Parable of the Lost Sheep Craft (and Game!) for Sunday School Students

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October 25, 2022

This parable of the lost sheep craft is adorable. Children will love it! They’ll want to take this Sunday school craft home and show everyone. In fact, they’ll want to take it to school and show everyone, too. This project is ideal for that purpose because it’s more than just a craft. It’s also a game!

For a children’s ministry lesson about Jesus’ Parable of the Lost Sheep, children will have fun making this cute craft. Then the fun continues! Kids can hide the sheep under one of the cups. Next they mix up the cups and let someone guess where the sheep is.

Supplies you’ll need:
Pom Poms (1-2″ white)
Felt (Black)
Wiggly Eyes
Bathroom Cups
Scissors
Glue

Parable of the Lost Sheep Craft

Follow these easy steps. (See the video below for a demonstration.)

First, cut out a sheep face with ears from black felt. I used regular felt and glued later. But using sticky-back felt might work even better.

Second, glue the wiggle eyes onto the sheep’s face.

Third, glue the head with eyes onto the pom pom. (Or stick it, if you use the sticky-back felt.)

Finally, set out your set of three cups and hide the sheep under one. Mix the cups around and see if someone watching can find the sheep.

See a demonstration here. (Please ignore the dead poinsettia in the background!)

This crafty article originally appeared here.

Scripture Reference: Parable of the Lost Sheep Craft

“Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.” Luke 15:4-7

First Impressions Conference: Keep Visitors Coming Back

By

Greg Atkinson

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October 25, 2022

Image credit: First Impressions Conference

Will Rogers once famously said, “You never get a second chance to make a first impression.”

And if you’ve ever walked through the doors of a church where no one greeted you, no one made you feel welcome, no one showed any interest in you at all, you understand how true those words can be.

Because that unwelcoming church may have inspiring worship, thriving outreach, and energetic, powerful preaching – but if you didn’t feel like you really connected, chances are you didn’t go back for a second impression.

Sadly, for too many people, the cost of feeling unwelcome is much higher than simply making the effort to try a different church the following Sunday. They might give up trying church at all.

When our goal as Christians is to see lives transformed by the Gospel as they begin or pursue a relationship with Christ, that’s heartbreaking. The truth is people simply want to feel loved and accepted — especially at church.

And helping them feel that way isn’t a burden, it’s a privilege. More than that, it’s our calling as believers. Romans 15:7 (ESV) tells us, “Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.”

Welcoming people into a body of believers is a calling for every Christ-follower, whether you’re the volunteer director, the parking lot coordinator, or the pastor. As both a hospitality expert and founder of First Impressions Conference, I say in my book, The Hospitality Ministry Volunteer Handbook:

“While hospitality may sometimes be perceived as a unique gifting for some people, Scripture is clear that loving strangers is a biblical mandate to anyone who follows Jesus. Throughout the Old and New Testaments, God specifically commands His people to practice hospitality.

When we welcome the least of these and treat them as valued guests, we welcome Christ Himself. And like so much of 1 John shows us, when we love others, we show our love for God.”

Worrying about whether your church is making visitors feel welcome doesn’t have to keep you up at night, however. There are clear, easy-to-use strategies that church and business leaders have been using for decades that can help you make everyone feel like a “valued guest” in your church.

That’s why I have gathered more than 30 industry experts in business and church ministry to teach those welcoming strategies at the 2022 First Impressions Conference.

Free, Online First Impressions Conference

This free, online conference will be held Nov. 2-4 and features speakers including Bob Goff, NYT Best Selling Author, Love Does Inc.; Jeff Henderson, Founder of The FOR Company; Dr. Derwin Gray, Co-Founder, Lead Elder Pastor of Transformation Church; Brian Tome, Lead Pastor, Crossroads Church; Nona Jones, Author, Entrepreneur, Pastor, Tech Executive of Nona Jones Ministries; and so many others.

The focus of the First Impressions Conference is to help church leaders understand how to create welcoming environments for members and guests every time the church doors are open. Attendees will walk away with tips and strategies on how to connect with people and make them want to keep coming back.

And because the conference is free and online, leadership teams, hospitality groups, and lay leaders can all benefit from the years of experience that the conference’s powerhouse roster of seasoned pastors, ministry consultants, authors, and other industry experts bring to the stage. The principles and systems taught through both keynotes and breakout sessions can be applied to churches of all sizes.

A conference such as this is timely, and the strategies being taught are critical – especially in today’s increasingly secular environment when church membership is in a steep decline.

According to a recent Gallup poll, church membership among U.S. adults has dipped below 50% for the first time. What was 73% in 1940 dropped below 47% in 2020. And as further indication that America is likely entering a post-Christian era, the percentage of Gen Z that identifies as atheist is now double that of the U.S. adult population. (Source)

Encouragingly, however, church attendance is returning to – and in some cases surpassing – pre-pandemic levels among some populations. A 2022 Barna report showed that, “Since 2019, the percentage of Millennials reporting weekly church attendance has increased from 21 percent to 39 percent. Among Gen X, attendance has increased 8 percentage points (24% to 32%).”

The bottom line is that God is still at work in the United States. But churches can increase their reach and depth of impact simply by making visitors feel the love of God from the moment they walk in the door.

Nelson Searcey, pastor, author, strategist, and founder of Church Leader Insights, stated,

“When your guests return for a second look, you’ve won 80 percent of the battle of gaining new regular attendees and have drastically increased the chances that they will begin a journey with Christ.”

It’s clear that first impressions matter. And being intentional about connecting with the people in your congregation, whether they’ve been at your church for five minutes or five decades, shows them what Christian love looks like. And that can start a journey that will change their lives for eternity.

It’s been widely accepted that Walt Disney once said,

“Whatever you do, do it well. Do it so well that when people see you do it, they will want to come back and see you do it again, and they will want to bring others and show them how well you do what you do.”

That’s excellent advice for theme parks. It’s even better advice for the church – especially because it reflects Paul’s instructions to the church in Corinth: “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 10:31, NIV)

That’s the goal of the First Impressions Conference. To equip church and lay leaders with the insight and tools to welcome and love people – for the glory of God and with such excellence – that they return for a second visit… then a third… then enough times to assimilate into the body of believers.

Attendees will not only hear from speakers like Bob Goff and Jeff Henderson, they’ll also learn tried-and-true strategies from pastors including Dave Gibbons of New Song Church, Myron Pierce of Mission Church, and Terry Smith of The Life Christian Church.

And they’ll get invaluable wisdom from industry experts like Larry Brey, Associate Pastor at Elevation Church and creator of the VIP Experience approach for guests and Mark Waltz, Founder of Because People Matter, LLC and author of First Impressions.

That’s why pastors like Rob McEwan of Traders Point Christian Church are so excited about the First Impressions Conference. He shares…

“The First Impressions Conference is a great opportunity to hear from some amazing speakers on a variety of topics. There are sessions for people across the organization to gain relevant and timely information to help them shape and execute their mission. After the conference you will feel encouraged about the importance of what you do and challenged to improve and innovate on how you do it.”

