Articles for tag: Marriage

November 25, 2010

Christian Standard

A Date with God

By Daniel Schantz “For I have espoused you to one husband” (2 Corinthians 11:2, King James Version). Paul describes our relationship with Christ as a kind of marriage, and marriage goes through certain phases. YOUNG marriage starts out with celestial expectations. You see no reason the honeymoon can”t last forever. Every day is a “date.” She makes breakfast for you, then you go jogging together before heading off to work. You buy each other expensive gifts to prove your love. Passion is strong, and nights are interesting. You talk a lot, but some of those talks turn into quarrels, and

May 16, 2010

Christian Standard

The Credibility Factor

By Ken Swatman Read the main article, “Leading People Toward Redemption and Restoration (Part 1),” by Ken Swatman Although we may bristle at the idea, pastors are seen as leaders and given the positional authority of leadership in most local churches. We may attach “servant” or “visionary” to our pastoral titles to lessen the authoritative stigma and add an air of humility, but it doesn”t change the fact that, as pastors, we are biblically, socially, and spiritually in a position of leadership. As pastors, we are called by God and our congregations to shepherd, feed, and protect the flock, and

March 7, 2010

Christian Standard

God Intends Church Growth

By Stephen Bond “I will build my church . . .” (Jesus Christ in Matthew 16:18) God intends church growth. We know this because there are still people who have not yet embraced God”s grace through faith in Christ. Those people face the specter of eternal separation from the Heavenly Father. Jesus came to seek and to save these lost people. This is not the only message Jesus brings, but it is one of the most important. At the age of 21, I opened the Bible for the first time and discovered a world of truth I had never known.

December 13, 2009

Christian Standard

Pastoral Care in the Midst of Crisis

By Ken Swatman The phone rang at 11:00 p.m. (never a good sign). It was the local police department, where I serve as a chaplain. A young single mother had just found her 4-month-old baby girl unconscious and not breathing. I grabbed my coat and ran out the door. When I arrived at the house I found the young mother sitting on the kitchen floor, devastated. As a pastor and chaplain I was being asked to bring some kind of comfort, care, and peace to an event that was tragic beyond words. When tragedy strikes our congregations and communities, we

August 12, 2009

Christian Standard

Serving for a Lifetime

By Mark A. Taylor We began editing this issue the week I was celebrating my 36th wedding anniversary. And I couldn”t help thinking how the advice of Randy Gariss and Paul Williams apply to my marriage as well as my ministry. Stick with a ministry for the long haul? Difficult. Stick with a marriage for a lifetime? Some would say impossible. Indeed, this summer”s tabloids have been filled with news of failed marriages, with conservative politicians as well as reality show stars confessing affairs and vowing to move on to the next chapters in their lives. Time magazine took note

July 26, 2009

Christian Standard

A Place of Quiet Rest

By Kelly Kastens In the fall of 2004 we moved into a long-awaited, brand-new worship center. It was an awesome time in the life of our church. And, for a while, it was an awesome time in my life. As worship programming director, I was insanely busy, but it was fun and it felt like we were doing something that mattered. God was showing up every week and new people were showing up every week and life change was happening. While all these good things were going on, I was getting busier and busier. There was always more to do,

July 5, 2009

Christian Standard

A Test of Our Times

  By Rod Roberts The opening sentence of Charles Dickens”s A Tale of Two Cities describes the era of the French Revolution: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,” That well-known literary line underscores why leaders need to discern the times in which they live. Had Louis XVI understood this crucial leadership principle, he may have avoided the distinction of being the only king of France to be executed. Do you ever consider how important the times today may be to the flow of human history? Even Scripture underscores the importance of understanding the times

July 1, 2009

Christian Standard

Interview with John Walker

By Brad Dupray As an ordained Christian minister and holder of a PhD in psychology, John Walker was looking for a way to marry his two passions to benefit the kingdom. Out of that desire was born Blessing Ranch, a ministry of resource and renewal for church leaders. John and his wife, Deanna, walked away from successful jobs and stable incomes to pursue their dream in 1994. Since that time, more than 3,000 Christian leaders have visited the ranch. Blessing Ranch is a family affair, as daughter Hope oversees the ranch”s accounting and daughter Charity is working on her PhD

June 14, 2009

Christian Standard

Transformed Lives Through God”s Word in Every Language

  By Greg Pruett I cocked my ear to one side, straining to understand the faint yelping I was hearing as I blinked a drop of West African dust and sweat out of my eye. I instinctively moved into the high grass to investigate and found a young boy with a long switch relentlessly whipping a starving puppy to near death. I tried to tell him not to do that, but my first week of language learning just wasn”t enough. The boy”s eyes betrayed no shame. Nobody had ever told him the simplest lesson of Genesis my Sunday school teacher

June 7, 2009

Christian Standard

What I”ve Learned While Serving Single Moms

  By Nancy Karpenske It”s what the church is supposed to be doing. It takes longer than you think. Their backgrounds and situations are not all similar. Their problems are large and expensive. Their hurts are deep. Their children are their priority. Many have little knowledge of God”s plans for marriage and family. Many have little grasp of God”s love and grace. Many have been turned away from their church, either because the small church can”t meet their financial needs or because that church punishes those who get divorced. Many have a hard exterior that covers a wounded heart. Many

May 17, 2009

Christian Standard

The Point of Christianity 2: Racial Reconciliation

  By Douglas A. Foster Racial division continues in Christ”s body””despite the shedding of his blood. To state it plainly, there is a deep and abiding divide between white people and people of color, in society and in Christ”s church.  Events in our national and religious history seared racial suspicion deep into our subconscious. Two events serve as illustrations of the evil of racism in its most blatant form.   BAD DECISIONS In 1857 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled (in Dred Scott v. Sandford) that the slave Dred Scott remained a slave even when taken into a “free” state. The

February 3, 2008

Christian Standard

How a Visit to a Country Church Changed Many Lives

By Ruth M. Groover My father said “yes” reluctantly, but I would have done the same thing under the circumstances. My parents, Ernest and Ila Miller, were born in rural Georgia. My father knew how to raise corn and cotton, and he planned to make a living as a farmer. My mother was quite happy with life on the farm. But things changed. Walter S. and Civilla D. Martin are remembered primarily for their work as Christian musicians. Harvard-educated, Dr. Martin”s strength was writing music. Mrs. Martin wrote the words. The beautiful hymn “God Will Take Care of You” is

September 2, 2007

Christian Standard

Scandalous Risks

By C. Robert Wetzel “Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made” (Genesis 3:1). Some time ago I read Susan Howatch”s novel Scandalous Risks. It is the fourth in a series of six novels about the Church of England in the 20th century. I was surprised to see the novel introduced by a quotation from the book of popular theology entitled Honest to God, written by Bishop John A. T. Robinson in 1962. Honest to God was one of those books that attempts to revise Christian faith to make it more

August 26, 2007

Jeff Walling

power to go the distance

The Power to Go the Distance

Marathon training reveals a surprising truth: finishing is less about muscles than motivation. This devotional contrasts fear, reward, and love—and points to Christ’s love as the strength that helps believers go the distance.

August 12, 2007

Tim Harlow

hope for Africa

Toilets and Christianity

After visiting Nairobi’s slums, Tim Harlow shares sobering realities of poverty and HIV/AIDS and urges believers to act like Jesus—supporting children, caring for the vulnerable, and trusting the church to bring lasting hope.

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