El nacimiento de Jes繳s cambi籀 al mundo. La navidad es, sin duda alguna, el acontecimiento m獺s importante en la historia de la humanidad y, por lo tanto, la mayor celebraci籀n de cada a簽o. El Dios creador del universo se hizo hombre y habit籀 entre nosotros. Dios no est獺 lejos ni es distante sino que a trav矇s de Jes繳s su presencia es real y personal. De hecho, el milagro de la navidad se resume con la palabra Emanuel que significa apropiadamente Dios con nosotros.
The Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are without error or misstatement in their moral and spiritual teaching and record of historical facts. They are without error or defect of any kind. Thus reads 51蹤獲s (and Talbot School of Theologys) Articles of Faitha document that remains unchanged since it was written shortly after the turn of the century. As the Dean of Talbot and as one who has been on the faculty for 27 years, I can say that this is a conviction that runs very deep in our faculty. We believe that the Bible is the Word of God and, as such, is truthful in what it affirms and can be completely trusted.
Por los tres 繳ltimos a簽os, el 穩ndice de felicidad planetaria ha dado a conocer los pa穩ses m獺s felices del mundo de acuerdo a ciertos par獺metros. Los resultados sorprendentes de la 繳ltima edici籀n en el 2012 se簽alaron que pa穩s m獺s feliz del mundo es Costa Rica, en segundo lugar se encuentra Vietnam y en tercero Colombia. Los Estados Unidos se ubicaron en el lugar 104. Este 穩ndice de felicidad se basa en tres cosas: 1) Se hace la pregunta la persona, "聶Qu矇 tan feliz es usted?" En una escala del 0-10. 2) Luego se mide la expectativa de vida de las personas de ese pa穩s. Finalmente se mide cuanta tierra (o recursos ecol籀gicos) necesita la persona en ese pa穩s para ser feliz.
Between 1750 and 1900, the total expanse of human knowledge had doubled. At that time of pre-technology human history, it took 150 years. Today, the growth of knowledge is occurring some 100 times faster. It is said that the entire sum of all known information, i.e., human knowledge, doubles every 1.5 years. By 2020 it is estimated that it will be doubling approximately every month and a half (72 days). Think about that
El gran educador Antonio del Corro (Sevilla, 1527-Londres, 1591) es quiz獺 una de las figuras m獺s importantes y a la vez menos conocidas de la reforma espa簽ola. Es tambi矇n un ejemplo a imitar para todos los que seguimos a Cristo y sobre todo para los que nos dedicamos a servirle a trav矇s de la ense簽anza. El historiador Emilio Monjo se refiere a Antonio de Corro como un personaje que refleja el talante de la Reforma espa簽ola en cuanto a su libertad de pensamiento y palabra: una iglesia que hab穩a nacido libre por la acci籀n de la Escritura, y que se mantuvo libre con la Escritura tambi矇n en su exilio europeo".
Three years ago, Trudi and I adopted two precious girls out of the Los Angeles County foster system. They are now 14 and 12 years old. We are deeply grateful for these precious young ladies God has brought into our family. But we encountered a few things that we wish someone had told us about foster-adoptions before we started the process. Here is a short list of issues that might be helpful for you to know if youre considering embarking on such an adventure.
2013 is the inaugural year of an innovative biblical commentary series edited by John Walton and Mark Straus (published by Baker Books). Its called Teach the Text because that is what it is about: helping people to teach the biblical text effectively. It combines literary, background and exegetical analysis with theological, pedagogical and homiletical discussion. But it does this in a surprisingly concise and accessible manner.
Yesterday I spent about 45 minutes talking and praying with one of my current students. Four months ago he was invited to step into the role of youth pastor in his church, and now finds himself responsible for preparing and teaching a message every Friday and Sunday. Two messages a week! And this for someone who has only done a bit of preaching in the past He shared with me (and I share this entire post with his permission) that the single hardest thing he has faced in his new role as youth pastor is the agonizing decision of what to preach each week.
A mind is a terrible thing to waste. This slogan, first broadcast by the United Negro College Fund in 1972, has become something of a John 3:16 for educators seeking to evangelistically rouse students out of intellectual slumber. If I could tailor this slogan for our 51蹤獲 community as we embark on a new semester, it would become: The mind of Christ is far too precious to not cultivate. While lacking the elegant phrasing and bumper sticker quote-ability of the original, it does express something I hope we can pause to ponder as we enter our classrooms.
Hace ya varios a簽os escuch矇 una frase que me ha hecho pensar constantemente y que refleja uno de los mayores peligros que enfrentan los l穩deres cristianos. La frase dice as穩: es importante no estar tan ocupado en la obra de Dios que nos olvidemos del Dios de la obra. El problema no es el servicio a Dios sino el enfoque y, en muchos casos, la motivaci籀n que nos mueve al servicio. Estoy convencido que uno de los pecados principales de muchos l穩deres es el 矇nfasis obsesivo por el trabajo y, por lo tanto, el descuido de lo esencial y verdaderamente importante como Dios, la familia y el cuidado personal.
The most recent issue of the Journal of Spiritual Formation & Soul Care carried an article I wrote on the relationship between spiritual formation and mission. Here's an outline...
