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What to Make of the Enneagram

By
James Emery White
-
communicating with the unchurched

Many of us have taken the Myers-Briggs test. We talk about being ENTJs or INTJs, INFPs or ENTPs, FOXTVs or MSNBCs.

Okay, I made those last two up.

On the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, I am an INTJ, which stands for introvert, intuitive, thinking and judging. Or, as I like to think about it, INTJs are normal and others are irritating.

I can’t begin to tell you how important it was for me to get in touch with the first of those four letters—being an introvert. I honestly didn’t know it for a long time. I didn’t hear people talk about such things, so it wasn’t on my radar. People assumed (and I would have assumed) I was extroverted because I was good with people, comfortable in up-front roles and public speaking, and found myself in leadership positions.

But I wasn’t an extrovert.

The truth is that I got all of my emotional energy from being alone. (That’s the key difference between an introvert and an extrovert—where you get your emotional energy from.) Too much people time, and I would end up in the fetal position not knowing why I was so drained.

But I do now.

I love people, but I get my emotional energy away from people. Knowing that has helped me immensely.

But is personality awareness spiritual? Or does it just breed a kind of narcissism—a self-centeredness, a preoccupation with ourselves? The Bible’s answer may surprise you.

If I had to give the Bible’s headline, it would be, “Apart from knowing who you are, you cannot know who God is.” Or as one of the leaders of the 16th century Protestant Reformation put it, “There is no deep knowing of God without a deep knowing of self, and no deep knowing of self without a deep knowing of God.”

Why?

Because when it comes to the Christ life, there is a self to lose and a self to find. If that sounds like psycho-babble, it’s actually scripture. Here’s how the apostle Paul wrote about it in his letter to the Ephesians:

“You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” (Ephesians 4:22-24 NIV)

And in his letter to the Colossians, he put the same idea this way:

“Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.” (Colossians 3:8-10 NIV)

We have a personality, and there are parts of it that are operating exactly like they should, and parts that aren’t. You can’t put off your old self and put on your new self if you aren’t in touch with… self.

The goal is to discover yourself in light of God’s truth so that you can quit being who you shouldn’t be and fully embrace who you are to be.  Your truest, best self that God intended.

So how do you get to know yourself? And I mean deeply? There are a lot of ways. You can gain self-awareness through trusted friends, counselors and spiritual directors. You can utilize tests like the Myers-Briggs or things like StrengthsFinder.

But there is something much more ancient. It’s called the Enneagram. I know, some of you are saying, “The enne-a-what?” Others of you might be wondering, “Is this some kind of new-age thing?”

The truth is that the Enneagram is anything but new; in fact it’s very biblical.

It’s deeply rooted in ancient Christian thinking and Christian spirituality, going all the way back to the era known as the time of the desert fathers, which included the earliest centuries of the Eastern Christian monastic movement.

The earliest name we have attached to the Enneagram is a man by the name of Evagrius, from the 4th century, who came up with a set of eight corresponding virtues and vices that he used to help think through spiritual formation and relationship with God and the old-self/new-self dynamic. Those eight corresponding virtues and vices are part of the Enneagram to this day. They later became the foundation for what became known in the Middle Ages as the “seven deadly sins,” with seven corresponding virtues.

The goal of these lists was simple: If you could get in touch with who you are – the personal, the spiritual and how they interact with who you are not supposed to be and who you are supposed to be (both the good and the bad) – you would have the kind of self-knowledge needed to become who you are supposed to be. You could chart a path of real, substantive transformation.

But this self-discovery must include the dark side. The shadow side of your personality. The sin. And that’s what sets the Enneagram apart. It goes deep. It not only acknowledges sin but takes it seriously. It gets into motivations and shadow lives, what drives us, and what sins we are most vulnerable to in light of what drives us.

You don’t just walk away from this with a typology—you live with this. You look deeply into a mirror and see the nature of how your personality works, and how it should work.

Here’s how Christian counselor and author Marilyn Vancil, who uses the Enneagram in her Christian counseling, put it:

“It taps into our deeper story, going below the surface of outward behaviors, social styles, strengths and weaknesses, traits and talents. It sheds light on our inner motivation, ardent longing, and deep sufferings. It reveals the filters through which we view life and how these influence the choices we make.

“It clarifies ways we are held captive by habitual patterns of thoughts, feelings, and actions that we aren’t even aware of or can’t seem to change. Most importantly, it illuminates our true essence as one who has been created in God’s image and how our distorted beliefs and ingrained strategies hinder the full expression of who God designed us to become.”

Now, having said all that, let me warn you. The Enneagram and all things attached to it wasn’t copyrighted by 4th century Christian monks, medieval Christian leaders or by your friendly neighborhood Christian pastor. This means it can be, and has been, co-opted and used by all kinds of groups, philosophies, worldviews and religions. If you want to start googling away on this, please don’t. There’s a mess out there attached to the Enneagram. You will find a lot of new-age stuff that isn’t biblical at all.

But don’t throw out the baby with the bathwater. How others have co-opted it and ripped it from its Christian moorings should not keep you from drinking deeply from its well of truth and wisdom. It’s akin to a surgeon’s scalpel: it can heal or wound. It can bring spiritual health, wholeness and insight, or it can mislead and bring deception because of how it is applied.

But used as intended, the Enneagram is something that has been with the church for almost 2,000 years and used by Christian spiritual directors and individual Christ followers for enormous spiritual benefit.

I won’t even begin to try to introduce you to it here and now. For that, I would recommend the writings of my friend Suzanne Stabile who, along with InterVarsity Press, has written the best and most biblical books on its use and application. And if it would serve, I did a series at Mecklenburg Community Church called “Finding Your Way to You” taking an in-depth look at the Enneagram and concluding with an interview with Stabile. You can get the .mp3s or .pdfs of that series HERE.

P.S. I’m an eight.

 Sources

The 16th-century reformer was John Calvin.

Marilyn Vancil, Self to Lose, Self to Find.

See also The Essential Enneagram by David Daniels and Virginia Price; The Sacred Enneagram by Christopher Huertz; Signature Sins by Michael Mangis; The Road Back to You by Suzanne Stabile; The Path Between Us by Suzanne Stabile. Of these, I would most recommend the writings of Suzanne Stabile.

This article originally appeared here.

The Best Memes of 2020 That Will Help You Laugh Instead of Cry

By
Jessica Lea
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communicating with the unchurched

The beginning of this year was a long time ago—decades some say. There’s no doubt about it: It has been a taxing season. We’re thankful for God’s faithfulness through it all, and we’re also thankful for the people who have helped us cope with these “unprecedented” times…by creating memes. So in the interest of offering some much-needed levity, we’ve collected some of the best 2020 memes we could find, with a special nod to the church. We love you, Church!

The Best 2020 Memes to Help You Laugh a Little

You might say 2020 has been a little…stressful.

Just think: This tweet was relevant to people IN APRIL.

Wait for it.

We feel this. 

This could be a good option.

I promise, I’m not freaking out. 

PLEASE.

Remember those early days of quarantine?

New California Bill Would Lower Penalties for Adults Who Have Sex With a Minor

By
Bri Lamm
-
communicating with the unchurched

California lawmakers are navigating a controversial bill this week, which would lower the penalty for adults who have consensual sex with a minor as long as the offender is within 10 years of age of the victim.

The bill, SB 145, passed in both houses of the State Legislature late Monday evening and is now awaiting a decision by California Governor Gavin Newsom.

