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Keep on keeping on

I listened more than 40 years ago as Dr. Marshall Leggett listed the tasks expected of a modern-day minister: preacher, teacher, writer and editor, pastoral care provider, administrator, counselor, outreach coordinator, etc. Dr. Leggett warned that group of young preachers and leaders: “You will never go to bed at night with the sweet satisfaction of the day’s work done. There will always be more that could be done and that ought to have been done that was not done simply because of the tyranny of time.” Forty-three years in ministry have convinced me that Dr. Leggett might have ...

Investigate God for yourself

On November 22, 2022, Joerg Arnu awakened as FBI and Air Force Office of Special Operations agents raided his home near Rachel, Nevada. Using a heavily redacted search warrant signed by a Federal Magistrate, the agents seized 4 computers, cameras and a drone. More than a year later, Arnu’s seized property has not been returned, and Arnu contends that he is out more than $30,000 in equipment and legal fees since the raid. Arnu’s home lies near the gates of the Nevada Test and Training Range at Groom Lake, a sensitive and closely guarded section of Nellis Air Force Base better known ...

In Amharic, Karen and Spanish, worship is like home for migrants in heartland town

WORTHINGTON, Minn. (AP) — Come noon on Sundays, overlapping worship options reflect how much Worthington has changed from a typical Midwestern farming community to a majority-minority hub with migrants from around the world. An overflow crowd is still swaying to thumping praise music from one of 10 Latino choirs at St. Mary’s second Spanish-language Catholic Mass of the weekend. Half a mile away, Ethiopian Orthodox Christians are wrapping up their six-hour service in what used to be the offices of the local newspaper. And in the cornfields just beyond the town’s edge, refugees ...

Our tongue can either hurt and destroy or bring truth and kindness

In the New Testament Book of James, the tongue is compared to a fire from hell that defiles the body (James 3:6). It is also described as an unruly evil, full of deadly poison, which cannot be tamed. A careful study of James Three will convince any believer of the need to control the tongue. With our tongue, we bless our God. And, with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God. Out of the same mouth proceed blessings as well as curses. Nothing damages the church more than the untamed tongue. Satan uses this tiny muscle to slander, defame, and ruin the reputation of ...

Questions

An attorney confided that “a good lawyer never asks a question he doesn’t already know the answer to.” He explained that an attorney never wants to be surprised in court, so lots of effort goes into learning the facts before a case comes to trial. Once a trial begins, each attorney carefully phrases questions so as to receive the answers he expects. Attorneys don’t want to ask the wrong question and “open up a can of worms.” The Apostle Paul trained to be a Jewish rabbi. Essentially, Paul was an expert in the Jewish law and was expected to teach that law to others. To ...

When you are ‘fine’ — Feelings inside not expressed

You know how, when you ask folks how they’re doing, many automatically respond with, “I’m fine, how are you?” “FINE” might as well stand for “Feelings Inside Not Expressed,” because those folks aren’t telling the truth about how they feel. In most instances, those folks are lying! Surveys of mental health show that anxiety is now the number one issue for women and number 2 for men (behind drugs and alcohol). One multi-site megachurch surveyed their members and found that 82% of their congregation reported dealing with anxiety and worry, 71% said they were struggling ...