Will Rogers was right – you never get a second chance to make a first impression. But when you know how to connect with people and make them feel welcome from the minute they walk through the doors of your church, one is all you need.

If you’re interested in discovering how to create welcoming environments for members and guests every time your church doors are open, register now for the First Impressions Conference, Nov. 2-4. Registration is free, and the conference is online – perfect for groups or individuals.

Sean Feucht, Charlie Kirk Call Out T.D. Jakes for Welcoming Pro-Choice Politician Beto O’Rourke at The Potter’s House

By

Jesse T. Jackson

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October 25, 2022

Charlie Kirk T.D. Jakes Sean Feucht — (L) Sean Feucht courtesy of Sean Feucht (M) Beto O'Rourke and T.D. Jakes screengrab via Twitter @BetoORourke (R) Charlie Kirk Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

America’s famous bishop T.D. Jakes has come under fire for welcoming Democratic nominee for Texas governor Beto O’Rourke to The Potter’s House in Dallas, Texas, this past Sunday (Oct. 23).

The politician thanked Jakes on Twitter, saying, “It was an honor to be welcomed into The Potter’s House by Bishop T.D. Jakes. Thank you for having me at this morning’s service in Dallas.”

O’Rouke, the 50-year-old former Texas U.S. House of Representatives (2013-2019), is campaigning against current Texas governor, Greg Abbott (64), in this year’s November election.

O’Rouke is known for his extreme pro-abortion policy stances and is making abortion one of the top issues of his campaign, attacking Abbott’s pro-life stance and the laws restricting abortion in the state that Abbott has helped to put into effect, both before and after the Supreme Court overturn of Roe v. Wade this past June.

In an email sent to supporters, O’Rourke asked, “What are the most important things Texans need to know about Abbott?” The Democratic candidate answered, “Greg Abbott signed the nation’s most extreme abortion bill into law with no exception for rape or incest, even though 82% of Texans reject his radical ban.”

Jakes supported former President Barack Obama during his presidential run in 2008 and described President Joe Biden’s 2021 inaugural address as hopeful and encouraging.

In an interview with The Atlantic last year, Jakes shared that his theological stances on abortion and same-sex marriage would be similar to stances held by conservative Southern Baptist pastors, but explained that his differences with them politically is a matter of emphasis.

“To raise the concern for the unborn above the born—to fight for the life in the womb and not in the prison or in the school systems—if life is valuable, then after the mother pushes out the baby, that life should still be that valuable,” Jakes said.

Sean Feucht and Charlie Kirk Call Out Jakes for Welcoming O’Rourke

“Let Us Worship” founder Sean Feucht, who recently released “SuperSpreader,” a documentary chronicling the mass outdoor worship concerts he held during COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns, tweeted a message to his followers regarding Jakes political pro-choice guest.

“I will never understand these churches giving a political platform to woke politicians who love abortion and hate religious liberty,” Feucht wrote.

This past Saturday (Oct. 22), the global worship leader led thousands of people in worship at various places around the nation’s capital, which included stops at the White House, Lincoln Memorial, and the Supreme Court building. Feucht expressed that he isn’t against church leadership speaking about politics in their churches, but he is against them welcoming politicians that don’t align with the biblical values most important to many conservative minded evangelicals.

‘Wealth Can Be a Curse’—Hobby Lobby CEO To ‘Give Away Ownership’ of the Company

By

Jessica Lea

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October 25, 2022

david green hobby lobby — Random Retail, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

David Green, founder and CEO of Hobby Lobby, has announced that he will be giving away ownership of his company and that he is doing so out of a desire to be a good steward of what God has given him.

“In the mid-1980s I went through a period where I’d grown proud thinking that I had the Midas touch—and I nearly lost the business,” writes Green in an op-ed for Fox News titled, “My decision to give away ownership of Hobby Lobby: I chose God.” “God had to show me that He was the one who granted success. The Bible says in Deuteronomy 8:18 that it’s God who gives us the power to make wealth. In that vein, I’d encourage every leader to consider their source of truth. What is the basis upon which they make decisions? Is it just themselves, or even a leadership team?”

David Green: God Is the True Owner of Hobby Lobby

Popular arts and crafts chain Hobby Lobby has its roots in a decision David Green and his wife, Barbara, made in 1970 when they took out a $600 loan to sell miniature picture frames out of their home. They opened the first Hobby Lobby store two years later.

“I don’t think anyone would have bet on us to become successful,” writes Green. “But from the very beginning our purpose was to honor God in all that we did. We worked hard and God gave the results. As we were blessed by God, we saw it as a great privilege to give back. We’ve been able to provide hope through supporting ministries and planting churches all over the world.”

According to the Hobby Lobby website, the chain now has over 900 stores and “is the largest privately owned arts-and-crafts retailer in the world with over 43,000 employees and operating in 47 states.”

Hobby Lobby’s mission to serve others has helped Green to see himself as a steward of the company, instead of its owner. “God was the true owner of my business,” he said. It is because Green sees himself as a steward and not an owner of Hobby Lobby that he believes it is his responsibility to take care of his employees by paying them a minimum wage of $18.50 per hour, closing by 8 p.m. during the week, and not opening for business on Sundays.

“As an owner, there are certain rights and responsibilities, including the right to sell the company and keep the profits for yourself and your family,” says Green. But he became uncomfortable with this idea as Hobby Lobby grew increasingly successful. When he envisioned passing ownership of the company to his children and grandchildren, “it didn’t seem fair to me that I might change or even ruin the future of grandchildren who had not even been born yet.”

Protesters Shred Bibles, Eat Pages As Matt Walsh Discusses Gender Identity at University Hosted Event

By

Dale Chamberlain

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October 25, 2022

On Monday (October 24), conservative commentator Matt Walsh was featured at an event hosted by the University of Wisconsin-Madison to discuss gender and gender identity. Protesters gathered to oppose Walsh’s presence on campus, with some tearing apart Bibles and eating their pages.

A provocative critic of progressive gender ideology, Walsh is the author of “What Is a Woman?: One Man’s Journey to Answer the Question of a Generation,” as well as a children’s book titled “Johnny the Walrus,” which is a parable about the dangers of gender transitioning.

Walsh was also featured in a Daily Wire produced documentary titled “What is a Woman?” In that film, Walsh poses the titular question to experts and laypeople alike, both in the United States and abroad.

Walsh has been a consistent and vocal opponent of gender ideology, even appearing on the Dr. Phil show in January to debate with a couple who both identified as non-binary.

“I mean, I could sit here and say that I feel like a tomato plant, but that doesn’t actually mean that I am those things,” Walsh said at one point during that debate.

Though Walsh was sternly criticized for his abrasive tone and demeanor, even by some who agree with his theological convictions and policy stances, he stood by his appearance on the show, arguing that those who advocate for progressive gender ideology are not merely misguided, but “bad people.”

