Christian Living

Serving Jesus Even When Your Eyes Reflect Poop

lisaauthor2025-02-14T16:09:21+00:00

by Amber Mann Riggs Is this what I’m destined to become? Recoiling with disgust at the abject prospect, I now eyed these women with cynical wariness. Yes, they seemed normal. And up to that moment, they had triumphed as beautiful, intelligent, thoughtful, interesting pillars of womanhood. But now, all of this faded in the shadow of their complete obsession with potty-training. Trapped in a conversation circle in which these women wielded complete control, I found myself an unwilling captive of the no-longer-secret Society of the Hiney-Wipers. The conversation was not just teetering on a precipice overlooking a sewage treatment plant. Even worse, it. was. boring. Foreshadowing can be a dreadful, dreadful thing. Case in point: [...]

Serving Jesus Even When Your Eyes Reflect Pooplisaauthor2025-02-14T16:09:21+00:00

How to Fold Laundry… As Unto Jesus

lisaauthor2025-02-14T16:09:35+00:00

by Caitlin Meadows I just abandoned my laundry basket. It’s over half-full of warm, clean clothes. The rest are folded on the couch. Normally I don’t leave chores half-finished. My perfectionism usually won’t allow it. But, the writer in me has the ability to usurp the perfectionist in me. When inspiration strikes, I drop what I’m doing and let the words pour out of my head, through my hands, and onto paper (or, in this case, computer screen). Right now is one of those moments. Friday is laundry day in the Adam/Caitlin Meadows home. As I fold my husband’s clothes I [...]

How to Fold Laundry… As Unto Jesuslisaauthor2025-02-14T16:09:35+00:00

Stay Focused – Don’t Lose Sight of the Goal

lisaauthor2025-02-14T16:09:35+00:00

by Chip Hinds Stay Focused – Don’t Lose Sight of the Goal (Borrowed with permission from the Southwest District Superintendent’s Blog) Greetings and peace in the name of Jesus Christ. If the current circumstances are consuming more time and attention than you know you should be giving them, this post is for you. If you want to become super-charged to be a blessing to God and humanity, this post is for you. If you want to be bored and be a consumer of others’ service to you, this post is not for you. Looking for good and faithful soldiers Much more [...]

Stay Focused – Don’t Lose Sight of the Goallisaauthor2025-02-14T16:09:35+00:00

What is the Mission of the Church?

lisaauthor2025-02-14T16:09:35+00:00

by Lisa Harp Hinds Does the church have a mission to fulfill in this increasingly chaotic time? Can and should we make a difference in the world today? Yes, yes, and yes! Then what is the mission of the church? 4 purposes that make up the mission of the church: to worship God (John 4:23-24; Rom. 14:11; Rev. 7:10-12) to preach the gospel (Matt. 7:36-38; 24:14; 28:18-20; Mark 13:10; 16:15-16; 1 Cor. 9:14; 2 Tim. 4:2) to nurture believers (Acts 14:21-22; I Cor. 14:26; I Thess. 3:12; 4:9; 5:11-15; I Tim. 5:1-4; Titus 2:1-8) to serve humanity (Matt. 5:40-45; 7:11-13; 1 [...]

What is the Mission of the Church?lisaauthor2025-02-14T16:09:35+00:00

Why Confession is a Must for Christ-Followers

lisaauthor2025-02-14T16:09:35+00:00

by Israel Steinmetz We’ve all heard the saying: Confession is good for the soul. One of the most powerful lessons I’ve learned as a Christian is how true this saying is. Confession is a source of great healing and freedom. All Christians, whether they have official titles or not, have been re-created by Jesus to lead in their daily lives. For the Christian committed to leading with integrity, confession is an absolute necessity. But for many, confession is an abstract idea that isn’t part of their daily lives. Many associate confession exclusively with a person confessing to a priest or telling [...]

Why Confession is a Must for Christ-Followerslisaauthor2025-02-14T16:09:35+00:00

Recovering the Lost Art of Contemplation

lisaauthor2025-02-14T16:09:35+00:00

by Israel Steinmetz Are you a contemplative leader? Do you see yourself as a leader at all? If you are a follower of Christ, you have been re-created as a leader! Embracing your identity as a leader involves growing in qualities that increase your influence. One of these is qualities is contemplation. In 10 Qualities of Influential Christians, Amber Riggs writes, Christian leaders must draw strength from a regular contemplation on the mysterious and gracious works of God. At the end of the day, none of our efforts are responsible for our advancement, none of our works are responsible for our sanctification, none of our [...]

Recovering the Lost Art of Contemplationlisaauthor2025-02-14T16:09:35+00:00

3 Areas Everyday Christian Leaders Practice Contentment

lisaauthor2025-02-14T16:09:35+00:00

by Caitlin Meadows As followers of Christ we are leaders in our everyday lives. Wherever we are, whoever we are with – we have the opportunity and call to point them to Christ. Contentment is a quality of everyday Christian leaders because it means we trust God’s authority over and directing of our lives. The contented Christian rests in Christ’s sufficiency with gratitude for all He provides. Therefore, our focus is on magnifying God’s Kingdom rather than our own. Defining Contentment. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, when one is contented one is “feeling or showing satisfaction with one’s possessions, status, or [...]

3 Areas Everyday Christian Leaders Practice Contentmentlisaauthor2025-02-14T16:09:35+00:00

In Search of Character

lisaauthor2025-02-14T16:09:35+00:00

by Whaid Rose Character Formation To set the stage for this article, it is necessary to reveal something of my dark past: I once got into trouble in high school! It was an incident involving my entire homeroom class. The teacher didn’t show up, and we kids seized the opportunity to goof off. Apparently, it was noisy enough to get the principal’s attention. This was back in the ‘70s in Jamaica where punishment was still being administered corporally in public schools, so his arrival at our homeroom naturally prompted fear. But his reaction caught the class off guard. He quietly walked [...]

In Search of Characterlisaauthor2025-02-14T16:09:35+00:00

What is the Definition of Character?

lisaauthor2025-02-14T16:09:35+00:00

by Whaid Rose Let’s explore a concise definition of character, and talk about why this is foundational to all true leadership. “We teach what we know, but we reproduce who we are.” This sobering John Maxwell quote forces me to reflect on what I am deep down on the inside. That’s the real me regardless of my public persona. There’s a word for what a person is deep down on the inside: character. We use this word in various ways. For example, we say someone has no character, suggesting that they’re not nice or that they have no moral underpinnings. In [...]

What is the Definition of Character?lisaauthor2025-02-14T16:09:35+00:00

3 Keys to Overcoming the Burnout of Serving Others

lisaauthor2025-02-14T16:09:35+00:00

by Paul Pedersen The burnout grew slowly. It was a general feeling of frustration with my work. As I would drive to work in the darkness of the early morning, I struggled to see the importance of what I was doing. I wanted to quit. For several years, I have worked full-time at a homeless shelter. This kind of service work can be very rewarding. Every day that I would go to work, I knew that I could make an impact in someone’s life. Yet, service work is notorious for its high rate of burnout. I have worked with people who [...]

3 Keys to Overcoming the Burnout of Serving Otherslisaauthor2025-02-14T16:09:35+00:00

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