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It’s hard to resist the idea that being a believer means being “good.” Sure, the Bible does tell us about how we should live, but it’s more than that.

Which puts us in the awkward position of making clear, cogent points about the Bible without falling back on the pressure to simply “be good”— that’s a different thing altogether. ...

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The Bible was big in my home growing up. My spiritual heritage includes an aunt who pitched crusade tents in the middle of the countryside, preached Christ, and planted churches; uncles who pastored and preached; and a grandfather who taught preachers how to dissect the Word and share it with integrity.

My spiritual heritage also includes hypocrites, legalists, and perfectionists. ...

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"Help me, Jesus! I need you right now in my time of trouble.”

These are the strong words that fall off our lips as we cry out to our Savior, Jesus Christ, in some of the most trying times. As we are crying out, he is listening to every word we speak, weighing the intentions of our hearts and our ability to endure those moments in life.

Matthew 12:36-37 says, ...

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A recent study on the habits of cell phone users reveals disturbing trends:

• 9 percent of U.S. adults are using their smartphones while they have sex.

• 35 percent are using their phones in a movie theatre.

• 33 percent are using them on a dinner date.

• 32 percent are using them at their child's school function.

• 55 percent are ...

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Jesus is the example par excellence of obedience and self-sacrifice held up to the church, but Paul also uses his experiences, and those of his coworker Timothy and his friend Epaphroditus, as examples of selfless service. In recent years, an attempt to connect the Christ hymn with the modern church’s responsibility toward missions has given rise to a movement known ...

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The book:

Malestrom: Manhood Swept into the Currents of a Changing World

By Carolyn Custis James

Published by Zondervan

Why I Picked Up This Book:

I attended the Missio Alliance National Conference, where men and women gathered to consider what it means to be #TrulyHuman. Author Carolyn Custis James introduced the book to that audience and shared her continued hope ...

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I have a long history of denial—of masking my weaknesses and soldiering on. I’m not exactly sure how or when I learned this paradigm or, more importantly, why I believed it was somehow more spiritual than other options. It worked as both a ministry model and a lifestyle until just a few years ago.

I had battled fibromyalgia for nearly a decade. In the midst ...

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I was on my knees one night right before going to bed. Not knowing what to say, I considered my options. I thought perhaps I could seek comfort in worship, but I didn’t really have the serenity at the moment. Neither had I the strength to pray intensely. The reason I couldn’t do that was probably because I had already done so, many times. Yet I was at the same ...

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Fear is not a component of progression. When we become intimidated by things that are ahead, we put the seed of doubt in our minds. We start to question our decisions, actions, and plans—resulting in procrastination. The ordinary type of procrastination is the action of delaying or postponing something. When fear comes into that equation, the time becomes even more prolonged, ...

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As a woman, when I hear the expression “double-minded,” I chuckle. I wish I had only two things on my mind. When I switch off the alarm in the morning, my brain flashes at least a dozen to-dos. Two would be a piece of cake.

For the past few months I have been spending time in the book of James. I like James; I always have. I like that James is plainspoken ...