On Friday (October 21), Walsh led a “Rally to End Child Mutilation,” aimed at calling attention to the advocacy among certain politicians and pundits to allow minors to receive “gender affirming care,” including hormone therapy and gender reassignment surgery.

The rally was held in downtown Nashville and corresponded with recent allegations against Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC). Those accusations were levied by Walsh, who said in part of VUMC, “They now castrate, sterilize, and mutilate minors as well as adults, while apparently taking steps to hide this activity from the public view.”

Featured speakers at the “Rally to End Child Mutilation” included Walsh, 2020 presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard, and Senator Marsha Blackburn.

Walsh was welcomed onto the campus University of Wisconsin-Madison after the weekend to discuss gender ideology through a prepared speech followed by a Q&A. Part of a tour to promote Walsh’s work in “What is a Woman?”, the event was organized by Wisconsin Young Americans for Freedom (YAF).

Las Vegas Church Planting Legacy Supported by Send Network, Cooperative Program

By

Timothy Cockes

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October 25, 2022

Editor’s note: October is Cooperative Program Emphasis Month in the Southern Baptist Convention.

LAS VEGAS (BP) – For Hope Church Las Vegas, planting churches throughout the city has always been a priority and a passion.

Even before he became president of the North American Mission Board’s (NAMB) Send Network, Hope’s founding pastor Vance Pitman viewed church multiplication as a priority, he told Baptist Press in written comments.

“God sometimes builds His Kingdom in the most unlikely places, and He invited us to simply join in His activity in Las Vegas by being obedient to engage that city with the Gospel,” Pitman said. “As disciples were made, churches were born.”

Pitman joined Send Network in March 2022, but not before leaving a generational legacy of church planting in Las Vegas.

One particular branch stemming from Hope Church is in the process of sending out its fourth church in the city. WALK Church has benefited from the support of both Send Network and the Cooperative Program.

Heiden Ratner is the senior pastor of WALK Church, which he planted in the very town where he grew up.

After becoming a Christian during his freshman year of college, Ratner felt an immediate calling to reach Vegas with the Gospel.

“When I became a believer, I felt like I caught a passion for evangelism, specifically in my hometown of Las Vegas,” Ratner said. “I wanted to be the change that I didn’t see and didn’t have growing up.”

Upon a recommendation, Ratner would start attending Hope Church during the summers when he was home from school.

Ratner had never been to church before and wasn’t even aware there were churches in

Vegas. But he soon discovered that Hope Church met on Sundays in the very same gym where he played high school basketball.

Pitman began mentoring Ratner, who would begin a two-year church-planting apprenticeship with Send Network in 2013.

“I felt like God was calling me to plant a church one day, and I wanted Hope to be the sending church,” Ratner said.

“Pastor Vance invited me into his life in discipling and mentoring me for several years, and the Send Network apprenticeship was an opportunity for me to learn what it means to be a pastor and grow my understanding of church planting and disciple-making.”

In the fall of 2015, WALK Church was launched. A few years later in the fall of 2020, Ratner would step into a new position as the NAMB Send City missionary for Las Vegas.

Former Houston Baptist University Quarterback Pushes for MNF Start

By

Scott Barkley

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October 25, 2022

NASHVILLE (BP) – In his three (and some) seasons as quarterback for Houston Baptist University, Bailey Zappe turned a lot of heads in the Huskies’ Air Raid passing offense on his way to becoming the school’s first NFL Draft pick.

The last two weeks as an NFL starter in place of the Patriots’ Mac Jones has led to more of the same, not to mention a potential quarterback controversy in New England.

Over three games, Zappe, a 2022 fourth-round pick, has thrown for 596 yards and four touchdowns to go with only one interception while completing 72.9 percent of his passes.

Zappe is 2-0 as a starter, but his first significant game action came Oct. 2 on the road in Green Bay after backup Brian Hoyer – Jones was recovering from a high ankle sprain – suffered a head injury early in the contest. The Patriots lost 27-24 in overtime, but Zappe’s solid performance (10 completions on 19 attempts for 99 yards and a touchdown) carried over.

The Patriots’ most recent two games saw them outscore the Lions and Browns by a combined 67-15.

“To be quite honest with you, I’m just taking advantage of my opportunity at practice … and taking it week by week,” Zappe said in the Oct. 16 post-game conference. “And once we come back … and watch the film tomorrow of this game then it’s really off to [face] the Bears.”

Offensive output comes with Zappe under center. During his junior year at Houston Baptist (since renamed Houston Christian University) the Victoria, Texas, native threw for 3,811 yards and led the nation with 35 regular season touchdown passes.

COVID led to an abridged 2020 season, but in only four games Zappe led the nation with 458.3 yards per game. Against Texas Tech, the 40-point underdog Huskies pushed the Red Raiders behind Zappe’s 567 yards and four touchdowns before dropping a 35-33 heartbreaker.

On its website, Houston Christian University says it has a “cooperative relationship” with the Baptist General Convention of Texas and a “fraternal relationship” with the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention.

As a graduate senior, Zappe transferred to Western Kentucky and had one of the greatest seasons for a college quarterback ever, completing 475 of 686 passes (69.2 percent) for 5,987 yards and 62 touchdowns with 11 interceptions. The total yardage set a single-season Football Bowl Subdivision record in breaking Texas Tech’s B.J. Symons 5,833 yards in 2003.

His 2021 numbers also significantly outpaced his closest challenger, Alabama Heisman Trophy winner Bryce Young, by 1,095 yards and 15 touchdowns.

Officially, the Patriots have said Jones’ participation will be a game-time decision. However, media reports said that he practiced with the first team offense this weekend, signifying his return to the field.

This article originally appeared at Baptist Press.

Update: Patriots’ starter Mac Jones was pulled after throwing for only 13 yards on 6 attempts and 1 interception during 3 series of plays. Zappe entered the game for Jones and finished with 185 yards, 1 touchdown, and 2 interceptions in a 14-33 loss to the Bears on their home field Monday night.

White House Condemns Kanye-Fueled Antisemitic Freeway Demonstration in Los Angeles

By

Alejandra Molina

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October 25, 2022

white house kanye west — Artist Kanye West at the Met Gala in 2019 in New York. Video screen grab via Wikipedia

LOS ANGELES (RNS) — President Joe Biden’s administration is now the latest among national and local leaders to condemn a group of Los Angeles demonstrators who were giving Nazi salutes on a 405 Freeway overpass with several banners, including one that read “Kanye is right about the Jews,” according to photographs and videos circulated online.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Monday said Biden ran for president “to heal the soul of the nation after years of hate and division.”

“As part of this healing, we need to call out antisemitism everywhere it rears its ugly head. These actions in LA are disgusting and should be condemned,” Jean-Pierre said Monday on Twitter, citing a Los Angeles Times story about the demonstration.

