Home Life

Effects of the Student Loan Bubble

Jeff Masters
2 Jul 2014
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Americans owe $1.2 trillion in student loan debt, a number that has tripled in the last decade, according to a recent NY Daily news article. Student debt now exceeds the total of auto loans, credit cards, and home-equity debt balances, making student loans the second largest debt of U.S. households only following mortgage debt. Nearly 20 million Americans attend college each year; of those close to 12 million, or 60 percent, borrow annually to help cover costs. There are approximately 37 million student borrowers with outstanding student loans today, and only 37 percent of federal student loan borrowers (between 2004-2009) […]

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The Holy Estate of Matrimony

Patricia Hartman
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Installment five in the marriage vows series. “I, Patricia, take you, Patrick, to be my lawfully wedded husband, to live together in the holy estate of matrimony…” The word holy means divine, set apart, sacred. Estate is a state of being, and matrimony is, of course, marriage. Marriage was the first institution that God set apart for his good purposes. The other two were government and church, which powerfully indicates the importance he places on marriage. Where dreams come true However, our expectations of marriage may resemble a fantasyland. Supercharged young children surrounded us as we rode our Disney bus […]

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The Holy Estate of Matrimony

Finding God After Trauma

Julie Woodley
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On a cold Friday night, Shawn volunteered to pick-up a pizza for dinner. When he left the house, he told Susan, his pregnant wife, and their two-year old son, “Hey guys, I’ll be back in twenty minutes with the pizza.” He never came back. Another driver slammed into his car instantly killing Shawn. Susan was suddenly a widow, a trauma survivor and a single mother. Immediately after the accident our church, including our pastors and our women’s ministry leaders, surrounded Susan with love and support. We helped her and her extended family make it through Shawn’s funeral. We brought meals […]

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Vows: To Live Together Forever

The Good News
4 Jun 2014
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This is the fourth installment in a study on marriage vows.  “I, Patricia, take you, Patrick, to be my lawfully wedded husband, to live together…” No, this is not an article answering whether Christians should live together before marriage. As my friend Pastor Tommy Boland, says, “There are some things you need to pray about and seek God’s direction. But when the Bible is clear, what is there to pray about?” In the case of living together before marriage, God calls it fornication, and the Bible says, “No.” The questions we should be asking are: What does God expect of […]

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in marriage

Breaking Free From Unhealthy Relationships

Sasha Richardson
7 May 2014
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After attending church for about 13 years by her mid-twenties, Tewannah Aman, director of Broward Right To Life and the Guard Your Heart ministry, said she felt convicted about her relationship with a man at the time. She had asked in prayer, “Lord if it’s not your will that we’re together, I need you to show me. If you make it clear, I’ll leave.” A few days later, Aman’s pastor posed a series of questions: Does he really love Jesus? Does he read the Bible on his own and live it? Does he pray about his life? Does he care […]

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Why Is It So Hard To Admit I Make Mistakes?

The Good News
5 May 2014
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The following question came up on my radio program, Ask the Counselor. Q: “I have been telling myself for months now that “I had to” do something very radical in order to survive a very difficult time. Most of my trusted friends, family and counselors disagreed with my action. I felt very frustrated. Why could they not see that I had no choice and that this was the best possible solution to a bad situation? Why did they have to judge me? I was100 percent sure I did the only possible thing I could do. In the last few days […]

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NOAH: An Opportunity to Discuss the Truth

Tori Sollars
4 May 2014
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Anyone plugged into the world of cinema entertainment would have heard hype caused by the movie, Noah, released last month. Reviews were raving, yet very mixed in range. Half of movie viewers strongly disliked or disagreed with the way the film was presented, whereas others, found a different perspective, believing the movie to be entertaining, visually appealing, and even faith affirming.  The story of the flood, famously known from its account in Genesis, is the story of a man, Noah, who obeyed God with all of his heart. The Earth at this point was wicked and filled with people who […]

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“Get Better” Doesn’t Work

Tullian Tchividjian
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In a New York Times op-ed, Oliver Burkeman suggests something counter-intuitive, but obvious: the more you force someone to have fun, the less fun they’ll have. His piece is called “Who Goes to Work to Have Fun,” and the money quote is this one: “Psychologists have shown that positive-thinking affirmations make people with low self-esteem feel worse; that patients with panic disorders can become more anxious when they try to relax; and that an ability to experience negative emotions, rather than struggling to exclude them, is crucial for mental health. And these are just the hazards of trying to enforce happiness […]

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An Incredible Night to Remember at ReachFest 2014

The Good News
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More than 5,800 South Floridians gathered at the Sunset Cove Amphitheater in Boca Raton last month to hear Christian performers MercyMe, Britt Nicole, Jamie Grace, Colton Dixon and Citizen Way during ReachFest 2014, and it was one amazing night. “I am blown away by what I saw our Lord JESUS do that evening as He walked amongst us!”said Jennifer Aluart, Reach FM Station Manager. “From the weather, to the incredible messages that each artist had to share, to Pastor Billy Venezia’s message and all that were saved, to even the whimsical glow sticks and confetti that shot out over the […]

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Regain Control of Your Child’s Education

Shelly Pond
3 May 2014
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Looking for a way to regain control of your family and put God back at the center of your child’s education? Home education may be the solution. With a focus on common core curriculum, crime in schools and the removal of God in the classroom, Mary Hood, Ph.D., author of The Relaxed Homeschooler, said she believes “we have to band together to create real options to public education.” Whether it is through private education or homeschooling, “parents must take control of their children’s education.” Speaking at the South Florida Homeschool Convention in Davie last month, Hood quoted from Martin Luther […]

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