Our world continues to experience devastation and destruction annually. Man-made events as well as natural disasters continue to challenge our minds with “why.” Why has this happened? Why me? Why my community? As Believers, we cannot answer the “why,” but we can respond with love and compassion as we help those affected know that they... Continue Reading →
Serve Others Everyday – Not Just at Christmas
I love Christmas, the lights, family gatherings, decorations, music and gift giving. It’s a time of year when people show compassion to the hurts and needs of others. We see it displayed in the days leading up to Christmas by children taking gifts to the elderly in the nursing home, groups singing carols and delivering... Continue Reading →
Iconic Branding
Churches, pastors, and ministries seek to be heard in the massive expanse of one of the most competitive cultural influences in history... the influence and power of global media. We daily compete to share the most important message of life in a culture that is bombarded with 24-hour, non-stop media clutter. Marketers today constantly talk... Continue Reading →
Steps to Engaging Your Community with the Gospel
Ministry in and to the community is the most critically important, but often overlooked activity of the local church. The church gets busy doing the “inward focused” activities that serve and even appear to strengthen the church. But somewhere along the way, they fail to turn outward and engage the local community by meeting it’s... Continue Reading →
Why Cultural Awareness is Important in Ministry?
Jesus commanded us in Matthew 28:18-20 to “go and make disciples of all nations.” To do this effectively requires us to have some understanding of the community and the culture that God has called us to minister within. Race, age, religious belief, economic status, language, educational background, unique community marks of identification, major social issues... Continue Reading →
Importance of the Pastor as a Catalyst for Missions
The Pastor is called to be a preacher/teacher within the body of faith. This place of leadership gives him a unique authority and influence in the local church. When the shepherd of the flock leads, the flock will follow. This is crucial for the general health of the church but also for the missional health... Continue Reading →
What Can the Church Do to Address Human Trafficking?
HOW SHOULD THE CHURCH RESPOND TO THOSE ENSLAVED TODAY? “Wash yourselves. Cleanse yourselves. Remove your evil deeds from My sight. Stop doing evil. Learn to do what is good. Seek justice. Rebuke the oppressor. Defend the rights of the fatherless. Plead the widow’s cause” (Isaiah 1:16-19). The church cannot ignore the issue of human trafficking. The... Continue Reading →
Taking Care of Your Heart
“Don’t you know that your body is a sanctuary of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? You are not your own” (1 Corinthians 6:19). I have served in active ministry for the sake of my Lord for forty years, and in my role as Disaster Relief Director for the... Continue Reading →
What’s a Lollapalooza?
I recently had the privilege of attending a lollapalooza put on by Dexter Baptist Church in western Kentucky. Pastor David Little led his church to plan and implement the lollapalooza event as an effort to reach out to their community. I had never attended a lollapalooza and wasn’t quite sure what to expect. In fact,... Continue Reading →
Embracing the Stranger Next Door
It was estimated that last year over 50 million people were displaced from their homes, with around 19.5 million forced to live as refugees. These people have been driven from their homes by war, violence, persecution, and disasters. They have lost their culture, friends, security, sense of community, and often their dignity. These are people... Continue Reading →