The freeway demonstration, which appears to have taken place on Saturday, comes after Ye, the rapper formerly known as Kanye West, was blocked earlier this month from posting on Twitter and Instagram over antisemitic posts the social networks said violated their policies.

In one post on Twitter, Ye said he would soon go “death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE,” according to internet archive records reported by the Associated Press, in which he made an apparent reference to the U.S. defense-readiness condition scale known as DEFCON.

On Instagram, the rapper also shared a screenshot of a text message he sent Sean “Diddy” Combs, claiming Combs was controlled by Jewish people, NBC reported.

The nonprofit StopAntisemitism.org, which documents antisemitic behavior, and the Anti Defamation League in Southern California have linked the demonstration to Goyim Defense League, which the ADL describes as a small network of provocateurs that “espouses vitriolic antisemitism and white supremacist themes via the internet, through propaganda distributions and in street actions.” Goyim Defense League parodies the Anti-Defamation League’s name and logo, the ADL said.

"Goyim Defense League" members hang banners over a highway in Los Angeles. Photo via Twitter/@StopAntisemites

“Goyim Defense League” members hang banners over a highway in Los Angeles. Photo via Twitter/@StopAntisemites

Other banners during the demonstration quoted New Testament scriptures Rev. 3:9 and John 8:44 and also declared “Honk if you know.” Demonstrators also hung an American flag. The Los Angeles and Beverly Hills police departments said they are also investigating a recent distribution of antisemitic fliers in the cities, according to the Los Angeles Times.

“This is an outrageous effort to fan the flames of antisemitism gripping the nation,” said Jeffrey I. Abrams, regional director of ADL Los Angeles, in a statement. “This group, known for espousing antisemitism and white supremacist ideology, is now leveraging Ye’s antisemitism and is proof that hate breeds more hate.”

Abrams joined the growing number of people calling for Adidas to drop ties with Ye.

Oren Segal, vice president of ADL’s Center on Extremism, said on Twitter that Goyim Defense League is also targeting the Black community, noting that on the group’s Telegram chat members have discussed creating new fliers “blaming Jews for the Atlantic slave trade.”

CeCe Winans First Black Female Soloist to Win Artist of the Year at Dove Awards

By

Adelle M Banks

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October 25, 2022

(RNS) — CeCe Winans, already a multi-Grammy-winning gospel singer, added a historic win at the 2022 GMA Dove Awards, the contemporary Christian music honors, becoming the first African American female solo artist to be named Artist of the Year. She also won Song of the Year for “Believe for It,” the title track of her 2021 live recording.

As the applause subsided after the announcement of Artist of the Year, Winans broke into “To God Be the Glory” as her acceptance speech during the Oct. 18 ceremony of the Gospel Music Association that aired Friday on the Trinity Broadcasting Network.

“To God be the Glory for the things he has done,” she sang, and added: “God bless you. Thank you.”

Winans added in a written statement: “All I wanted for this record was for it to touch the hearts of people so they would be encouraged and filled with hope; but its success far exceeded all that I could have imagined. To God be the glory!”

Winans, 58, won Song of the Year for the track she co-wrote with Dwan Hill, Kyle Lee and Mitch Wong.

“It’s just amazing what God is doing, working with these guys, and grabbing songs that touch my heart,” she said in expressing thanks to her co-writers and producers on the album.

“I just want us to understand that the God of miracles is still working miracles. So keep believing for it.”

Winans is on the first leg of her 21-city tour for “Believe for It,” and is set to release her new book, “Believe for It: Passing on Faith to the Next Generation,” on Nov. 15.

Winans, the eighth of 10 children born to the Winans gospel music family, is the co-pastor, along with her husband, Alvin Love, of Nashville Life Church, a nondenominational congregation in Tennessee.

She won her first New Artist of the Year award with her brother BeBe Winans in 1988 — the same year she won her first of 15 Grammys — and now has more than two dozen Dove Awards.

This article originally appeared here.

12 Questions for Pastors in Churches Needing Revitalization

By

Chuck Lawless

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October 25, 2022

thank you notes for children’s ministry volunteers

I work a lot with pastors who are seeking to revitalize the church they lead. So that all of us might pray more passionately and strategically for these leaders, I’ve compiled this list of questions these pastors are often asking:

12 Questions for Churches Needing Revitalization

1. How did the church get to this state?

The messiness of a struggling congregation can be so pervasive that you can only wonder what happened—or didn’t happen, in some cases.

2. What else can I try?

Sometimes these leaders have tried so many failed strategies that they don’t know where to turn now.

3. Am I part of the issue?

This question’s a tough one, but it’s an honest (and necessary) one. The answer can be painful.

4. Is this church really savable?

You’d hope that leaders seldom ask this question, but it reveals the faith struggle behind revitalization. If leaders can’t see with faith what God can do, revitalization seldom works.

5. Where do I start?

The work in revitalization is often so extensive that leaders feel overwhelmed from the beginning. Even getting started is tough.

6. Is God really listening to my prayers?

That question arises when it feels like your prayers are bouncing off the ceiling. The long process of revitalization occasionally leaves a leader feeling this way.

7. Why’s everybody so opposed to change?

I’ve never seen a church experience genuine revitalization without some level of change. Pastors who hit the wall of traditionalism, though, battle discouragement when seemingly everybody fights change.

8. Did God really call me to this task?

Revitalization is hard. It can be so slow that the leaders want to give up – and begin to wonder about God’s calling.

9. How long do I wait?

Revitalizing leaders want to see God work, and they want to see His hand soon. Any delay in God’s response creates a crisis of patience and faith for the leader.

10. Who else can I talk to?

Regrettably, few revitalization leaders have a friend or colleague with whom they can be honest. They face the struggles alone – and that’s a dangerous place to be.

11. Who else has done this task well?

Every pastor I know who’s working in a revitalization situation wants to see examples of other churches that have experienced victory.

12. What books should I be reading?

The number of books about revitalization is increasing, and few leaders can read everything available. Help in assessing the resources is always welcomed.

Help us, revitalization pastors. What other questions are you asking?

This article on questions to revitalize the church originally appeared here, and is used by permission.

4 Reasons You Should Be a Kids Ministry Volunteer

By

Eric Geiger

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October 25, 2022

Last weekend I was not scheduled to teach in our adult services at Mariners Church so I volunteered to teach Sunday morning in our kids ministry. I am so thankful for those who are a kids ministry volunteer. They make a massive impact on children and their families, and I wanted to be a part of their great work. If the Lord did not have me preaching in “big church” most weekends, I would be serving in kids ministry or student ministry.

4 Reasons You Should Be a Kids Ministry Volunteer

1. You will enjoy it.

Serving God by serving kids is fun. Kids say some of the most hilarious things. They often want to learn and tend to respect the leader who is offering them instruction. And let’s be honest; children tend have more fun than most big people. Being in a kids ministry gives you an opportunity to be surrounded by the optimism and creativity and joy that kids bring.