Current California law treats cases of statutory rape differently depending on what kind of sex is involved.

Under current law, it is illegal for an adult to have consensual sex with a teenager between 14 and 17 years old, who cannot legally give consent. However, vaginal intercourse between the two does not require the offender to be listed on the state’s sex offender registry, as long as the offender is within 10 years of age of the minor. Instead, the judge has the discretion to decide, based on the facts of the case, whether the sex offender registration is warranted.

Other forms of intercourse such as oral and anal intercourse require sex offender registration.

SB 145 would eliminate automatic sex offender registration for young adults who have anal or oral sex with a minor, and allow the judge to make the call as they do now in cases involving vaginal intercourse with a minor.

State Sen. Scott Wiener, who authored the bill, says SB 145 is an anti-discrimination law on behalf of the LGBTQ community.

Wiener says the existing law “disproportionately targets LGBT young people for mandatory sex offender registration since LGBT people usually cannot engage in vaginal intercourse.”

“California’s sex offender registry continues to draw that distinction—an antiquated, outdated, leftover distinction—that somehow oral sex is worse than vaginal sex,” Wiener said.

“Ordering someone onto the sex offender registry carries lifelong consequences,” Los Angeles Deputy District Attorney Bradley McCartt said in a statement. “Allowing judges and prosecutors to evaluate cases involving voluntary sex acts between young people on an individual basis will ensure justice for all Californians.”

But those opposing the bill argue that it legalizes pedophilia.

“If signed into law, a 24-year-old could have sexual relations with a 15-year-old child without being required to register as a sex offender,” State Senator Shannon Grove wrote in a tweet.

Others argue that Wiener’s approach to the bill does not achieve the “equality” he’s seeking but rather, provides offenders who have sex with a minor the opportunity to evade mandatory registration.

“Any sex is sex,” argued Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez. “I don’t care who it is between or what sex act it is. That being said, I cannot in my mind as a mother understand how sex between a 24-year-old and a 14-year-old could ever be consensual.”

12,000+ Sign Petition to Remove Franklin Graham From Samaritan’s Purse

By
Jesse T. Jackson
-
Franklin Graham Samaritan's Purse
Screengrab Youtube @WCNC

A petition that has garnered over 12,000 signatures is calling for the removal of Franklin Graham as Samaritan’s Purse‘s CEO and Chairman over his support of President Donald Trump. The petition explicitly cites the prayer Franklin offered at the Republican National Convention (RNC) as a point of contention.

Faithful America’s petition slammed Graham for using “Jesus’s name to give thanks for ‘the many blessings we have received these past four years,'” at the RNC. The authors continue, “We would hardly consider family separation, the deadly federal COVID-19 response, rampant corruption and authoritarianism, or ongoing systemic racism to be ‘blessings.'” 

The petition was published on August 28, 2020 by Faithful America, “an online community of Christians putting faith into action for social justice” led by Episcopalian priest Rev. Nathan Empsall.

It appears that Faithful America is blaming President Trump for a lot of the bad things happening in America right now, namely “separating families, rejecting refugees, repealing health care, slowing COVID-19 testing, spreading homophobia and Islamophobia, or supporting anti-Semitic neo-Nazis,” and positing that Graham is guilty by association. Further, the group believes Graham “justifies his partisanship and hatred by hiding behind the credibility of Samaritan’s Purse, the 50-year-old humanitarian-aid organization he runs” and says the non-profit organization is sacrificing it’s reputation by “propping up Graham’s hateful politics.”

The petition Faithful Americaa is asking people to sign reads as follows:

Franklin Graham’s pro-Trump RNC appearance and subsequent interviews show that his partisanship knows no bounds. As fellow Christians, we write to say that if Samaritan’s Purse takes its “purpose of sharing God’s love” seriously, then it is time for you to find a new chairman, president, and CEO. Samaritan’s Purse needs a leader who is not complicit in separating families, rejecting refugees, repealing health care, slowing COVID-19 testing, spreading homophobia and Islamophobia, or supporting anti-Semitic neo-Nazis.

Unless and until you cut ties with Franklin Graham, his right-wing politics can only damage your credibility as a loving, Christian humanitarian organization. If the full Board will not vote to remove Graham as chairman, president, and CEO, then individual Board members can take a personal stand for the Gospel and offer their own resignations.

(This petition will be sent to Board members Sterling Carroll, Michael Cheatham, James Furman, Michael Harwood, Skip Heitzig, Thomas Hodges, Felix Martin del Campo, James Oliver, Brian Pauls, Phyllis Payne, Donna Pierce, Paul Saber, John Scott, Robert Shank, and Paula Woodring.)

Samaritan’s Purse emailed a statement to Newsweek in response to Faithful America’s petition:

Franklin Graham does not tell people who to vote for, but he does encourage everyone to pray and to vote. If the Democratic National Convention had asked him to pray, he would have prayed at the DNC as well. The most important thing any of us can do for our nation is to pray for our leaders, regardless of their political affiliation. Franklin Graham continues to lead Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association with the purpose of sharing God’s love and the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ with hurting people around the world,” the organization said. “Under Franklin’s leadership, Samaritan’s Purse is committed to providing spiritual and physical aid to victims of war, poverty, natural disasters, disease, and famine, as evidenced by our relief efforts in more than 130 countries over the past 50 years.

Franklin Graham Often Faces Opposition

Graham has faced opposition before. Usually that opposition stems from his stance on homosexuality. Just recently after Samaritan’s Purse set up an emergency hospital in Central Park to aid with COVID-19 patients, LGBTQ activists protested them being there due to Franklin Graham’s disapproval of same-sex marriage. Faithful America’s site calls preacher Franklin Graham “notoriously homophobic.”

The attack on Franklin Graham’s spiritual convictions seems also to be an attack on Samaritan Purse’s convictions as well, based on their statement of faith‘s point nine which reads:

We believe God’s plan for human sexuality is to be expressed only within the context of marriage, that God created man and woman as unique biological persons made to complete each other. God instituted monogamous marriage between male and female as the foundation of the family and the basic structure of human society. For this reason, we believe that marriage is exclusively the union of one genetic male and one genetic female. Genesis 2:24; Matthew 19:5-6; Mark 10:6-9; Romans 1:26-27; 1 Corinthians 6:9.

In 2020, in addition to helping overwhelmed hospitals in New York City, Samaritan’s Purse also set up a field hospital in Italy, they are providing medical care for Beirut explosion victims, and currently they are giving assistance to Louisiana after it was hit by hurricane Laura.

Not even Faithful America disagrees that Samaritan’s Purse does good things. The petition page states, “Samaritan’s Purse certainly does important work for the sick and poor—which just makes it that much sadder that the non-profit’s board would sacrifice its reputation by propping up Graham’s hateful politics.”

Samaritan’s Purse was founded by Bob Pierce in 1970 “to meet emergency needs in crisis areas through existing evangelical mission agencies and national churches,” according to their website. Franklin Graham and Bob Pierce met in 1973 and after Pierce’s death to leukemia in 1978, Graham became President and Chairman of the Board for Samaritan’s Purse, and has been ever since. Their mission statement can be read here.

The False Gospel of Visionary Success

By
Darryl Dash
-
communicating with the unchurched

“The whole problem is that churches don’t operate like businesses,” the businessman explained. “If they did, we’d all be a lot better off.”

I can’t remember what prompted this discussion, but I heard it a few times from this man and others. Pastors should look to business leaders for inspiration. Churches should adopt business practices. Churches should also teach their people how to do this so that they know how to really live well in this world.

