Author: Seth Barnes

A playground brings joy in Swaziland

Written by Seth Barnes on August 25, 2009. Posted in Eswatini / Swaziland. 7 Comments on A playground brings joy in Swaziland

When our kids were young and we lived in Florida, we had a park with a playground on it right behind our house. I’d come home from work and one of our kids would shout out...

Finding lost things

Written by Seth Barnes on August 24, 2009. Posted in A broken world. 5 Comments on Finding lost things

I was jogging yesterday when suddenly I was joined by a couple of black Labradors in full stride. They hung with me for nearly two miles before we returned to what I assumed was...

The world needs you to make disciples

Written by Seth Barnes on August 23, 2009. Posted in Missions. 2 Comments on The world needs you to make disciples

When Jesus started his ministry, he quoted Isaiah 61:1-2: Preach good news to the poor. Bind up the brokenhearted. Proclaim freedom for captives. Comfort all who mourn. A few...

Your false self

Written by Seth Barnes on August 22, 2009. Posted in Identity issues. 10 Comments on Your false self

So many people live under a cloud of angst, perpetually stressed and at war with themselves, knowing down deep that they have sold out to what Richard Rohr calls the “false...

The sex trade comes to your doorstep

Written by Seth Barnes on August 21, 2009. Posted in Dealing with junk in our lives. 7 Comments on The sex trade comes to your doorstep

I have 367 Twitter followers, but in the last day or so, 16 young women who had no history on Twitter (but who were each instantly following 800 or more people) showed up as new...

Breaking the chains off women

Written by Seth Barnes on August 20, 2009. Posted in Wounded healers. 9 Comments on Breaking the chains off women

Last week a group of ladies got together in Sarasota to brainstorm how to build their new ministry to women seeking freedom from past issues – many from shame and abuse. I...

Moving from success to significance

Written by Seth Barnes on August 19, 2009. Posted in Identity issues. 7 Comments on Moving from success to significance

“I shouldn’t bother you with this,” said the man at the bar to my daughter Talia. “But I don’t know where the time has gone. 52 years have sped by...

How to start a church explosion

Written by Seth Barnes on August 18, 2009. Posted in Missions. 4 Comments on How to start a church explosion

From Guy Muse’s blog on missions: How 29 believers became 110 believers starting 5 new house churches–and all in less than a year How did they do it? Short version for...

The blind see – a miracle in Kenya

Written by Seth Barnes on August 17, 2009. Posted in The Holy Spirit is on the move. 6 Comments on The blind see – a miracle in Kenya

I sat at lunch across from Shaye Cornell a little over a month ago. I asked her, “So what happened on your trip to Kenya?” What she shared was incredible. Here’s...

Man Hike #2 – White Mtns of New Hampshire

Written by Seth Barnes on August 16, 2009. Posted in Courage. 4 Comments on Man Hike #2 – White Mtns of New Hampshire

You can only go so far discipling people on the internet. You have to get together in the flesh periodically to hear what God’s saying and go to the next step. That’s...

The tale of the white pig

Written by Seth Barnes on August 15, 2009. Posted in Missions. 6 Comments on The tale of the white pig

The other night a missionary named John Cutts came by the Almand home in Gainesville and told an amazing story. It’s a little long, but worth it. Erin Almand took notes and...

Keeping our daughters safe

Written by Seth Barnes on August 14, 2009. Posted in Eswatini / Swaziland. 9 Comments on Keeping our daughters safe

This blog by Pastor Gift is hard to read, it such a searing account, I had to tone it down some. My hope in sharing it is that the reality of what so many young Swazi women face...

We’ve lost the missionary imperative

Written by Seth Barnes on August 13, 2009. Posted in Missions. 11 Comments on We’ve lost the missionary imperative

The tidal wave of relativism that has swept through our culture has created a lot of victims. It says, “Truth is relative, so don’t cram your opinion down my throat.” The...

I’m not done with you yet

Written by Seth Barnes on August 12, 2009. Posted in Reaching Your Destiny. 9 Comments on I’m not done with you yet

We met Jim out in the Lost Creek wilderness of Colorado a few weeks ago. He still had about half his teeth, but that didn’t keep him from smiling to the campground he presided...

‘When can we be the church?’

Written by Seth Barnes on August 11, 2009. Posted in Church. 11 Comments on ‘When can we be the church?’

Guy Muse is a missionary in Ecuador. He writes a good blog. I especially liked this one: When Mónica called saying she and her husband needed an urgent meeting, my heart sank. Usually...

Dealing with shame

Written by Seth Barnes on August 10, 2009. Posted in Dealing with junk in our lives. 10 Comments on Dealing with shame

At eight years old Susan’s father came into her dark room, sat on the edge of her bed and began to stroke her hair. What he did next has stayed with Susan all her life. She...

AIM mission statement

Written by Seth Barnes on August 9, 2009. Posted in 42nd Generation. 22 Comments on AIM mission statement

Thinking about a new AIM mission statement today. Old one: “Raising up a generation of radically committed disciples of Jesus Christ.” New brainstormed one: “To...

Beauty from Ashes starts in Florida

Written by Seth Barnes on August 8, 2009. Posted in Dreaming. 3 Comments on Beauty from Ashes starts in Florida

Two things: one check out the new World Race video above that Kim Daniels just finished. and two, please pray for the ladies getting together in Sarasota this weekend to hear from...

7 Christians burned alive in Pakistan

Written by Seth Barnes on August 7, 2009. Posted in A broken world. 4 Comments on 7 Christians burned alive in Pakistan

The struggle between Muslims and Christians is starting to boil over again in places like Yemen, Pakistan and Iran where Christians have been martyred in the last month. Islam teaches,...

2/3 of young people are leaving the church

Written by Seth Barnes on August 6, 2009. Posted in Mobilization. 19 Comments on 2/3 of young people are leaving the church

More than two-thirds of young adults between the ages of 18-22 leave the church. In a new book, Essential Church, authors Thom & Sam Rainer give us the stats and tell us why...

The bad men come at night

Written by Seth Barnes on August 5, 2009. Posted in Eswatini / Swaziland. 9 Comments on The bad men come at night

Morgan McKeown helped us start the Nsoko care point a couple of years ago. And today she’s leading a group from her church to help meet the needs there. The pain in Nsoko is...

Stalked by death in Swaziland

Written by Seth Barnes on August 4, 2009. Posted in Eswatini / Swaziland. 2 Comments on Stalked by death in Swaziland

Death is not a respecter of persons in Swaziland. Here are the facts: • Life expectancy of only 30 years. • Fifteen-year-olds with less than a 10 percent chance of living to age...

This ministry changed my life

Written by Seth Barnes on August 3, 2009. Posted in Spiritual Formation. 6 Comments on This ministry changed my life

Several months ago, CBS News did this special on 48 Hours called The Lord’s Bootcamp. It’s well done, relatively even-handed in it’s treatment of a Christian cultural...

Mubarrak was a muslim, but found Jesus

Written by Seth Barnes on August 2, 2009. Posted in Discipling. 3 Comments on Mubarrak was a muslim, but found Jesus

Uche Izuora is a guy I’ve come to love even though I’ve never met him. He is doing the stuff I dream that our American young people will do and he’s doing it with...