2. You will have an impact.

Those who serve kids are choosing to invest in others during their most impressionable years. While kids are impressionable, they are not innocent. None of us are. The Bible says we are sinful from the time we were conceived. All of us need the grace of Jesus to change us, and those who serve in kids ministry are helping kids encounter God’s grace. If you serve in kids ministry you can make an eternal impact by giving kids a tangible expression of God’s love. As a kids ministry leader, your consistent presence in the life of kids sends a strong signal of God’s consistent and faithful love.

3. You will be reminded of the nature of the faith.

Jesus told a crowd one day that unless we become like children we will not enter His Kingdom. There is a major difference between a childish faith and a childlike faith; God affirms the latter and rebukes the former. It is not surprising when children are childish. But they also give us glimpses of childlike faith. Not only are they trusting but also they often still have the gift of awe, a sense of wonder, which gives us a great opportunity to point them to the most awesome story of all.

4. You will learn to communicate truth more effectively.

Theologian and professor Helmut Thielicke required all of his doctoral students to teach kids Sunday School while they were studying theology for their advanced degrees. He believed that if someone really understands theology then the person can articulate the truth to a child in a way the child understands. He reasoned that if his theology students could not explain the Christian faith to kids, they did not understand it well enough. Teaching and leading kids likely will help you more than it helps them. You will learn how to take the truth of God and communicate it in ways that are understandable.

If someone at your church approaches you about serving in the kids ministry, you are being offered a major honor. Go for it.

This article about being a kids ministry volunteer originally appeared here.

5 Reasons Why You Should Consider Microsoft Teams for Churches

By

Enable Ministry Partners

-

October 25, 2022

Microsoft Teams for churches is the ultimate staff communication and collaboration hub. It contains everything you need for effective and efficient remote working. Your staff can chat, call, hold meetings, share documents, organize projects, share notes, and so much more, all within a single intuitive platform. Microsoft Teams for churches provides the flexibility to manage your groups in any way you choose: by ministry department, by campus, by topic, by event, etc. You can customize Microsoft Teams for churches to fit your church and ministry precisely.

At Enable Ministry Partners, in our 20 years of serving churches, Microsoft Office 365 has emerged as the number one communication and collaboration platform for our church clients. Here are the top five reasons why our church clients love Microsoft Teams so much.

5 Reasons Why You Should Consider Microsoft Teams for Churches

It is FREE for all non-profit 501(c)(3) organizations.

Yep, you read that right! The E1 (or M365 Business Basic License) is free for all 501(c)(3) organizations. The E1 includes all of the essential features. Other add-ons come with additional costs.

It is a cloud-based tool, perfect for both in-office and remote staff situations.

All application features are accessible from anywhere at any time. You can share and view files stored in the cloud through OneDrive and SharePoint features. Teams provides a secure and efficient way of sharing information, eliminating duplicate documents, and staying organized.

It makes hosting meetings a breeze.

In this “remote” world in which we’re living, Teams helps you host virtual meetings with ease. From small groups and Bible Study meetings to virtual all-staff meetings, you can do it with Teams! During your meetings, enjoy features you love, such as chat, hand-raising for easy Q/A, screen sharing, customized backgrounds, etc.

It makes engaging with volunteers easy.

You can create unique channels where your volunteers can engage and collaborate with your team. Use the message board feature to set up public forums for your teams so they can make announcements or have discussions. In this video, one of our clients talks about the ways they successfully use Teams with their volunteers.

It can act as your church’s staff phone system.

Microsoft has provided multiple phone system options for your church. Gone are the days of landlines and work phones. You can easily use your own device to make calls inside or outside your organization.

BONUS REASON! (We couldn’t help but come up with one more awesome reason.)

It integrates with all other O365 tools.

Microsoft Teams integrates with Outlook Email, Calendar, OneNote, Planner, and so many more. For instance, you can seamlessly set up Teams meetings inside of Outlook, collaborate with multiple people (including volunteers) on documents using OneNote, use Planner to map out projects, assign tasks, and make to-do lists, and more!

Do you want to get your church started on Microsoft Office 365? We can help! We created an entire page on our website dedicated to Office 365 Resources, including how-to blogs, webinars, and guides to all things Office 365. Whether you want to get Teams up and running or want to learn more about the multiple benefits of these tools, our O365 Resources page is a great place to start.

This article on Microsoft Teams for churches came from ENable Ministrty Partenrs. If you’d like a little more help, we’re here for you! We onboard and integrate Office 365 for our church clients all day, every day. Check us out at https://enableministry.com or email us at info@enable.email for information.

Share Your Testimony: Why Parents Must Tell Children Their Faith Stories

By

Dr. Josh Buice

-

October 24, 2022

Why is it so important to share your testimony with your own children? As life passes quickly and children grow older, they formulate their opinion about their parents. In fact, they formulate their opinion about everything they see and experience. They know facts about you, your house, the leaky faucet, the squeaky floors. And that’s all a normal part of life.

As kids build knowledge about the family, what do they know about you? Do they know about your job? Do they know you like baseball? Sure, but there’s a bigger question. Do they know you’re a Christian?

It’s Powerful to Share Your Testimony

Have you ever shared your testimony of conversion with your children? Sure, your kids know you’re religious. That’s evident as you attend church on a weekly basis. But it’s extremely vital for your children to know about your salvation. It’s critically important for kids to grow up in your home hearing about how you came to faith in Christ.

Acts 1:8 says, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Before the early disciples went to the ends of the earth, the people in their own home had to know what had happened. That’s because they were witnesses in their own home too.

To be a witness is to share openly what you’ve seen and heard. Witnesses tell their experience. If you’re a witness, you share your testimony. God calls Christians to share openly about how he brought them to a place of repentance and faith in Jesus.

Someone may ask, “When did you become religious?” To the outside world looking in, it’s just religion. However, a witness makes it clear that it’s far more than just religion.

Do your children know that when your family attends church that it’s far more than religion? Have they heard the firsthand story of the witness about how you were brought to a place of recognizing your sin and guilt before God? Have they heard about how you called out to God for salvation? Do your kids know about your deep faith in the God who saves sinners? Do they know you’re one in a long line of redemption stories throughout history? Have they heard you share your testimony?

Your Story Is Really About God

Stories are powerful tools that we can use to communicate truth. Jesus often taught with stories, and his disciples grew as they heard him communicate truth. However, your testimony is more than a powerful story. If all you do is share your story with others, you will fail to be a true witness of the gospel. Your story is not about you. When you share your testimony, it’s about God.

When Paul stood before Agrippa, he told his story. However, he traced the story from his pre-conversion status as a Pharisee to his post-conversion status as a prisoner for Jesus. The entire story was intended to point to the saving power of God in his life. It was not to glorify Paul but rather to glorify God.

