imbalance of wealth and power. Sometimes when we hear about social justice in Christian circles, we think of liberal theology, left-wing radicals and some denominations that seem to be more concerned with helping their fellow man than following a conservative doctrinal creed. But God is a God of justice and wants his people to make a difference in the world, standing up for those who cannot stand up for themselves and sharing what we have with those who have nothing. Caring for the oppressed, the poor, the disadvantaged, and the socially […]

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Transitions – Survive or Thrive

John Hawkins, Sr
8 Jun 2017
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It is that time of year when graduates will experience one of the many change points of their lifetime. These transitions happen as we move from one stage of life to another. Navigating life transitions successfully is essential to achieve both contentment and full life potential. Will we just survive or will we thrive through these times of transitions? Transition points of life Life is full of transition points. There are the normal stages of human growth and development. Each stage has its own characteristics, physical and emotional changes as well as good and not so good aspects. There are […]

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Using Spirit Filled Logic to Solve Problems

Norm Wise
1 May 2017
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Do you ever feel overwhelmed with problems? Do you feel you are drowning in a sea of unresolvable and complex relationships and circumstances? Try “Spirit Filled Logic” to face these problems as you seek to find peace of mind and heart. First step is to ask God to help you properly define the problems you are facing. Separate your problems into different boxes; don’t lump them all together. Ask the Holy Spirit to give you discernment about how problems are different and yet how they relate. For instance, separate problems in your marriage relationship from problems you have parenting your […]

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Can People Change?

Norm Wise
7 Apr 2017
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Susie and Howard have been married twenty years. It has been a long, hard road. They have fought, made up, separated, reconciled, and fought over again and again. The issues have changed, but they have not changed. What they do to trigger each other and their responses are like steps in a well-choreographed dance. Now, looking at two decades of verbal and emotional abuse, they both wonder if the other person can change. Sometimes at their most honest moments, they even look in a mirror and wonder if they themselves can change. Most of us can relate to such struggles […]

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Spring Thaw

John Hawkins, Sr
8 Mar 2017
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Many years ago, while pastoring in a small town in Pennsylvania, I remember a winter so cold the frost line went down to four feet. One consequence of this was a backhoe couldn’t penetrate the ground to dig a grave. We had funeral services for people that winter but had to wait for the spring thaw to actually bury the people. Frozen ground can be awfully hard. Sometimes our hearts can become frozen and hard like that ground. Nothing can penetrate it until heat is able to bring about a thaw and soften that heart. What hardens a heart? People […]

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No Vacancy

Elizabeth Mitchell
20 Feb 2017
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“And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger because there was no place for them in the inn” (Luke 2:7). “No room in the inn” would become a signature piece for how the Son of Man would be regularly excluded from the world he came to save. Repeatedly throughout the Gospels, a “No Vacancy” sign was extended to Christ as he journeyed toward the cross. In the synagogue of his hometown of Nazareth, he stood and read Isaiah from the scrolls and then informed the audience of their […]

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Don’t Let Life Drain Your Contentment

Steve Davis
1 Feb 2017
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On the CD, I heard the instructor’s statement. Then I hit the back button to hear it again, and again. “You can eat right, rest well, exercise, build your inner self up to feeling very strong and 15 minutes later feel totally drained.” “Yow!” I thought. “That’s happened to me…and I didn’t understand it.” I, for one, sure need solutions to not feel so weary, depleted and exhausted at times. Anybody with me? I listened to this instructor and other CD’s, added further research and the answer became increasingly clear. The key really was the last word of the instructor’s […]

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Abide in Me

Elizabeth Mitchell
20 Jan 2017
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“Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me” (John 15:4). It was never designed as an entry in the “have to” category, but we shoved it into that column, making it a chore rather than the grand adventure it was intended to be from the beginning. Spending time alone with the Father, carving out a sliver of the day to hear his voice and respond to his word, should always be firmly fixed in the “I-can’t-believe-I get-to-do-this” frame of […]

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Launch Your Leadership in 2017

Paul Greasley
16 Jan 2017
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10 – 9 – 8 – 7 – 6 – 5 – 4 – 3 – 2 – 1 – Liftoff! Have you ever witnessed the launch of a rocket from the Kennedy Space Center on the coast of central Florida? It is a magnificent sight! I spent many years working as an aerospace engineer designing and developing rocket engines. When launch day arrived, there was always some excitement and a tangible anticipation of success. Your leadership launch day is Jan 1, 2017. Please think of yourself perched on the leadership launch pad of 2017. You are now completing the […]

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Energize Your Prayer Life in the New Year

Jonathan Smith
2 Jan 2017
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Why is prayer so important? Have you ever wondered why we pray? I mean after all, if God is God, why does he need me to pray? Questions like these two are common for Christians to ask. When you really think about reasons why we should pray, we are always confronted with the reality that God already knows what we need. So, why pray? At the same time, the Bible makes one thing abundantly clear. God expects us to pray, encourages us to pray and even has ordained that his purposes be carried by and through prayer. Here is what […]

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