It’s widespread. It’s the false gospel of visionary success. I hear it often, even from pulpits, and it’s robbing us of a better message that we need to believe.

The Lies We Believe

In This Is Our Time, Trevin Wax asks, “What if we are living according to the myths of our culture without even questioning them?” He helps expose some of the lies that we’re tempted to believe, and shows how the gospel tells a better story.

One of the lies we’re tempted to believe comes from business:

  • Set a vision for your life and your church, and if you’re a pastor, help your people do the same.
  • Become a great leader and overcome any obstacles that stand in the way of our success.
  • Learn from whoever you can in order to attain your goals, especially those who’ve achieved business success.

There’s some truth in these statements. Some ministries need a clearer vision. Some organizations need better leadership. And we can learn from anyone. But the problems with this approach are many.

These lies are more aligned with a North American vision of the good life than Scripture. They offer a vision of the good life that the writer of Ecclesiastes found empty. They assume we have more control than we actually do. They elevate one set of skills (visionary leadership) over skills and gifts, and elevate these skills over character. They put relentless pressure on pastors and individuals to succeed. They label some people who’ve succeeded in God’s eyes as failures. They give primary authority to business sources, pushing Scripture to the periphery. They pressure us to use Scriptural leaders — even Jesus — as illustrations of best and worst practices rather than characters in God’s ongoing story of redemption.

The false gospel of visionary success promises much but leaves us feeling pressured and empty if they don’t succeed, or even if they do.

A Better Message

Scripture presents a better message.

We are known, not for what we do, but we are known because we were made in the image of God. Those who are in Christ Jesus are loved on our worst day as well as on our best.

We’ve been given work to do, and we should do it well, but we do it all for the glory of God. Our work will be forgotten by everyone else sooner than we think, but it matters because it matters to God.

Life is unpredictable and hard. We will suffer more than we expect in this life. Many of us will labor and never be successful in the world’s eyes. But God’s evaluation is the only one that matters. God uses even the difficult things in our lives for our good and his glory.

The church isn’t a business. It’s Jesus’ bride, precious and loved by him. Jesus is the ultimate leader of the church, and his way is the way of servanthood and the cross. And he’s given us everything we need to know in his Word for how to live wisely in this world. We can learn from anyone and anything, but we can never find better wisdom than in the Scripture. Live and serve well, but look to Scripture for your models, not to the latest leadership book on Amazon.

And when everything’s said and done, what matters is that we fear God and keep his commandments, not that we’re well-known or succeeded in becoming visionary leaders.

The call on our lives is not to make much of ourselves, but to lose our lives so we can find them.

Let’s Preach and Believe a Better Gospel

This false gospel is an invasive species that seems to spread easily, so let’s be on guard.

Pastors: please never preach the false gospel of visionary leadership. Let’s make it clear that Scripture is our authority. Let’s lead as shepherds, not CEOs. Read business books if you want, but be mastered by the Word.

Let’s stop attending church conferences where Bibles are rarely opened and this false gospel is preached. And let’s help others spot this false gospel, and preach a better one. If your church has heard this message, then help them hear a better one.

Let’s stop believing this message in our personal lives and commit instead to believing the gospel of grace, and centering our lives around this message.

Life’s too short to believe or preach this false gospel. We have much better news, and we’ve been charged with guarding it and passing it on. Let’s not settle for substitutes.

This article about the false gospel of visionary success originally appeared here.

3 Ways Sunday School Is Going Back to Our New Testament Roots

By
Ken Braddy
-
communicating with the unchurched

It’s hard to believe, but some Bible study groups haven’t met since the beginning of the pandemic. Groups with older members may have chosen not to meet for safety reasons. Other groups haven’t meet online through a tool like Zoom simply because they believed the technology was beyond them (those senior saints may not have had computers, smartphones, or tablets). But even during a pandemic, there are 3 ways Sunday School is going back to its New Testament roots. Groups are meeting again. Here’s what’s taking place.

1. Groups are meeting outside. The photo to the right was taken yesterday morning at 8:30AM. My wife and I dropped in on one of our church’s adult groups that is meeting in the backyard of a home that belongs to one of the group’s members. “Sunday School under the trees” was a great experience! Not only were there 8 people present, two more joined via Zoom! In Acts 16 you’ll find the story of Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth. She and others were outside at a river when they were found by Paul, who proceeded to interrupt their prayer meeting. The Bible records, “On the Sabbath day we went outside the city gate by the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and spoke to the women gathered there. A God-fearing woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, was listening. The Lord opened her heart to respond to what Paul was saying” (Acts 16:15ff, CSB). Today groups are meeting in backyards, parks, driveways, beaches, and any other place they can practice physical distancing while still coming together for fellowship, prayer, and Bible study. This is just one way Sunday School is going back to its New Testament roots.

2. Groups are meeting in homes. Not only are groups meeting outside, some have regathered inside the home of a group member. These groups have continued to meet, just like the group I’ve mentioned above, but they’ve chosen to meet inside. I am reminded of the brief glance we have into the way first-century Christians met when we read their story in Acts 2:46. “Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple, and broke bread from house to house” (CSB). These early Christians did not have churches like you and I do today, so they met outside in the temple courts, heard God’s Word preached, then moved to homes in smaller groups to have fellowship and to continue discussing the gospel message they’d heard. Today, we’re getting back to these roots as Christians are gathering in homes for fellowship and study. When their churches reopen groups on campus, they may shift their location there. Or maybe not! There is something wonderful and intimate about meeting in a home, sharing food and fellowship, praying for one another, and discovering the truths found in God’s Word. This is yet another way that groups are going back to their New Testament roots.

3. Groups are meeting. Like I said above, some groups have not met much, or at all, since the start of the pandemic. But things are changing now that we are six months into this global phenomenon. Groups are no longer willing not to meet, and they are finding ways to gather together safely. During times of persecution by the Romans or others, the church didn’t stop meeting. She met. She met in homes, she met outside, but she met. We’re seeing this again today! I like the way the King James Version presents Hebrews 10:25 – “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.” Groups are practicing this by finding ways to meet so they no longer forsake their gathering together. I am proud of the creativity and the tenacity I see in groups and group leaders who pivot and press on, finding a place and time to gather as groups.

Has your group found its New Testament roots? I hope you are meeting somewhere, somehow, and doing it safely and in accordance with your state’s guidelines! If not, have a conversation with your group leader or your pastor about how your group could begin to come together once again.

This article about Sunday school originally appeared here.

See Life 2020: A Window Into the Womb

By
Kirstie Piper
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communicating with the unchurched

It started back in 2019. Focus on the Family had long seen the undeniable power of ultrasound to connect a mother to her preborn child. In fact, since 2004, Focus’s Option Ultrasound has reported nearly 460,000 babies saved via the provision of free ultrasounds.

Knowing that ultrasound technology could give a voice to the smallest, most vulnerable among us, Focus set out to present a 4D ultrasound on the liveliest corner of New York City — 1500 Broadway and West 43rd Street, the heart of Times Square Plaza.

Before See Life: Alive in NYC

In his blog, DalyFocus, Jim Daly reflects on the Alive in New York event of last year.

“As an event, it had it all: beautiful and inspirational music from Christian recording artists Francesca Battistelli and Phil King, passionate and compelling speeches from evangelist Alveda King, former NFL star Benjamin Watson, actress Ashley Bratcher, pro-life stalwarts Marjorie Dannenfelser and Christina Bennett, and abortion survivors Melissa Ohden, Josiah Presley and Claire Culwell – and the live 4D ultrasound of former Planned Parenthood director Abby Johnson’s baby.”

