Looking for a great Christian book that engages your mind and heart? There are so many options now days. Too many really. You’ve probably read many of the Christian classics: Mere Christianity, Pilgrim’s Progress, Basic Christianity, Knowing God, and the list could go on for miles.
My hope in this post is to expose you to some awesome Christian books that engage your mind and heart but that you’ve probably never read.
(This article was also published on ChurchLeaders.com)
Recent statistics show that every year in the US, 4000 churches close their doors while only 1000 new churches are planted. Among existing churches, half did not add any new members to their ranks in the last two years. From 1990 to 2000, the combined membership of all Protestant denominations dropped by almost 5 million members, while the US population rose by 24 million.1
These are alarming statistics!
Each church that shuts down represents real people who have lost their church family. So if you are someone looking for a new church, someone wondering if their church is built to last, or someone who would love to help their church improve, here are 24 signs of a super healthy church.
There is a teaching in our day that rebels against the “health, wealth, and prosperity” gospel. The prosperity gospel, in short, says if you pray to Jesus he will bless you materially beyond your wildest dreams. The emphasis is on power, blessings, and avoidance of suffering.
In some respects, little sins are much more dangerous than big sins. By “little sins” and “big sins,” I certainly don’t mean some sins are less offensive in the eyes of God. All sin deserves death, and thus all sin will be paid for either by the sinner or through the cross of Christ.
Many modern Christians have traded in legalism for spiritualism. The legalist emphasizes what you do externally. The spiritualist emphasizes your motivations, thoughts, and feelings that occur internally. Christians however, are supposed to focus on the inner and outer life.
The way to avoid legalism in Christianity is not to abandon good deeds in exchange for good motives. The way to avoid legalism in Christianity is to have good deeds with good motives, to obey God’s law out of a relational love for him.
To live is to be constantly taking in and putting out. We breathe and then exhale. We see and then react. We hear and then process. We eat and then . . . well you know. Life is a constant journey of movement. Spiritually speaking, this is true as well. We are never just standing still. We are either moving closer to the Lord or backsliding (Romans 6:19, 2 Peter 1:8-9).
I like to over complicate things. Let’s go back into my childhood. Let’s take a deep look into my thinking process. Let’s analyze every word this person said to me. Na, Jesus says. Let’s just start with prayer.
As I was going through seminary and pursuing a Master’s Degree in pastoral counseling, I was taught a principle I believe Jesus practiced, “Complicated problems don’t always require complicated solutions.”
Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life. . . . – Philippians 2:14-16 (NIV)
Now Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus said, “You have said so.” But when he was accused by the chief priests and elders, he gave no answer. Then Pilate said to him, “Do you not hear how many things they testify against you?” But he gave him no answer, not even to a single charge, so that the governor was greatly amazed. – Matthew 27:11-14
Silence can say a lot. Sometimes words are not enough for the most important of messages. Sometimes the most effective answer is to say nothing.
I am sure we all have heard the phrase, “Time heals all wounds.” But does time really heal? Does the Bible actually say that time heals all wounds?
Every Christian wants to know what their calling is from God. However, this question is perhaps one of the most difficult to answer for a variety of reasons: you have to know you are actually hearing from God, you have to know the Scriptures to make sure your calling is congruent with truth, you have to be flexible enough to know who you are today is not who God will make you into five years from now, and you have to be humble enough to accept that your understanding of God’s calling on you will progress and even change throughout the years.
So how do we know what our calling is from God? It helps to break this questions up into two parts: 1. What always is your ultimate calling? 2. What is your specific calling in this season of life?