Election season is about getting the masses behind you. It’s a time to gather coalitions and get out the vote. It’s also a season to lose your own voice in the noise all around you. I find myself continually living in the tension between living superficially online and going deep with the people and causes […]
I’m as perplexed as any of you about what happens next. We started the World Race in 2005, and now we can’t get on planes. So what does it look like now? Our economy is flatlining – how do you raise money when people are losing their jobs? It’s disorienting. And I’m not alone. Everything […]
I’ve been blogging since 2005. And it’s not been easy. Often it’s felt like drudgery. Starting in ’06, I began blogging every day. A few years ago, I moved to writing a blog a week. I’ve written over 3,000 of them and posted most. Many of the posts have had tens of thousands of readers […]
Our little dog Asha has a bad habit. Our driveway is 200 yards long and when she hears someone driving down it toward our house, she runs full speed down the driveway at them. She is about eight pounds, but she doesn’t get out of the way. She confronts the approaching car like […]
Think about all the conversations you have today. Are they detail-focused? How many are spiritual? Flying home from a fundraising trip to Midway, TX, I was surrounded by spiritual conversations. If I wasn’t listening, I would have missed it. But I’m not a human being having an occasional spiritual experience. I’m a spiritual being having […]
With the ten year anniversary edition of my devotional, The Art of Listening Prayer, newly released, I wanted to take some time to explain and show what the book is all about. With some help, we’ve created a video that describes hearing God’s voice. Enjoy! If you haven’t gotten your copy of The Art of Listening […]
I hope that you had a chance to download the new Three Day Listening Prayer Devotional. If you want a better prayer life, it can help. It’s an excerpt from my book Art of Listening Prayer. Reading your responses to the devotional, I was reminded what an important topic listening prayer is. Although the full Art […]
If you’re like me, you have your daily “Christian checklist.” You whip through your scheduled chapter of the Bible. You pray through your list of prayer requests. On Sunday, you check off the church box. During the week, you might even check off the Bible study or volunteering box. You even have a checkbox for […]
It has taken me 25 years to figure out what Jesus taught his disciples in three years. And now I’m going to try to distill 25 years of living into one blog. So much of what I’ve learned about discipleship has been a surprise – it’s bucked the conventional wisdom that I was told was […]
It's great to be home after 40 hours of traveling from Thailand. I find that long trips like that make me begin to feel subhuman. Along the way, I begin to lose track of who I am – I become dull in my spirit. One thing that brings me back to reality is to practice […]
“Do not entertain an accusation against an elder unless it is brought by two or three witnesses.” 1 Tim 5:19 "Entertaining accusations" is an interesting phrase. We entertain guests by inviting them in, making them comfortable and hanging out with them. Perhaps entertaining an accusation is similar. A friend slanders someone you know, and rather […]
Wow. I'm still stunned by the reception our giveaway of Kingdom Journeys got last week. Because we wanted the message to spread, we gave the book away for free. And in five days, over 22,000 people downloaded it. I credit the success to a dedicated launch team and to God. Thank you all for your […]
Get a Free eBook: Do you want to grow closer to God in your prayer times? I’ve written a free guide called The Three Day Listening Prayer Devotional and I’d love for you to download it. Click here to download the free devotional. Good article from Jessica Wicks in CRU. God answers prayer. But sometimes, God is silent. As […]
Years ago a friend of mine was going through a crisis in his life. He needed God, but had felt a distance in his relationship with him for too long. I offered to help him. I said, "Let's pray together and see what God says." "OK," he responded. And when we prayed together, my friend […]
Get a Free eBook: Do you want to grow closer to God in your prayer times? I’ve written a free guide called The Three Day Listening Prayer Devotional and I’d love for you to download it. Click here to download the free devotional. An excerpt from my book, The Art of Listening Prayer: Evangelical Christians claim to have […]
If you were to say to me, “Please give me a year’s worth of reading – a book per month (outside of the Bible) that will help me to grow spiritually while I’m on the World Race,” I’d have a hard time keeping the list to 11 books. There are so many that can help […]
“Share your food with the hungry and provide the poor wanderer with shelter – when you see the naked, to clothe him.” Isaiah 58:7 God not only loves the underdog, he loves an entire class of underdogs: the poor. Over and over again in Scripture he asks us to take up their case. He […]
Critics of listening prayer frequently misunderstand the way in which we apply the truths of Scripture about listening for God’s voice. They take seriously the warning in Rev. 22:18-19 to not add or subtract anything from Scripture. They are rightly concerned that a person listening for God’s voice will give a higher weight to their […]
From our AIM blog. These are seven reasons why going on a mission trip with AIM is unique from your run-of-the-mill missions experience: Customization: You can choose the location and duration of your trip. If you don’t see what you’re looking for on our trip list, contact us, we’ll try to match your group to […]
Yesterday I posed the question, “What should I teach about next month in Spain?” Another way of framing the question is, “What do 20-somethings need to be successful?” For example, should we help them learn to how to take more risks and learn that failure is a normal part of life? Your responses were […]
If you’re a high touch, relational person, you may have an aversion to using technology to help you disciple. My own experience is that it can be an effective tool in my disciple-making toolbox. Yes, it’s just one tool, but it’s made possible dozens of long distance discipling relationships for me. Without it, I […]
Ziklag is a place of terror in the Old Testament. It’s a place where your worst fears come true. A place of nightmares. David and his men thought their families would be safe there, but when they returned, all that remained of their camp was smoking embers. Their families were gone, kidnapped and taken to […]
We held a retreat at the home of some friends the last few days. We had a blast hanging out together. We did the things that God wants us to do to replenish our spirits. We worshiped together, quieted our hearts and did some listening prayer. It’s a great time of the year to do […]
Here are the top ten blogs of the last year: 1. What is Christian art? 3682 views 2. When listening prayer is hard 3511 views 3. Sarah Buller lived a life in love – we’ll miss her 1851 views 4. Photo contest: Enter and win! 1540 views 5. Where do you go when you […]