THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE HEALTHY OF LIFE IN VOCATIONAL MINISTRY “The life of the minister is the life of his ministry.” Albert Martin We recently sat down with small groups of young ministers from across America and talked life in vocational ministry. Our discussion focused on three subjects: 1. What are the best […]
CAST ADRIFT IN STORMY SEAS My wife, two young daughters (seven and four years of age), and I had just moved to the city of Tours, deep in the heart of the celebrated châteaux region of France. As first-term missionaries, we had left family, friends, and ministry in America to make a new life in […]
As we turn the final pages of 2023, I again offer my list of favorite reads for the year. As always, this is not a list of my favorite books published in 2023, but books read in 2023. If a book is on my “Best Of” list, I recommend you give it a read in 2024. Of interest, the publishing […]
In March 2023, The Barna Group reported the following: It is a sobering, even shocking revelation. One that must be addressed immediately. Picture it this way. Imagine a gathering of 100 pastors, all seated in chairs in your church sanctuary. Fifty-nine of them sit facing the pulpit, awaiting the Word of the Lord with […]
I have a friend who started a retirement account many years ago, one of those something-something-Bs. He thought it best to prepare for the future, not only his but that of his children and their children. He wanted to do all he could to set in place a healthy scenario for himself and his family […]
It was a Sunday I’ll never forget. As a staff pastor, I had just finished leading worship in our morning service. As I did every Sunday, I exited the platform through a door to the right, descending the steps into our office suite. Closing the door behind me, I turned to my right, entering a […]
SOME BACKGROUND Every January, Journey kicks off the year with retreats for our members, held in the warm climate of Orlando. Members arrive from all over the country for one of our two retreat weeks. Those who cannot afford the cost of transportation are scholarshipped by generous donors – how thankful we are for their […]
A new year. With the dawning of a new year, we are prone to make New Year’s resolutions designed to improve us or our lives in the year ahead, or maybe even for the rest of our lives. Among the more common are: reading our Bible and praying daily, exercising, and losing weight. But, unfortunately, […]
INTRODUCTION In our previous article, we posted the first half of our 20 must-reads on pastoral ministry. You can read that article here. In this follow-up we look at the second half of our list, again focusing not on the “-ing” of pastoring, but the person, the pastor. These authors write with their attention fixed […]
Editor’s Note: In this article, we share with you the first ten books in our look at 20 Must Reads on Pastoring. We invite you to join us in discovering the second half of our list in two weeks. “You’ve got to read this book!” How many times has someone said this to you? My library is […]
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