 

Alive 2019 mobile unit ultrasound signs
The Alive in NY 2019 mobile ultrasound unit.

Despite the optimism of Focus on the Family, their many special guests, and nearly 20,000 onlookers, the event quickly grabbed the attention of those who were in opposition to Focus’s cause.

Anti-life protestors hurled insults toward the pro-life attendees and spit at the mobile ultrasound unit as it arrived. Robyn Chambers, Executive Director of Focus’s Advocacy for Children, recalls her experience behind the scenes. Chambers, who was stationed in the mobile unit, witnessed first-hand how the medical team met opposition with Christ-like love:

“Among our many volunteers in Times Square were a doctor and a nurse from Bath, New York – the same area where Planned Parenthood founder Margaret Sanger was born. I also watched how a nurse and a pregnancy center director from Long Island reacted to the protestors who shouted vile things at all of us in the mobile unit.

The director saw their signs and heard the commotion, yet she responded with neither fear nor anger. ‘Oh, we need to pray for them,’ she said. ‘They are so wounded.’

When I looked over at the medical team, they held hands and prayed for the protesters.”

The Power of Seeing Life

Despite the opposition, the event carried on, and when the heartbeat of Abby Johnson’s preborn child echoed through the plaza, the atmosphere of Times Square radically shifted.

Just as Focus had hoped, the simple truth that life is in the womb amazed even those who had attended the broadcast in protest.

“…the defining moment came when a larger-than-life image of a preborn child appeared on the 12-foot-high screens and stillness fell over the crowd. Times Square itself seemed to sense the moment as the ever-present honking horns and workaday din faded when the baby’s profile came into view, the placenta tucked up next to the tiny head like a pillow.

Even those just passing by could clearly see arms, lips and a beautiful face as baby yawned and arched his back. Finally came the sight and sound of a beating heart — loud, clear and strong.”

Jim Daly also recalled the tranquil silence that washed over pro-choice protestors as the preborn child appeared on-screen in Times Square Plaza.

“When that ultrasound went on, there was a hush over Times Square that I’ll remember forever. And as that ultrasound — that baby’s heartbeat — began to play right down Times Square on these large speakers and these jumbotrons, the protestors just dropped their signs and looked in awe at what they were seeing. I don’t think many of them had ever seen an ultrasound or heard the baby’s heartbeat before. They looked that stunned!”

Mission Accomplished

After the event, evidence of the rally’s impact started rolling in: two hundred fifty thousand people signed the pledge to help end abortion.

Media coverage of Alive in New York was just as diverse as the crowds that gathered to watch the broadcast, but whether the headlines labeled the event as pro-life or anti-choice, one thing was for sure: for a moment, the voiceless were allowed to speak. The most precious and discounted among the human race were given a chance to campaign for their right to life.

For Focus on the Family, the mobile unit workers, the pro-life advocates, and every special guest involved in the event — giving the preborn a voice was all that mattered. Mission accomplished.

This Year’s Mission

This year, Focus hopes to, once again, give the voiceless a chance to speak. On September 26th, we’re giving the world another glimpse at, not what is in the womb, but who is in the womb.

Along with the showing of a 4D ultrasound, Focus on the Family has compiled life-changing interviews of those impacted by the abortion industry. From ex-abortion clinic workers to abortion survivors, we’re broadcasting their stories in a digital premiere event— See Life 2020.

We invite all who are willing to join us in our mission to end abortion and to give a voice to the voiceless by signing the pledge to acknowledge, defend, and #LoveEveryHeartbeat.

This article originally appeared here.

Free Kids Lesson Package: "Unfrozen"

By
Daniel So
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communicating with the unchurched

Free Kids Lesson Package

From CMD, “This Christmas teach kids that Jesus was born to melt away the old, and bring new life and a new kingdom.  Week 1 is all about Isaiah, and how he told the people that one day God would establish a new kingdom without end.”

This lesson package includes:

  • Make It Stick! Parent Sheet
  • Memory Verse
  • Skit
  • Object Lesson or Kids Sermon
  • Large Group Lesson
  • Small Group Discussion
  • Large Group Game

Get Download Now

Resource provided by Children’s Ministry Deals 

Download Instructions: To download this resource, follow the on-scren directions at the download site.

Free Printable: “Jesus Feeds 5000” Coloring Page

By
Daniel So
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free coloring page Jesus feeds 5000
Used by permission: Sermons4Kids.com

Use this free coloring page to teach kids about how Jesus feeds 5000.

Free Printable

From Ministry to Children, “Use this illustration of Jesus and the small boy as a coloring page in your Sunday School. It’s based on the passage in Matthew 14:13-21 where Jesus feeds five thousand people when a young boy shares his lunch of fish and bread.”


Get Download Now

Resource provided by Ministry-to-children.com


Download Instructions: Right-click on the link that says “download the print-friendly file” and choose “Save As.”

For more great ideas for children’s ministry, check this out.

Cyber Abusers Are Taking Advantage of Pandemic, Authorities Warn

By
Stephanie Martin
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communicating with the unchurched

With the coronavirus pandemic causing prolonged lockdowns and an unprecedented shift to online learning, children are spending more time than ever online and on electronic devices. Aside from risks to mental health and social development, that trend also raises concerns about the possibility of cyber abuse and sexual exploitation.

This spring, UNICEF, the United Nations Children’s Fund, tweeted: “As we tackle #COVID19, many children’s worlds have shrunk to just their screens. This leaves them vulnerable to online sexual exploitation, grooming, violence, and bullying. Governments and the tech industry must step up to keep children safe.”

At the height of shutdowns throughout America in April, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children received an estimated 4 million cyber abuse reports, a fourfold increase from April 2019. Now that many schools are operating online for the fall and more parents are turning to remote or hybrid learning, vigilance remains essential to thwart sexual predators, say security experts.

Abusers Are Taking Advantage of the Pandemic 

As children’s lives shifted from in-person to online, child abusers “have found a tempting opportunity to access a broader group of potential victims,” reports Europol, the European Union’s law enforcement agency. “The COVID-19 crisis has resulted in a surge in online distribution of child sexual abuse material, which was already at high levels prior to the pandemic,” says Europol Executive Director Catherine De Bolle. “The harm resulting from being a victim of this crime is severe, and every time a picture or video is shared, this results in repeat victimization. The impact of this crime area can hardly be overstated, and an effective response is of utmost importance.”

The sharing of exploitative material has risen globally, according to Europol, which cites livestreaming, webcams, and peer-to-peer networks as factors in criminal activity among the vulnerable youth population. Other experts warn that child predators have been showing up on homework and tutoring sites, social media platforms, and dating sites for teenagers.

Gurbir Grewal, New Jersey’s state attorney general, says apps and video games have increasingly become “prime hunting ground” for sexual predators. Officials in that state began a sting operation to catch online predators in March, as COVD-19 took hold, which Grewal calls “no coincidence.” During a five-month period from March to July 2020, a New Jersey internet crimes task force received 3,600 tips, a threefold increase from the same period last year. A jump also occurred in 7- to 9-year-olds who are “creating sexually explicit videos after being groomed by online predators.”

Although livestreaming sites such as Zoom have made efforts to increase security features, the phenomenon known as Zomb-bombing continues to occur, with intruders hijacking the screen and often sharing inappropriate messages with viewers.