What Scripture Says

In Deuteronomy 6, we find the repeating of the Law. Moses points the people to share the story of God’s saving power with their children. In fact, when they ask about why they worship God and serve God in the way they do, the people of Israel were to communicate the following:

“When your son asks you in time to come, ‘What is the meaning of the testimonies and the statutes and the rules that the LORD our God has commanded you?’ then you shall say to your son, ‘We were Pharaoh’s slaves in Egypt. And the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand. And the LORD showed signs and wonders, great and grievous, against Egypt and against Pharaoh and all his household, before our eyes.

“And he brought us out from there, that he might bring us in and give us the land that he swore to give to our fathers. And the LORD commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear the LORD our God, for our good always, that he might preserve us alive, as we are this day. And it will be righteousness for us, if we are careful to do all this commandment before the LORD our God, as he has commanded us’” (Deuteronomy 6:20–25).

What to Share With Kids

When your children ask why you go to church, why you read the Bible in the evenings at home, and why you go to church on Wednesday, you can explain that you were once in bondage to sin and led astray by the devil, but God saved you (Eph. 2:1-10).

You can explain how the god of this world had blinded you (2 Cor. 4:4). But through the message of hope—the good news of Jesus—you came to understand your sin and your need for a Savior (Rom. 1:16).

You can explain how God brought you to a place of repentance and how you turned to God by faith—believing that Jesus paid your sin debt on the cross (1 Peter 2:24). Then he demonstrated his ability to forgive sinners by his resurrection from the dead on the third day (John 14:19).

God Rescued You

While your story is indeed powerful, it’s not really about you. It’s about how a sovereign God rescued you. Remember, when we talk about being saved it’s not the story of us saving ourselves. We were helpless. We were dead in our trespasses and sin and couldn’t save ourselves (Eph. 2:1-3). Therefore, our story is about God’s story of redemption.

Do your children see you as religious, or do they view you as a Christian? There is a massive difference—an eternal difference. Share your testimony. Tell your story. But most importantly, tell the story of God’s saving love.

This article originally appeared here.

Messages for Youth: 7 Important Bible Truths Pastors Must Repeat

By

Joe McKeever

-

October 24, 2022

Messages for youth must contain certain essential Bible basics. Youth pastors and youth workers must say several important truths over and over. Here’s why:

“Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift that is in you… ” (2 Timothy 1:6). “Of these things put them in remembrance… ” (2 Timothy 2:14).

Today, I spent the morning in a school in North Carolina giving my presentation we call “Lessons in Self-Esteem From Drawing 100,000 People.” I sketch a lot of students, then segue into the talk which, among other things, urges the kids to stop comparing themselves with others, accept themselves as the persons God made them to be, and to smile. Then it happened again.

Only five minutes after the talk, we invited students to crowd around and I would sketch as many as possible in the remaining time. “Look at me and smile,” I said to the first teenager. “I don’t smile,” he said. I stopped, looked at him sternly and said, “You didn’t hear a thing I said, did you?”

In truth, he had heard, but the lesson had not penetrated. I told the young teacher, “My telling the students these things once is not enough for them to get through. The only way to change their behavior is for you to say it over and over again. Eventually the lesson will ‘take’ with some of them.”

Bible Messages for Youth and Adults

You need to repeat some lessons ad infinitum in your messages for youth. “Let me remind you…” shows up a lot in the epistles of the Apostle Paul.

We need to emphasize 7 spiritual truths in our messages for youth and adults again and again. That way, hearers are more likely to truly learn them and benefit from them.

7 Bible Messages for Youth

Here are seven biblical truths pastors must keep telling people so they’ll eventually “get it.”

(The list of messages for youth is not meant to be exhaustive. You’ll think of other essential truths you need to hammer home again and again.)

1. Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world and the only Savior.

That is the theme of so much Scripture anyway, isn’t it? How could we not keep the focus on the Lord Jesus—His identity, His life and ministry, His teachings, His headship over the church and His place in our lives—if we’re being true to the Word?

Pastors and youth pastors: In your messages for youth and adults, keep telling about the Bible over and over again. The theme never wears out—”Why we make so much of Jesus.” Recently a man in North Carolina (where I’m in revival) told of the state legislature voting to make a certain Baptist preacher their chaplain. Then they fired him when he refused to take “in Jesus’ name” out of his prayers. And they call this perversion “inclusiveness.” Go figure.

(Note: Many a New Testament prayer did not use the actual words “in Jesus’ name,” and we should not feel ours must always either. However, tell me I must leave Jesus out of the prayer and I’m gone.)

Jesus Christ is Lord, for now and for eternity, and no one else is. Always stay focused on the Lord Jesus in your messages for youth and adults.

2. The church is an essential part of the Lord’s plan, for now and forever.

And we’re most definitely not referring just to your local congregation. As important as that is—this will come as a surprise to a lot of lonely, myopic pastors—the Kingdom of God is more than your church.

When Jesus saved you, He knew something you were about to find out: “You cannot live this new life in isolation. You need the family of God.” They hold onto you, you hold onto them. They instruct and nurture you; you turn around and do the same. This symbiosis has been God’s plan from early on.

“I will build my church,” the Lord said in Matthew 16:18. It’s His and He builds it. The Christ-follower who claims to be able to live for Christ better without the church is insulting His Lord. The church leader who would run the Lord’s church “for Him” is asking for big trouble fast.

Actor and Singer Leslie Jordan Has Died; He Sang a Hymn in His Final Social Media Post

By

Jesse T. Jackson

-

October 24, 2022

Leslie Jordan, actor, writer, singer, and social media star who won an Emmy for his role as Beverly Leslie on the television series “Will & Grace,” died Monday morning (Oct 24) at the age of 67.

According to reports from law enforcement, Jordan’s BMW was involved in a single car collision in Los Angeles, crashing into the side of a building. Jordan died at the scene.

While the cause of death is undetermined at this time, authorities believe it is possible that Jordan suffered a medical emergency that resulted in the crash.

Just hours before his death, Jordan posted a video of himself singing the 1893 hymn “When The Roll Is Called Up Yonder” on Instagram beside songwriter Danny Myrick. The Sunday morning video has received over 34,000 comments.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Leslie Jordan (@thelesliejordan)

Jordan, who was openly gay, released a country and gospel album titled “Company’s Comin’” in 2017. The album featured him singing classic gospel hymns alongside Chris Stapleton, Eddie Vedder, Brandi Carlile, TJ Osborne, Tanya Tucker, Ashley McBryde, Charlie Worsham, Danny Myrick, Travis Howard, Morgane, and Katie Pruitt.

The album also included the song “Where the Soul Never Dies,” which he sang alongside Dolly Parton. Jordan more than likely heard the classic hymn growing up in Tennessee Southern Baptist churches.

“When I’m trying to be dramatic, I’ll say, ‘Well, I walked away from the church,’” Jordan told Esquire in 2021. “I never walked away. Everything we did, everything, was surrounding the church. Sunday morning, Sunday evenings—and it was a good childhood.”