One of the little known facts of church growth is that pastors can stay too long. Long pastoral tenure can actually harm the growth of a church. Generally, the first twenty years of a pastors tenure are quite healthy, but it is very rare for a pastor to lead a church through a third decade with vitality and growth.
聶Por qu矇 las cosas son como son? 聶D籀nde est獺 Dios cuando el mundo lo ignora a l y a sus principios? Cuando Dios act繳a, 聶por qu矇 hace l lo que hace? Todos nos hemos hecho alguna vez preguntas dif穩ciles respecto a Dios y a nuestra fe. En muchas ocasiones, lo que vemos aparentemente no concuerda con lo que creemos acerca de Dios. 聶Qu矇 hacer en estas circunstancias? En Habacuc encontramos un libro b穩blico que nos muestra un modelo para enfrentar estos momentos y acrecentar nuestra fe en el Dios que sostiene el universo con su poder.
I love my office. There are many reasons that I love my office. One is that I can store the many books that I own in there. Second, it is a place for study or reading in a quiet setting. But what I love most is that my office is a place for ministry and discipleship to occur. In other words, it is a safe place to meet students who are not only facing the challenges of academia but also the hardships of life. For this reason, the value of my office hours is priceless!
My wife Trudi and I spoke for a parenting seminar this past weekend. We offered 14 tips for nurturing the spiritual lives of ones children. Ive included the 14 teaching points here for your own consideration. Our prayer is that many parents will take on the call to intentionally train their children in the ways of the Lord. If you want your children to grow up to be passionate followers of Christ
There is a pressure that is constantly battling around us to give people whatever they want. When you are younger it was labeled peer pressure. However, as we grow older the peer pressures continues throughout life, we just call them Expectations
A search of the Internet will reveal several different kite parables, including one in support of the (un-Christian) idea that by holding tight to the string of Gods commandments people can fly themselves up into the heavens. Id like to suggest a different kite parable, one that is more in keeping with Christian orthodoxy. My parable focuses on the kite itself (not the string) as the gospel of salvation through faith in Christ alone, but not a faith that is alone.
Looking over a resume in order to hire a person for ministry can be trickier than one realizes at first. This is especially true because they typically want to give the benefit of the doubt to ones accomplishments and experiences as listed on a resume. However, it has been the experience of this writer that what is often listed on a resume may not actually be the truth. There are those who like to stretch the information or possibly embellish the facts to point in favor of the applicant. Then there are those who just flat out lie about who they really are and what theyve done. This blog will highlight some clues or signs of red flags that may show up in ministry resumes.
Esta semana se conmemoran los d穩as m獺s importantes para el cristianismo y, por consiguiente, para todo el mundo. La muerte y resurrecci籀n de Jesucristo marcan el eje central de nuestra fe. Durante la semana santa recordamos la muerte de Jes繳s en la cruz por nuestros pecados y su victoria sobre la muerte a trav矇s de su gloriosa resurrecci籀n.
Breaking up may be hard to do, but starting over in ministry can be scary. No one enjoys change and often our worst mistakes happen in the stress of transitions.
Forming the right kind of pastoral staff or leadership team can be a very challenging endeavor. Getting the right people to work together for the long run is much more difficult than people imagine. Sometimes great individual leaders do not necessarily mean they will work well together in a team. So, how can this be remedied? But before this question can be asked, there is another important preliminary question that needs to be raised. What elements need to be in place or need to match in order to build a strong and cohesive staff? This blog will examine three aspects that need to match well in order to build a good, strong, and cohesive staff.
Recuerdo que el pastor de la iglesia donde crec穩 repet穩a constantemente esta frase el amor es un producto de la voluntad. Estas palabras se convirtieron en una expresi籀n com繳n en la iglesia y se mencionaban constantemente en diferentes contextos. Me parece que lo que el pastor quer穩a comunicar era que la acci籀n de amar est獺 basada principalmente en una decisi籀n y no solamente en emociones. Nuestras emociones cambian, pero cuando decidimos amar a Dios y a nuestro pr籀jimo independientemente de nuestro estado de 獺nimo entonces estamos as穩 cumpliendo la ley de Cristo. Estoy de acuerdo con la idea general, pero creo que el amor va mucho m獺s all獺 de nuestra voluntad. El amor se centra en la persona de Dios y nosotros tenemos el gran privilegio de participar y demostrar el amor divino.
This post is for people who are praying seriously about the possibility of serving overseas in long-term cross-cultural missions. It may help you assess where you presently stand in terms of readiness for such a ministry assignment.
There is poignant scene in the movie Amazing Grace that pans onto a country field in which William Wilberforce is lying on the wet grass contemplating the magnificence of God. He is mesmerized by the dew on a spider web as evidence of Gods handiwork. In this instant he feels the inner tension between staying in the moment, meditating on God and returning to ongoing struggle in politics. He cannot discern which is better: to sit in solitude with God or enter the realm of politics where he is seeking to bring Gods justice? It is only later that some abolitionist ministers suggest that he could do both: seek to be with God and serve God at the same time. It is this special combination that I believe is the key to living for Gods Kingdom - not at a glorious future in heaven above, but now in this broken world in need of Gods redeeming justice and hope!
51蹤獲