Why Vigilance Is Key 

Though some parents prefer to respect their kids’ privacy and believe they’ll make good decisions, experts say moms and dads have a responsibility to stay alert. Kent Eastwood, a county prosecutor in Indiana, says, “We trust our children to do the right thing, but we also verify that they do it. We [monitor] in a way where they don’t feel like they’re necessarily in trouble.”

Parents, says Eastwood, have “the right and duty to look” at what their kids are doing online, including checking to see what apps they have downloaded. Educating kids is also essential, he says, because parents can’t constantly oversee and observe children’s online use.

Chris Hadnagy, a cyber-security expert who founded the nonprofit Innocent Lives Foundation, says just as parents wouldn’t hand an untrained teenager the keys to a car, they shouldn’t hand kids devices and let them install programs without offering instruction. He recommends asking your child for a step-by-step tutorial on how to use and interact through various social media platforms. He also recommends having age-appropriate conversations and installing monitoring software in a transparent way.

Jim Caviezel Urges Christians to Be Bold: ‘Many of Us Are Playing Judas’

By
Jessica Lea
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communicating with the unchurched

Actor Jim Caviezel recently appeared on the Edifi podcast, where he discussed his new movie “Infidel” with host Billy Hallowell. Caviezel said he hopes the film will bring about a greater awareness of Christian persecution and galvanize American Christians to follow Jesus without regard to their own comfort or what others think about them. 

“I would say the goal would be to create a sense of urgency and relevance to Christians and non-Christians,” said Jim Caviezel when Billy Hallowell asked him for the main takeaway of the film. Many American have very comfortable lives and are oblivious to the persecution that Christians are experiencing elsewhere in the world. However, said Caviezel, “Barbaric Christian persecution is something that still goes on today…We should be aware and engaged in this issue.” 

Jim Caviezel: Don’t Love Approval More Than Jesus

Jim Caviezel told Billy Hallowell that “Infidel,” which releases to theaters Sept. 18, 2020, portrays the “persecution of Christians in the Middle East.” After an American man is invited to speak on national television in Cairo, Egypt, he gets kidnapped and is held captive in Tehran. When the U.S. government does nothing to save him, his wife goes to Iran to save him.

The film, while not based on a specific true story, is nevertheless “thinly disguised truth” and portrays real injustices people have suffered in the Middle East. As examples, Caviezel mentioned the Christians who were martyred in Libya by ISIS, as well as the disappearance of FBI veteran and CIA contractor Robert Levinson, who reportedly died after 13 years of imprisonment in Iran. The actor also drew attention to the fact that many Muslims in the Middle East are suffering the loss of their freedoms. 

Caviezel said there is a moment in the film when his character is on TV and the host presents a certain perspective of who Jesus is. Caviezel’s character has a choice to bow to the pressure to agree with the host or to say what he believes is true. “I love this character,” said the actor, “because he stands up for what he believes in, and that is something that is lacking today in this world’s cancel culture…people want to be liked so badly.”

While it is easy for American Christians and church leaders to let their desire for influence cause them to neglect following God, this is not the example we see in Scripture from Jesus or his disciples. First, Jesus did not ignore the suffering of others. “When I read the gospels,” said Caviezel, “I’ve never seen a Jesus that would sit there and say, ‘Well, you know, too bad for him.’ That is not the gospel I know.” Second, Caviezel pointed out that the Apostle Paul actually had more comfort, power, and influence before he encountered God on the road to Damascus than he did when following God after that experience. 

Caviezel challenged his listeners not to be apathetic about injustice and not to deceive themselves or others about who they are truly following. “The way God sees us is who we really are,” he said, and God will bring the truth to light eventually. “Many of us are playing Judas,” said the actor, “Many of us are playing the Pharisees. And it will come when we have to face God, and it will come, even to non-believers…And we don’t get to see ourselves the way we want to see ourselves anymore.”

We need to be on guard against being complacent about atrocities and injustices in our own country as well, said Caviezel, specifically mentioning the “barbarism of abortion.” Being apathetic toward such wrongs is not how God wants us to live as his people. The actor hopes his latest film will encourage believers to stand up for what is right, no matter the consequences, no matter the tyranny of cancel culture. “You know a tyrant when you’re not allowed to speak your truth,” he said. “We as Christians have to be bold and speak the truth.”

Is the White, Evangelical Church Changing Its Mind About Racial Injustice?

By
Ericka Andersen
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communicating with the unchurched

When Derwin Gray, a former NFL player who pastors Transformation Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, heard the statistics, he wasn’t surprised. Gray, a black man who has long cultivated a more diverse Church body that embraces racial equality, said he’s seen “more of an awakening” from white Christians than ever in the past year, and is encouraged by new data showing that white, church-going Christians have begun to shift their views on race. 

According to fresh research from Barna Research, released exclusively today to ChurchLeaders, white, church-going Christians—long resistant to embrace things like the phrase “Black Lives Matter” or admitting racial discrimination is still present in society today—have slowly begun to shift their views on those issues and more. The research for the data surveyed 1,525 U.S. adults between June 18 and July 6, asking questions like “Do you think our country has a race problem?” and if the U.S. has been historically oppressive to minorities. 

It shows that on a number of hot button racial issues, practicing Christians in 2020 are definitively more affirming than in years past of efforts to combat injustice through protests, personal economic choices, language usage and the removal of Confederate statues.

The evolution of their support for use of “Black Lives Matter,” revealed in the new data, illuminates the stark shift. From only 13 percent of Christians supporting use of the phrase in 2015 (preferring “All Lives Matter” instead) to 45 percent holding a “positive” or “very positive” view in 2020, the jump is significant. 

Another dramatic leap within just the last year demonstrates evidence of change. In 2019, 48 percent of Christians “strongly” or “somewhat strongly” agreed that historically, the U.S. has been oppressive to minorities. The new data shows that number increased to 57 percent this year. What’s more, nearly 2/3rds (64 percent) of Christians report they are at least “somewhat motivated” to address racial injustice in our society. 

The longstanding gap between white and black evangelicals has begun to close, even if the gulf is still exceptionally wide. Gray admits the “majority culture evangelical church has struggled,” but he’s seen evidence of the “signs of revitalization” the new numbers reveal. 

“I’ve had more emails and calls in the last 2-3 months from white pastors seeking guidance, than I’ve had in the last few years combined,” he said, echoing reports from other young, black pastors who have been inundated. 

The white, Protestant Church inhabits ghosts when it comes to the historical treatment of Black people. Several factions of the Church (Baptists, Methodists, among them) split over disagreements regarding slavery, and Scripture was often used to justify support for both segregation and slavery, for example.

Many of these disparate viewpoints held by black and white Christians on the surveyed issues—like opinions on police brutality and outlawing the Confederate flag—are still apart. For example, white Christians are much more likely to view police brutality as an isolated incident, while the majority of black Christians view it as a larger, systemic problem. But the gap is shrinking within Christianity, led by Millennial and Gen Z Christians, who consistently align more with Black Christians. 

Justin Giboney, who is Black, and the co-founder of the AND Campaign, an organization focused on the intersection of faith and politics, like Gray, isn’t surprised by the positive shift either. Given the vocal set of white, evangelical voters who were put off by the election of President Trump in 2016, he said over the phone, it makes sense. Giboney attributes much of the positive change, however, to people “taking their blinders off” after witnessing the murders of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery earlier this year. 