“I think the problem started when I realized I was gay. I just had nothing to do with the church anymore. So what’s interesting to me is to be 66 years old and have absolutely no ax to grind,” Jordan said. “I’m not quite sure how. I wish I had some wonderful stories of how I learned acceptance just over the years. I don’t know.”

Jordan told the publication, “I didn’t want to be queer, but I didn’t have a choice in it.”

During an interview with Grammy Award winner Shania Twain in 2021, Jordan shared, “I grew up in the church, but I walked away, because the whole gay thing came around. I firmly believe that God made me this way. I’m not a mistake.”

“This is not my cross to bear. It’s part of what I am and I want to celebrate that, but when you grow up and you’re just so scared,” Jordan added, sharing that he never walked away from the church. Instead, he said, “I just quit going.”

New Saddleback Pastor Sees Women Clergy in Church’s Future

By

Deepa Bharath

-

October 24, 2022

LAKE FOREST, Calif. (AP) — On a recent Sunday morning, in the sanctuary of Saddleback Church, Lead Pastor Andy Wood opened with a shout-out to the congregation’s newest female teaching pastor – his wife Stacie Wood.

It has been about a month since Andy Wood, 41, succeeded Pastor Rick Warren, author of the blockbuster bestseller “The Purpose Driven Life” and one of the most renowned figures in evangelical Christianity, who founded Saddleback in California’s Orange County nearly 43 years ago – before Wood was born. Today, it’s a multi-site ministry reaching about 40,000 people worldwide. Despite the difference in age and experience, what Warren and Wood have in common is their commitment to a global church and nurturing female pastors.

Speaking with The Associated Press, Wood outlined his grand vision to build on Warren’s legacy and take Saddleback to the biggest cities in the U.S. and the world. He said he’ll encourage men and women to preach — an approach at odds with the male-leadership policies of the Southern Baptist Convention, the largest Protestant denomination in the country, with which Saddleback has been aligned since its inception.

Wood has also had to deal with allegations of authoritarian leadership and hostile church mergers in the San Francisco Bay Area, where he led Echo Church, a 3,000-strong multi-site congregation, for the past 14 years. He has denied those allegations and was cleared by the search firm that Saddleback retained for the hiring process.

The SBC was one of Echo Church’s supporters, which now adds to the awkwardness of Saddleback’s position on female pastors.

In 2021, Warren ordained three women as pastors, prompting the denomination to consider expelling the megachurch — the second largest in its fold. Warren made an emotional speech in June at the Southern Baptists’ annual convention in Anaheim standing by his ordination of women. He told delegates who debated the issue, “We have to decide if we will treat each other as allies or adversaries.”

Wood told the AP that the Bible “teaches that men and women were given spiritual gifts by God.”

“The church should be a place where both men and women can exercise those spiritual gifts,” he said. “My wife has the spiritual gift of teaching and she is really good. People often tell me she’s better than me when it comes to preaching, and I’m really glad to hear that.”

Wood expressed gratitude for the SBC’s partnership at Saddleback and Echo and hopes that it would continue. He wants to ensure that on his watch, Saddleback “is empowered for men and women to lead.”

“I’m not looking to engage in denominational battles,” he said. “I’d really like to be a unifier of people – to help, love and support pastors in the SBC.”

Wood’s interest in honoring Warren’s legacy is a positive sign, said Scott Thumma, professor of the sociology of religion at Hartford International University for Religion and Peace who has studied megachurches.

Does Prayer Contradict God’s Will? Pastor and Atheist Witch Debate on TikTok

By

Jessica Lea

-

October 24, 2022

A debate between a woman who identifies as a witch and atheist and a man who is a pastor has gained some traction on TikTok. In his response video, the pastor addresses the argument that prayer is fighting God’s will and is therefore contradictory.

@violinrobin Replying to @bekkasantos0 I didn’t say it, the Bible did #greenscreen #greenscreenvideo #jesus #bible #biblestudy #christiantiktok #pastortiktok #church #holyspirit #fyp ♬ original sound – Robin Schultz

Response Video From Pastor Challenges ‘Prayer Is a Contradiction’

In a TikTok video posted Sept. 14, Jordan Dwayne, who goes by “Jordan the Grey Witch,” addressed a comment left by one of her followers, which said: “Prayer is a contradiction. God has a plan for you, but you want him to change it for you whenever you feel like it?”

“Thank you for bringing this up because I’ve been wanting to talk about this for a while now,” said Dwayne. “If your God—all-knowing, all-powerful, omnipotent God—made all of us by his own hand, he created us exactly the way that we are—that’s what you believe, right? If your God made me into the atheist that I am and he gave me the free will to believe or to disbelieve, when you ‘pray for me,’ asking God to save me, how is that not a contradiction of your own God’s will to have created me exactly the way that I am?…Why are you so arrogant to believe that you know better than your own God?”

One follower commented, “I’ve asked so many Christians this and have never had a straight answer.” Dwayne replied, “They never do.”

User Bekka Santos tagged Robin Schultz in the comments of the video, asking for Schultz’s input on Dwayne’s challenge. Schultz, whose profile describes him as a “software engineer by day, pastor by night,” regularly posts videos giving input on theological topics. He stitched Dwayne’s video to his own, posting a response video on Oct. 4 replying to Dwayne’s comments in segments.

Schultz first took issue with Dwayne saying “your God.” “You don’t have to say ‘your God,’” he said. “It’s just ‘God.’” After each of Dwayne’s descriptors, “all-knowing, all-powerful, omnipotent God,” Schultz said, “Uh-huh,” “Right again,” and “We’re three for three.”

To Dwayne’s statement that God created all people “exactly the way that we are—that’s what you believe, right?” Schultz said, “No.” Citing Scripture, he explained that God created people in his image, but that because of sin, we don’t live the way God intends for us to live. “We were not created to lie, cheat, to steal, to murder,” said Schultz, who went on to say that God did not make Dwayne an atheist. That was her decision. He quoted Romans 1 and Psalm 14 to support this point.

Schultz then took issue with Dwayne’s statement that “God made me into the atheist that I am and he gave me the free will to believe or to disbelieve.”

Anne Wilson Song Leads to Salvation of Woman Struggling With Cancer, Suicidal Thoughts

By

Jesse T. Jackson

-

October 24, 2022

Anne Wilson, this year’s recipient of the 53rd Annual Dove Awards’ New Artist of the Year and Pop/Contemporary Recorded Song of the Year for her song “My Jesus,” shared the story of a woman struggling with suicidal thoughts who gave her life to Jesus after hearing Wilson’s song on the radio.

“There was a lady that came up to me at the show the other week,” Wilson, who attended as a fan in 2019, told the media at the Dove Awards on Tuesday night (Oct. 18). “She was struggling with cancer, had lost all of her hair battling [the disease], and she said that she was ready to commit suicide…but she was in the car and she heard ‘My Jesus’ come on Christian radio.”

