Articles for tag: Health

May 20, 2017

Christian Standard

Don’t Designate . . . Release Leaders!

By Chuck Dennie Leadership in worship is not about you. It”s about the leaders around you. I spent many of my early years as a worship leader learning this lesson the hard way. I was the front man for a Christian band called By the Tree for about 10 years. In 2005, I felt God calling me to the local church. It”s a calling I have loved! I started leading worship at a church in Oklahoma City called LifeChurch.tv (now Life.Church) about 12 years ago. At that time, about 8,000 people attended every Sunday. I went in as a 27-year-old

May 16, 2017

Mark A. Taylor

First Family

By Mark A. Taylor Ministry can be hard on a minister”s family life. The demands of the congregation don”t stop when the church office closes. Needs and opportunities to serve abound in the evenings, threatening to take the minister away from conversations with a spouse or attendance at children”s ballgames and concerts. Phone calls can come night and day. And the minister may feel he has no one to talk to about disappointments and difficulties except a spouse, who then becomes overwhelmed with information and worries that cannot be shared with anyone else. We can be encouraged that 70 percent

March 26, 2017

Christian Standard

Lady Wisdom, Ben Franklin, and the Marlboro Man

Jay Engelbrecht Your creator designed you to live healthy and well. How can we cooperate with his yearning for our best? Let”s test your knowledge of the book of Proverbs. Three of the quotes below come from Eugene Peterson”s modern paraphrase The Message, while the other two come from founding father Benjamin Franklin. Can you identify the source of each? 1. “Don”t stuff yourself; bridle your appetite.” 2. “He that won”t be counseled can”t be helped.” 3. “When you”re given a box of candy, don”t gulp it all down.” 4. “Eat to live, don”t live to eat.” 5. “It”s not smart

July 15, 2016

Christian Standard

A Child Named Faith

By Tim Spivey Greg came to live a better story even through the tragedy of losing an infant child just hours after birth. Greg and his wife (who was a Christian) suffered that unspeakable loss. After I preached the funeral for their dear child, Greg surprised me by asking to study the Bible, and I was thrilled to baptize him into Christ a couple of months later. He eventually became a drummer in our worship band, sporting a large, lifelike tattoo of his recently passed daughter on one arm. He and his wife conceived a second child but were told

March 8, 2016

Mark A. Taylor

Surgery and Other Sickness

By Mark A. Taylor “I have visited and prayed with many sick people,” Professor Sherwood Smith told my class at The Cincinnati Bible Seminary more than 40 years ago. “But never did I pray like I did when the patient was my wife.” For some reason that insight has stuck with me all these years, and now it comes into sharper focus as I anticipate my own surgery Thursday this week. “Lord, heal him,” the elders prayed in December, not long after my diagnosis of prostate cancer. “Lord, keep him in the palm of your hand,” the men in my

March 2, 2016

Christian Standard

What Are the Odds?

By Jim Tune As I write this, the Zika virus is just beginning to make headlines. Claudia and I are only 10 days away from embarking on our first-ever cruise. Our seven-day, Western-Caribbean cruise was a surprise I arranged for my wife to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary. One of our ports of call is in a country for which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has already issued this midlevel travel alert: “Practice enhanced precautions.” Who knows what another 10 days will bring? This virus is spreading aggressively. The virus, which is spread mainly by mosquitoes, appears to

July 22, 2015

Christian Standard

Sweet Sorrow

By Jim Tune One of my favorite books (and I like the movie, too) is the classic The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Czech writer Milan Kundera. In his book, the heroine, Teresa, struggles to be at peace with life when it”s not heavy, when it”s too much lightness, sunshine, and seemingly carefree””when it”s devoid of the anxieties that hint at darkness and mortality. She feels the constant need for gravitas, for some heaviness that says life is more than simply the present flourishing of health and comfort. For her, lightness equals superficiality. Most of us prefer sunshine over shadow,

December 6, 2013

Christian Standard

King Corn and Captain Kirk

By Jay Engelbrecht My grandmother quoted Scripture to warn me against the evils of alcohol. But today another culprit wreaks equal, if not greater, harm. “Never take a drink and you”ll never become a drunk.” When my grandmother admonished me to avoid alcohol, she did me a world of good. Her advice spared me weight gain, high blood pressure, heart disease, certain types of cancer, diabetes, and dementia Thanks, Grandma. Of course, she cared more about my character than the physical impact of alcohol. Her view on alcohol was influenced by Deuteronomy 21:20: “They shall say to the elders, “˜This

March 24, 2013

Christian Standard

Four Vital Signs of a Healthy Elder Team

By Gary L. Johnson Effective teams are healthy teams. But how do elder teams function well together? What does a healthy elder team look like? The best answers to those questions can be found in the leadership lessons between Jesus and his team of disciples. As Jesus neared the end of his ministry, as described in Mark 8 and 9, he had significant moments with his disciples, revealing four vital signs of a healthy team.   Vital Sign 1 A healthy elder team knows and pursues the mission. In Mark 8:31-38, Jesus explained to his disciples that he would suffer at

August 31, 2012

Christian Standard

Bigger Issue than Same-Sex Attraction?