In August, Giboney’s AND Campaign assembled a large group of Christian organizations to launch the Prayer & Action Justice Initiative, an effort to combat racial injustice and advocate for police reform across America. The coalition included a diverse collection of groups, including the National Association of Evangelicals, the Church of God in Christ denomination, National Latino Evangelical Coalition, the American Bible Society, Center for Public Justice, Prison Fellowship, the Asian American Christian Collaborative, the National Day of Prayer, and World Relief. 

Skillet Singer Describes What It’s Like Living in Kenosha Right Now

By
Jesse T. Jackson
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communicating with the unchurched

The lead singer of the multi-platinum Christian rock band Skillet, John Cooper, lives in Kenosha, Wisconsin just blocks away from where violent riots broke out this past Wednesday. In a Facebook post he said, “I never thought I’d enter into a time where I actually have to strap on my AR to keep my family safe, because I am 5 blocks away from where they are burning down the place where I live in.”

John Cooper appeared on Fox & Friends this past Saturday explaining what his experience has been living in the heart of Wisconsin’s current unrest, sparked by the recent police shooting of Jacob Blake. Cooper said that his wife Korey Cooper’s parents have lived in the 100k person town their entire lives, and mentioned they never lock their doors. Cooper said that when he moved to Kenosha that it was TIME Magazine‘s #2 best city in America to raise a family.

“You see this stuff on the news, in Portland, in Seattle, in New York City, or Chicago…you see it and you think it could never happen in your town of Kenosha, Wisconsin.” He continued, “People love each other. [Kenosha] is not a hateful place. It’s not a racist place. The only time it gets angry is when the [Green Bay] Packers play the [Chicago] Bears.”

“There are really good faith people protesting,” Cooper responded to Fox & Friends’ Pete Hegseth‘s question about whether Cooper thought there will be continued violence or  peaceful conversations (about racial injustice) instead. “There are people that want to see change,” he added. “I know people that are protesting. They have good hearts. They want to see the world become a better place, become more equitable, become more loving, become more forgiving.” But Cooper stated that the problem is “there’s not enough condemnation against the violence…when people are burning down your city, slashing your tires….THREATENING to come in my neighborhood, and quote ‘F-up’ my neighborhood…NOW I can’t hear you.”

Skillet’s frontman made an enlightening comment saying he should be, “out playing concerts, rocking the free world (referring to his band Skillet). Instead, I’m hunkered down, praying for the very people that I might have to hurt that night.” He told Hegseth, “That’s something Americans shouldn’t have to deal with! I don’t want to hurt anybody. I’m praying for safety. I’m praying for them. I’m praying for their souls. I’m praying for racial justice. I want all those things, but you can’t come and threaten people’s family in America.”

Skillet’s Cooper gave an encouraging report before ending the interview saying the city had an “amazing” prayer meeting with 14 pastors of all races that came together because of the unified belief that there is one hope. He said that hope “is not a President, it’s the hope in Jesus Christ that gives you a brand new heart to love people that don’t always love you back.”

Jesus can change all of this. He can bring peace.

On his Facebook page, Cooper posted a video of a city-wide prayer event that took place less than 24 hours after the rioting started.

On Monday, Cooper posted an episode of “Cooper Stuff Podcast” that gives an in depth look at the aftermath from the protests, turned violent riots, and talks more about what it’s like to watch protesters march by your house. He also discusses how the media is rooting for the chaos to continue, and shows the positives that are coming out of the darkness, believing it will bring people to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.

Ep. 35 – Kenosha: city on fire

Kenosha: city on fire. Cooper stuff takes you on location to some of the aftermath of the protests. We show you what it’s like to watch protesters march by your house. We talk about the chaos and how the media is rooting for it to continue, and finally we show some positive things coming out of the darkness that we believe will lead many to hope and salvation through Jesus Christ.

Posted by John L. Cooper on Sunday, August 30, 2020

Mary Lederleitner: How to Preach and Lead During an Election Year

By
Jason Daye
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communicating with the unchurched

Dr. Mary Lederleitner is Managing Director of the Church Evangelism Institute at the Wheaton College Billy Graham Center and is the author of Women in God’s Mission and Cross-Cultural Partnerships. Mary earned her Ph.D. at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and has an M.A. in Intercultural Studies from Wheaton College. She teaches as an adjunct professor at both institutions.

Key Questions for Mary Lederleitner

-When does political affiliation cross over into idolatry?

-What are the dangers pastors face regarding political idolatry?

-What practical advice do you have for pastors who are preaching and leading during this election year?

-Have you noticed any differences between the generations when it comes to political idolatry?

Key Quotes from Mary Lederleitner

“I think a lot of time political idolatry really raises its ugly head when people are afraid because most people fall into idolatry to look for a sense of security.”

“It’s easy to say we believe a lot of things…until we’re tested. And this [social tension] is testing many of us to our core.”

“Sometimes we want the gospel plus the American Dream. It’s like we conflate the two.”

“I think these trials are revealing, maybe revealing the states of our hearts.”

“We’re allowed to have strong [political] views. We’re supposed to be discerning and we’re supposed to be understanding the times, and we’re supposed to be integrating our faith into our daily lives. The problem that’s happening is hate sells.”

“There are forces trying to manipulate Christians in a pretty significant way.”

“If we’re leading people, we’ve got to check our own hearts and discern if we’ve fallen into political idolatry.”

The Risk of Asking for Help and How to Do It Wisely

By
Alison Cook
-
communicating with the unchurched

Is there really a risk in asking for help? Recently, I asked a question on Instagram: “Why is it hard for you to ask for help?” I couldn’t believe the number of responses I received, so I copied them into a document and categorized them. Here are some of the main categories that surfaced:

Fear

  • I don’t want to feel like a burden.
  • I might be rejected.
  • What if no one gets it? What if no one knows how to help me?
  • I fear it will be used against me as leverage.

Guilt

  • I feel bad asking, because other people’s problems are bigger than mine.
  • I’m used to helping others. How can I ask them to help me?
  • People see me as strong. I don’t want to let them down.

Shame

  • I feel like I need to wear a mask to look good like others.
  • I don’t want to be judged
  • I’ll be seen as weak or a failure.
  • I was taught I wasn’t worthy of love. How can I believe someone will help me now?

I read your responses and also thought about the stories I hear every day. Many of you are struggling to pay the bills while single parenting; others are dealing with painful dynamics with abuse no one seems to understand. Some of you feel isolated and alone within church communities. I also hear stories from those of you so used to being depended on as “strong” that asking for help would launch a sort of identity crisis. Your narrative goes like this, “If I drop one ball, they’ll all come falling down. I just have to keep juggling them all.”

I get it.

When we say to someone, “I need your help,” we make ourselves vulnerable.

And, vulnerability comes with risk. I can’t tell you that you won’t get hurt if you decide to reach out for help. You might. But I can tell you it’s worth the risk, and you can learn to do it wisely.

For every friend who gives you a pat answer or tells you to pray more, there’s someone who will listen with compassion.

For every pastor who tells you that you have no reason to feel lonely or on the margins of your church, there’s another one who will say, “I get it. I want to help.”

For every family member who blames you for your divorce or your financial predicament, there’s a counselor, friend, or neighbor who will say, “I see your pain and how hard you’re trying. I’m with you in this.”

People can hurt you when you make yourself vulnerable in a time of need. But, please hear me say: DO NOT GIVE UP. From my vantage point as a counselor, I can tell you—for every person who minimizes your pain, there is someone who will get it.

