It’s Sunday afternoon at your church, and everyone has gathered for a potluck. All the food offerings at the event are laid out properly, from deviled eggs to three types of mac and cheese, from cookies still in their plastic containers from the store to fresh famous banana pudding from your most tenured potluck contributor. As you turn to sit down, you see a single adult at their table for one in the corner.

Dr. Charles Stanley (The Wonderful Spirit Filled Life) said, “To walk in the Spirit requires a moment-by-moment sensitivity to and dependence on the Holy Spirit. Spiritual fruit is the proof.” Christians can never produce this fruit; they can only bear it. The Holy Spirit is the only One who produces it.

I had an interesting experience a few days ago while eating at a Mexican restaurant with a KBC pastor in one of our Kentucky counties.  As is my custom, I learned the name of our server and offered to pray for her. The pastor already knew her and was doing his best to communicate in her native tongue.

I always learn something when I go to a funeral service, a memorial service, a celebration of life service. It certainly helps me to get in touch with my mortality; and most of the time, gives me a glimpse of eternity.

The best thing that could ever happen to you is to come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. To be certain that your sins have been forgiven and that your names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

Bible teachers are not just transferring information from leader to learner—they are the lead disciple-maker of the group. Teachers that make the biggest impact through teaching are men and women of God who understand that their role extends beyond the one hour teaching experience once a week.

At Send Network, we’re driven by one mission: helping churches plant churches everywhere for everyone. It’s not just what we do—it’s who we are. Together, as a family of churches, we’re joining God in His redemptive work to expand His kingdom in North America and the nations.

All believers are indwelt by the Holy Spirit. He lives in the heart of every believer, guaranteeing heaven as the destination of that soul. To walk by the Spirit is to be led by the Holy Spirit.

Since moving to Tennessee from Dallas, Texas, I always chuckle a bit when folks around Jackson complain about traffic problems. Admittedly, there are seasons when traffic is slower than usual around our little town, but it doesn’t compare to commutes of an hour or more.

It is not unusual for young men who serve on church staffs to reach a point in ministry and leadership development where they start thinking about becoming senior pastor of a church.   Not every senior pastor has his first ministry experience in a church staff position, but many will.

Jesus said, “You are my friends if you do what I command” (John 15:14). All Christians should want to be friends with God. But how good of a friend are we when we sin and grieve the Holy Spirit?

Alcoholism has its claws wrapped tightly around the souls of the small town I grew up in, here in the Amazon region of South America. There are very few people whose lives go untouched by the darkness and destruction it brings. Mario, too, was engulfed in the addiction.

Defining who a young adult is in your community is one more step toward connecting them in the church and making disciples.

ATLANTA — Georgia Baptists will once again recognize their “Legislators of the Year” at the 11th Annual Georgia Baptist Pastors Day at the State Capitol on Thursday, Feb. 6. Each year, Georgia Baptists, through the Public Affairs Committee, recognize a Senate and House member with an award, thanking them for their extraordinary service to Georgia and God’s Kingdom on earth.

Here is some good news: God does not evaluate us by our fruitfulness, but by our faithfulness. God reminds us in 1 Corinthians 4:2 that, “Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.”  

Perhaps you have heard some of these. You know you’re getting old when: You sit down in a rocking chair but can’t get it started. Everything hurts…what doesn’t hurt doesn’t work. You sink your teeth into a juicy steak and they stay there.

Jesus said, “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). The Lord was telling us that the Holy Spirit is our strength, not we ourselves.

Not all opportunities present themselves as such. One showed up recently as a record-setting snowfall, and a good dose of ice that canceled most church services in our neck of the woods.

Love him or hate him, Donald J. Trump is now the 47th president of the United States. Both the messiness and beauty of the American experiment were on full display in what is undeniably one of the most historic elections in our nation’s history.

Rob Peters, transitional pastor of the church I retired from almost a year ago, told about leading Bible study one Wednesday night and noticing a couple he’d not seen before, a dark-haired Middle Eastern man and his wife, a blonde-haired woman. After the service, the couple approached Peters and requested a few minutes to talk.

I just realized I forgot my column this morning. For the first time in 15 years, I forgot to write my column. So, here I am playing catch-up.

Though making an annual trip to St. Jude Hospital in Memphis, Tenn., admittedly causes a certain amount of anxiety, there is no greater feeling than hearing that my son remains cancer-free after a decade since being treated for leukemia. We praise the Lord each year after learning that his scans are clear, just as we did all those years ago when we first heard the word remission.      

I read a statement in a leadership journal that points to one of the dangers of passive leadership. The requote from Catherine Rymsha was given at the HR Specialist Summit this past year. She said, “The culture of any organization is shaped by the worst behavior the leader is willing to tolerate.” 

Jesus said, “I am the bread of life” (John 6:48). He added, “I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever…” (John 6:51). The Lord was speaking to a multitude of people following Him for more of the miraculous food He had provided them previously. But Jesus was speaking of spiritual food, something far more important.

Once again, Georgia Baptists will host pastors from across the state at the Georgia Capitol on Feb. 6, 2025, for the 11th annual Pastors Day event. Pastors and ministry leaders will hear from several leaders in the legislative and faith communities.