It was then that “she decided to give her life to Jesus and let go of those thoughts and now she’s living free in Jesus,” Wilson continued. The woman is still battling cancer, but she now “knows that she has a purpose and a reason for being here on Earth.”

Wilson shared that hearing a testimony like that means so much to her, saying, “There’s so much power in music, especially music that glorifies Jesus. So just thinking back on when I wrote that song, and then to now see how many lives it’s impacted, it’s an honor and I’m so grateful.”

When asked what it was like to be nominated for six Dove Awards this year, Wilson replied, “I’m so grateful. It’s so cool to like, look out in the crowd and see all of my incredible mentors and peers and friends out there.”

Wilson credits her brother, who was tragically killed in a car accident at the age of 23 in 2017, for inspiring her music career.

“The loss of my brother was kind of the catalyst for my music career and what started everything,” Wilson said.

“Every time I get on stage, every time I’m writing a song,” Wilson shared, “I have my brother’s memory in my heart. And I remember just who he was to me and the incredible brother he was, and he inspires everything I do.”

‘Talk to the Holy Spirit,’ Pastor Tells Supernatural Seeker Vanessa Hudgens

By

Stephanie Martin

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October 24, 2022

Although actor Vanessa Hudgens was raised Catholic and previously attended Hillsong Church, she has decided to “lean into” her “gift” of supernatural communication. As part of that journey, the 33-year-old star recently filmed “Dead Hot: Season of the Witch.” In the unscripted movie, Hudgens and her friend GG Magreem—both “self-taught students of witchcraft”—explore the spiritual realm in Salem, Massachusetts.

News of the project, which doesn’t yet have a release date, has spurred warnings from Christian leaders. Mike Signorelli, senior pastor of V1 Church in New York City, says, “Satan is on a mission to normalize the demonic.”

Vanessa Hudgens Receives Warnings About Supernatural Practices

Last month, Signorelli warned parents that the controversial new cartoon “Little Demon” is targeting children with pagan themes. Now the pastor tells CBN’s FaithWire that projects such as “Dead Hot” put supernatural practices “in a positive light despite being spiritually dangerous.” In the Bible, witchcraft “shows up as counterfeit comfort and counterfeit power,” he adds, but any promises of “success” are actually lies.

If he could share a message with Hudgens, Signorelli says he’d tell her, “We all have a desire to deal in spiritual things. But if you want to talk to a spirit, talk to the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit wants to have a relationship with you through Jesus Christ and the finished work of the cross.”

Signorelli tells FaithWire that a congregant recently discovered his kindergartner’s classroom had performed tarot card readings. “It’s absolutely insane,” the pastor says of demonic practices infiltrating culture. “What we tolerate in one generation, it literally becomes acceptable in the next generation, and then it becomes celebrated.”

Actor Vanessa Hudgens Previously Attended Hillsong

Vanessa Hudgens, who shot to fame via Disney’s “High School Musical” franchise, was raised Catholic but “never felt very connected” to the church. In 2015, she credited longtime boyfriend and fellow actor Austin Butler with rekindling her faith by taking her to Hillsong Church.

Speaking with the New York Times, Hudgens described Hillsong’s “epic” worship music, which she once led. “They really focus on you having your own personal relationship with Jesus, which is wonderful,” she added about the Australia-based megachurch.

Hudgens and Butler split in early 2020. Now Hudgens is opening up about her longtime interest in the supernatural. On “The Kelly Clarkson Show” in June, she talked about her “gift” of spiritual communication. Hudgens detailed a strange encounter with a childhood toy, told of talking to a ghost in a graveyard, and described using paranormal equipment such as a spirit box.

Christian Baker Wins 5-Year Legal Battle After Refusing To Bake Same-Sex Wedding Cake

By

Dale Chamberlain

-

October 24, 2022

After a five-year legal battle, California judge Eric Bradshaw ruled in favor of a baker who refused to bake a cake for a lesbian couple, citing her Christian beliefs and referring the couple to another baker.

According to Bradshaw’s verdict, Catharine “Cathy” Miller, who owns Tastries Bakery in Bakersfield, did not violate any anti-discrimination laws by refusing to bake a cake for the wedding renewal of Eileen and Mireya Rodriguez-Del Rio on the grounds of sincerely held religious beliefs.

“Miller’s only motivation, at all times, was to act consistent with her sincere Christian beliefs about what the Bible teaches regarding marriage,” Bradshaw wrote. “That motivation was not unreasonable, or arbitrary, nor did it emphasize irrelevant differences or perpetuate stereotypes.”

The suit had been filed by the California state Department of Fair Housing and Employment, whom Bradshaw has now ruled failed to prove that Miller intentionally discriminated against the couple.

“Defendants’ pure and expressive speech is entitled to protection under the First Amendment,” Bradshaw wrote, explaining that the wedding cakes Miller sells constitute “pure speech” and noting that Miller’s design standard clearly outlined her convictions regarding marriage prior to the couple asking her to bake a cake to celebrate the renewal of their same-sex marriage vows.

The plaintiff had suggested that Miller either stop selling cakes entirely or delegate the process of making and selling cakes for same-sex weddings to employees, both of which proposals Bradshaw rejected.

“Of course we’re disappointed, but not surprised,” said Eileen Rodriguez-Del Rio of the ruling. “We anticipate that our appeal will have a different result.”

“It’s been a long five years,” Miller said, adding that while her Christian convictions kept her from participating in a same-sex marriage celebration, it was never her intent to hurt anybody. “I’m hoping that in our community we can grow together, and we should understand that we shouldn’t push any agenda against anyone else.”

Miller was also supported by the Thomas More Society, a conservative Roman Catholic public-interest law firm, who called the ruling “a First Amendment victory.”

“There’s a certain irony there, that a law intended to protect individuals from religious discrimination was used to discriminate against Cathy for her religious beliefs,” said Paul Jonna, a lawyer who serves as Thomas More Society Special Counsel. “Cathy believes the Bible.”

Jonna further pointed out that Miller’s beliefs regarding marriage are not “fringe” within the Christian community.

This ruling comes in the same month that Colorado baker Jack Phillips, who refused to bake a cake with blue frosting and a pink inside in celebration of a gender transition, is challenging a ruling that he violated state anti-discrimination laws.

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1. How did the church get to this state?

2. What else can I try?

3. Am I part of the issue?

4. Is this church really savable?

5. Where do I start?

6. Is God really listening to my prayers?

7. Why’s everybody so opposed to change?

8. Did God really call me to this task?

9. How long do I wait?

10. Who else can I talk to?

11. Who else has done this task well?

12. What books should I be reading?

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1. You will enjoy it.

2. You will have an impact.

3. You will be reminded of the nature of the faith.

4. You will learn to communicate truth more effectively.

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It is FREE for all non-profit 501(c)(3) organizations.

It is a cloud-based tool, perfect for both in-office and remote staff situations.

It makes hosting meetings a breeze.

It makes engaging with volunteers easy.

It can act as your church’s staff phone system.

It integrates with all other O365 tools.

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