There is someone who will listen, who will enter into your pain with love and compassion, and who will help you with practical care.

For every horrible example of “help” I’ve seen offered to suffering people, I’ve seen angels show up, in multitudes. Here are some real-life examples:

—a companion shows up just when you were ready to give up on love.

—a new boss comes in who gets you and helps you rebuild your career brick-by-brick.

—an acquaintance or neighbor emerges as an unlikely but steady, loyal rock.

—a support group or church community helps connect you to just the right resource.

—a counselor you turn to really and truly sees you.

I could go on and on. For every risk there is in asking for help, there is out there some reward. I witness a lot of pain in my work, but I ALSO witness the beautiful handiwork of angels showing up in unexpected ways. I couldn’t do this work if I didn’t.

Asking for help is vulnerable. And you should be cautious in how you seek it. You don’t want to expose your vulnerabilities to those who will exploit them. Jesus called it casting your pearls before swine (Matthew 7:6).

But, if you’ve bumped up against some swine, don’t let it make you bitter or discouraged.  Instead, get wise, build up your courage, and try again. Read here for tips on how to set up a support system of trusted advisers.

How have angels shown up for you?

This article originally appeared here.

8 Reasons Church Pain Can Be the Worst Pain

By
Chuck Lawless
-
communicating with the unchurched

If you haven’t been through church pain, you probably will.

8 Reasons Church Pain Can Be the Worst Pain

We’re all fallen people—redeemed sinners—which means we sometimes still reflect our fallenness. Church pain, though, can be some of the deepest pain. Here’s why:

  1. We expect better. After all, this is the church. God’s people. They’re supposed to act Christian. Things shouldn’t be this way.
  2. We’re seldom prepared for it. We don’t go looking for conflict with church people. When it comes, it catches us off guard.
  3. We love God’s people. Deeply, even. God’s people can be great. Church battles, though, mangle relationships with those same people—and the depth of our love makes that pain even deeper.
  4. We don’t understand it. Why would God’s people act like they do sometimes? And, why would God allow it to happen? Our questions don’t help our pain.
  5. We look to the church for peace, not pain. Church ought to be our safe place—the one gathering where we can just rest our souls. Church conflict robs us of that safety.
  6. It affects a big part of our lives. If we’re invested with a congregation, our church becomes an investment of all we have. That means any church pain affects all we are.
  7. It often doesn’t make sense. We elevate our preferences to the level of the gospel, guard our turf as if God’s church will disappear without us, and fight against those we call “brother” and “sister.” Church pain really hurts when the whole situation is dumb.
  8. It just gets old. When you’ve faced church pain before and it happens again, you just get tired of it. It’s easy to wonder if being a part of a congregation is even worth it.

If you’re struggling with church pain, please know that I’ve already prayed for all my readers today. Maybe these posts will help you, too:

This article originally appeared here.

Praying Against the Coronavirus

By
Dan Reiland
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communicating with the unchurched

What can stop the Coronavirus?

I’m all in for:

  • Wearing my mask.
  • Social distancing.
  • Washing my hands.

That makes a big difference.

We also need factual and accurate information to keep learning the trends, what works, what doesn’t work, and how to be smart about this crazy season we’re all in.

Some say it won’t be over until there’s a vaccine. There is undoubtedly truth to that, but is a vaccine really the magic bullet?

I don’t know what God has in mind, but I am confident that He loves and cares about people and can shut down the Coronavirus by speaking even just one word.

What I do know is that prayer is our best, strongest, and most powerful weapon against this world pandemic.

That may seem overly simplistic and too obvious.

However, my purpose isn’t to write something no one has thought of, but to fan the flame of something we may not be fully tapping its potential.

I don’t want to make prayer complicated, but I do desire to fully engage its power.

We have an incredible opportunity to pray and thereby fully engage God in this battle against the Coronavirus.

“The most powerful form of praying is positive, aggressive, mightily outgoing, and creative. It molds things, changes things, and brings things to pass.” 

Leonard Ravenhill, A Treasury of Prayer

What if we prayed that way?

  • Positive
  • Aggressive
  • Powerfully outgoing
  • Creative

Maybe you already do. But what if hundreds of thousands prayed that way?

Personal note: I have resisted writing this post. 

Not that it’s controversial or anything all that special. Candidly, I told God, “What would I say? Leaders know how to pray, and they are praying. This will seem too obvious.” 

But for a couple of weeks out on my daily run, the Holy Spirit seemed to keep prompting me to write on this topic. So, I have.

“Prayer puts God’s work in His hands and keeps it there. It looks to Him constantly and depends on Him implicitly to further His own cause. Prayer is but faith resting in, acting with, and leaning on and obeying God.”

Leonard Ravenhill, A Treasury of Prayer

Praying Against the Coronavirus:

1) Praying against the Coronavirus with a positive approach

Praying against the Coronavirus starts with belief.

You and I must believe that God can end the Coronavirus. Intellectually, nearly every Christian would agree God can, but deep down, doubt can erode our faith.

After nearly six months of enduring COVID-19, questions arise that lead to doubt.

Such as, if God can stop the virus, why hasn’t He? Loved ones have been lost, and that creates sorrow. From there, it’s easy to spin off into complicated theological questions that bury us in conversations, confusion, and candidly everything but prayer.

Questions are good. God can handle them. Doubt isn’t sin, it’s human, but we can rise above it.

Faith is where we start.

We don’t come to God with blind faith or foolish faith. Prayer is based on a personal and powerful God who we know answers prayer. We have experienced it.

What do you believe?

That shapes what you pray and how you pray.

God doesn’t owe us an answer; He’s not obligated to do what we ask. But we know prayer moves Him, and God wants us to engage with Him.

Prayer is an incredible invitation.

2) Praying against the Coronavirus from an aggressive position

“Satan dreads nothing but prayer  . . . The one concern of the devil is to keep the saints from prayer. . . He laughs at our toil, mocks our wisdom, but trembles when we pray.” Samuel Chadwick, A Treasury of Prayer, by Ravenhill

I can’t say that Satan himself authored this pandemic, but I do know He takes delight in the division, fear, and sorrow it causes.

Casual and occasional prayers will not stop the Coronavirus, but fervent, relentless and bold prayers can make a life-changing difference.

My daily prayer includes:

“God, please shut down the Coronavirus and heal those who are sick – and open the doors of the Church across the world!” 

It’s a simple prayer. God doesn’t need to be impressed. But it’s bold, filled with conviction, compassion, and hope.

The Enemy dreads prayer because that’s how the redeemed partner with the Redeemer.

Prayer is a form of conversation and communion with God, but it’s also a weapon of incredible force.

3) Praying against the Coronavirus with powerfully outgoing authority

Your private prayers are powerful, but Scripture reminds us of a different kind of authority that comes from praying together.

18 “Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. 19 “Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. 20 For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”

Matthew 18:18-20

Our prayers in agreement with other believers travel beyond us; they are part of the body of Christ and multiply in strength through unity in Jesus.

We gain strength, encouragement, and momentum when we agree and pray together.

It may be you, your spouse, or a small group, or a prayer partner. And you can imagine the outcomes when an entire church prays about something together!

When you hear how others pray, your prayers are deepened, and your faith is increased. You know you are not alone, and it’s easier to sense God’s presence.

4) Praying against the Coronavirus while embracing a creative openness

With the Holy Spirit prompting you, there is no reason to limit prayer to a specific way or particular set of rules, or what you can and can’t pray for.

God can’t be contained. God never contradicts His own attributes or truth, but His thoughts are so much bigger than ours.