By James Engelbrecht Individuals with same-sex attraction make up as much as 6 percent of the male population and 4.5 percent of females (though some studies estimate half that). Those are not insignificant numbers, especially when same-sex attraction involves you or someone you love. Thus began Mark Moore”s February 12, 2012, column, “How Should the Church Relate to Those with Same-Sex Attraction?” Here”s the rub. As a follower of Christ, I hear Christians say: “Keep your nose out of my private life.” “It”s my body.” “Christians aren”t called to be judgmental.” “It”s not a sin. I”m this way due to

June 12, 2012

Christian Standard

What About Workouts?

By Dale Holzbauer Here”s a nonsense syllable to help you achieve your goals: “FID.” Workouts should have frequency, intensity, and duration. F””Frequency. You should work out about three times per week. I worked out as frequently as six times per week when I was in hard training for a fight, and I have worked out as little as twice per week when I was “peaking” for a power lifting meet. I have found that working out three to four times per week allows plenty of time for recuperation and provides good health benefits.  I””Intensity. You must push yourself a bit in order

June 12, 2012

Christian Standard

What About Exercise?

By Dale Holzbauer A quick look at books, articles, and websites shows there are thousands of plans available for one who wishes to begin a basic training program to improve appearance, health, mobility, flexibility, and endurance. I have distilled what I have learned in more than 50 years of training into two easy-to-remember formulas that will help aspiring trainees. Fess Parker, of Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone TV and Hollywood fame, was my hero as a kid. I use his first name to help me remember some important principles in training and exercising. F””Flexibility. Avoiding flexibility training in your exercise regimen is a huge mistake.

June 11, 2012

Christian Standard

What About Diet?

By Dale Holzbauer No exercise program can succeed without attention to diet. Most readers already know that Americans eat too much salt, fat, and sugar. Here”s what I”ve learned and how I handle my diet. I have found it is beneficial to eat a good breakfast consisting of whole grains, fruit, and egg whites. Lunch consists of fish or fowl and a vegetable or two. For supper I have soup, whole grains, a small portion of meat, veggies, fruit, and a reasonable dessert. Through the course of the day, I snack on unprocessed nuts, raisins, and yogurt to combat cravings.

June 11, 2012

Christian Standard

From 90-Pound Weakling to Weight Lifter

By Dale Holzbauer The funeral director and I had been friends for many years. The man whose funeral service I had conducted was also my longtime personal friend. The official cause of death was a massive heart attack. As we made our way to the cemetery, the funeral director and I began to talk. “He was only 59 years old,” I said. “The family had to buy an extra-large casket,” replied the funeral director. The statistics are shocking. Obesity is the No. 2 cause of preventable death in the United States. One-fifth of the nation”s population, 20 years of age

January 27, 2011

Christian Standard

Christian Missionary Fellowship”s Maasai Health Services

By Jennifer Taylor Christian Missionary Fellowship”s Maasai Health Services clinics recently received a grant of $516,000 from the U.S. President”s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief to provide HIV/AIDS services in the Maasai area of Kenya. In 2009 these clinics saw 71,000 patients, not including a large number of children who received immunizations and women who received follow-up pregnancy visits. In recent years the clinics have been run completely by Kenyans, many of whom were encouraged in their educational and career pursuits by missionaries from CMF, based in Indianapolis, Indiana. The funds will be dispersed to the clinics through September 2011.

November 4, 2010

Christian Standard

Seven Hallmarks of a Healthy Small Group

By Michael Mack What makes a small group healthy? At Northeast Christian Church, we define small group health by seven biblical values and evaluate all groups annually to see how they are doing. Note that the first four deal with how a group is focused and organized, and the last three deal with what they do. 1. Christ-centered: Jesus is the real group leader. Groups meet in his presence and power and for his purposes. (Matthew 18:20) 2. Healthy, growing leaders: The small group leader is growing in his or her faith by being involved in daily disciplines such as Bible

July 6, 2008

Christian Standard

Hope Partnership: A Way to Get Involved in HIV/AIDS Ministry

By Staff Nearly 2.5 million people live in poverty in the slums and urban areas of Nairobi, Kenya. They lack the basic necessities of life, including adequate housing, clean water, and sanitation services. Educational opportunities are negligible. Diseases run rampant throughout the communities. Complicating the problem, there are very few jobs to provide the income needed for families to improve their lives. In addition to these difficulties, the effects of AIDS are devastating the area. There are countless orphans and vulnerable children throughout the slums, where the infection rate approaches 40 percent. For every person who dies of AIDS, another

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