As long as we use Scripture as our guidelines, we have great latitude in our prayers.

The Holy Spirit can prompt different approaches; even some you might consider creative.

For example, it is not a lack of faith to pray for a vaccine to be developed. That’s simply a different approach.

We can pray for God’s wisdom to inspire scientists to a safe and affordable vaccine.

You might find yourself praying for funding to resource the development of the vaccine. That’s a little out of the box, and that’s the idea.

God is a creative God, and we are wise to listen for His prompts about how we are to pray against the Coronavirus.

Let’s take our prayers up a notch to take down this virus.

This article about praying against the coronavirus originally appeared here.

Make Safety a Top Priority

By
David O Middlebrook
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communicating with the unchurched

One of the first ministries developed in a new church is the children’s ministry, and one of the greatest assets to the new ministry is adult volunteers. Whether nursery workers or youth group chaperones, these volunteers provide the care, mentoring and valuable manpower that is needed to help a ministry thrive. Oftentimes, an “all hands on deck” approach is taken in recruiting volunteers simply because it takes a lot of people to care for the children in your church. However, in the quest to fill much needed volunteer spots, many churches decide not to screen or train volunteers, fearing that doing so may deter persons from volunteering. This should not be the case. Churches need to take care in choosing who will have access to the most important people in the building: the children.

One of the ways churches can manage access to its children is by requiring criminal background checks on all persons­—volunteers and employees—who will work with children and youth. No church should be without these checks; they are an effective tool for determining whether a potential employee or volunteer is safe to care for children. The justification for background checks is compelling. For example, during the 1980s and 1990s, one particular national youth organization chose not to perform background checks. Consequently, the organization admitted over 200 men who had previously been arrested or convicted of sex crimes as volunteers in the organization’s youth programs. Although the organization slowly began requiring criminal background checks for new volunteers, it was not until 2008 that the organization ultimately ordered background checks for all volunteers. Hundreds of cases of child molestation occurred during the interim. As a result, young lives were destroyed by abuse and a once effective nonprofit is now struggling to overcome the legal challenges, as well as shame, from its failure to protect youth in its care.

This should be a warning for all churches and ministries. Just because your church is a religious organization does not mean it is insulated from those who may abuse children. Unfortunately, there are hundreds of cases of abuse arising from children’s and youth ministries. But churches are not helpless! A church should implement systems that will screen all employees and volunteers to prevent the opportunity for abuse as well as train employees and volunteers to spot and report suspected misconduct. Not only will proper screening and training set safeguards around the children and youth, it will also protect the church from engaging in the negligent hiring of employees and negligent supervision of volunteers. Negligent hiring is when the employer knew or should have known key background facts of the employee that indicated a dangerous background. Negligent supervision of volunteers is when volunteers are improperly supervised, allowing injury to occur. These common legal claims arise when abuse occurs within the church. Careful hiring and supervision will help prevent even the opportunity for abuse.

Many churches have buckled under court judgments for failing to show they did enough to protect children in their care. In response, I developed The Guardian System. This program gives ministries confidence that they’re demonstrating the care needed to protect children. The foundation of The Guardian System is a four-step tool known as S.T.O.P.: Screen, Train, Operate and P.L.A.N.

Often, churches “trust and believe” when they should “trust but verify.” We need to remember that Jesus said to “be shrewd as serpents…” By implementing S.T.O.P. you will wisely improve the protection of children in your care. Our legal system demands you show due care when giving access to children, and children deserve that care. By following these four steps you will enable your ministry to minimize opportunities for evil.

S – Screen

A properly designed screening process should be the gatekeeper for entering children’s ministry. Most importantly, a screening process will help uncover those with evil intentions. It is difficult to understand how someone who wants to work with children could have evil intentions. But case after case has shown that for many abusers, moving to a job or volunteer opportunity with access to children is often intentional. A properly developed screening process will help weed out wolves in sheep’s clothing.

A screening should consist of several steps and should not only consist of a face-to-face interview. Many times, abusers are very likeable people and it may be difficult to believe they could harm anyone. The first step in the screening process is creating job descriptions, even for volunteers. Every position involving direct contact with children should have a written description of duties and responsibilities. A good job description helps you control the contact employees and volunteers have with children. You set the boundaries for a job, not the employee or the volunteer.

Along with a thorough job description, a written application should begin the screening process. A carefully crafted application allows the church to obtain important information from the applicant, which you can verify through outside sources. Finally, do not let employees or volunteers begin their work prior to your receipt of the completed application. Make it clear that until you have a completed application, applicants are not allowed to work or volunteer.

You should also classify employees and volunteers according to their contact with children. For example, persons who have direct contact with children or youth and may be called upon for events such as overnight excursions need to be supervised at a higher level than volunteers who may only work in the parking lot or directing traffic. Classifying volunteers will help you allocate supervision and training.

Finally, face-to-face interviews, obtaining references and performing criminal background checks are the very last, but arguably most important, parts of your screening process. An interview will help you have a “gut check” about the applicant: listen to your gut check. If you perform a reference check or criminal background check that comes back positive for violent or sexual crimes, the applicant should be immediately disqualified from primary contact with children. While an applicant’s life may have changed since they committed crimes, it does not mean you have to place the applicant in primary contact with children. Remember to screen existing employees and volunteers if you are just beginning to perform background checks. No one should be excused due to seniority.

8 Characteristics of a 1 Corinthians 12 Church

By
Chuck Lawless
-
communicating with the unchurched

Many of us grew up in churches where the pastors did most of the work, and few of us were challenged to find our place in the church. These churches weren’t what I call “1 Corinthians 12” churches—churches that understand what it means to be the Body of Christ. Use these markers to determine if your church is a 1 Corinthians 12 church:

1. They teach that God has a plan in putting His body together. God doesn’t accidentally bring together hands, feet, ears and eyes. The problem is that many church members never learn that truth unless their pastor is preaching through 1 Corinthians.

2. They tell members early, “Everyone must find a role here.” In fact, they often tell prospective members this truth. If God has a plan, and He brings people to the church, He must have a place for them.

3. Nobody is permitted to sit long. Guests who are “checking out” the church might get a pass for a while, but no one else does. Even those attenders who need to heal a bit aren’t given long to do so. First Corinthians 12 leaves no room for inactive church membership.

4. They have in place a process to move people from the pew to action. They do much more than make pulpit and bulletin announcements. Instead, they have face-to-face conversations and life discussions that help people determine how they might best serve God through the church.

5. They strategize with people in mind, not just programs and positions. Too many churches start with programs and positions and then look for people to force into those slots. These things matter, but God might bring someone to the church because He wants to expand the church’s thinking. First Corinthians 12 churches start with people.

6. They’re willing to let some positions remain empty until they find the right people to fill them. Making sure all the positions are filled might make the church feel better, but putting the wrong people in positions (e.g., putting an “eye” where an “ear” ought to be) leads only to burnout and trouble.

7. They still provide (and often require) training. That is, they don’t assume that just because somebody is designed to be a “foot” that he’s fully ready to take on that role; they help members become all that God wants them to be through training and accountability.

8. They intentionally grow as a church family. The Body of Christ is also the family of God, and 1 Corinthians 12 churches understand that truth. Even if only via the small groups of the largest churches, these congregations weep and rejoice with each other. They care and serve together.

Is your church a 1 Corinthians 12 church?  

Andy Stanley: Why God Loves You No Matter What

By
Andrew Hess
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