Joe McKeever

Giving in ways that push you outside of focusing on yourself can renew your Christmas Spirit.

If I were the pastor, once again, of a church during the Christmas season, here are a few things I would do…

Can you sing in the middle of your pain? If you cannot—if everything has to be perfect before you can give thanks—let me tell you about a sweet woman in a leper hospital in the Caribbean.

More pastors should emulate coaches in staying focused on the end result: winning the game. For ministers, that means glorifying Christ and making disciples. Here are 14 lessons from the field.

For believers—serious disciples of the Lord Jesus—there is only one question when facing the possibility of an all-out church battle: “What would you have us do, Lord?”

To hear “yes, we believe the Bible” is as meaningless as asking someone if they embezzled company funds or committed adultery. Anyone who would do such a thing has no trouble lying about it. The evidence, the proof, is in the individual’s life and conduct.

We hear God’s people spouting these four shallow oversimplifications from time to time. These are not all, of course. The enemy is creating new half-truths even as we speak. In all things, we should use discernment, act in love, and not sin.

Jesus spoke a mind-boggling number of things never heard before on Earth. Many found His words provocative, offensive, and even blasphemous. In Matthew 11, you will find seven of his most amazing words ever.

Looking back over a lifetime of ministry, a wise pastor shares encouraging insights from his beloved wife that she wanted the pastors of young wives to know.

Pray. Go slow. Wait on the Lord. Gather information. Try something small. Let it grow. You are encouraging your pastors more than a dozen after-church fellowships and plaques for their walls could accomplish.

Thoughts are not harmless. The thought is the preparation for the act. And seriously wrong deeds are almost always preceded by a full-scale onslaught of impure thinking, planning, and daydreaming.

When you start a new church and you are the pastor and you’ve done it your way, be careful not to “own” the church. According to Matthew 16:18, it’s His church and He will build it.

As Paul said, “We are not ignorant of his devices” (2 Corinthians 2:11). We know how he works. And here are some of the lies we have noticed pouring out of his factory, all geared toward destroying confidence in God’s Word.

Trust the One who calls you to share the message. And do the thing you fear. When you practice, relax, give it to God, and press on...these 7 steps will help you overcome.

Any believer who points the finger at another Christian and says, "You are the reason I no longer go to church" is being dishonest. Unwilling to deal with his/her own frailties, hangups, and humanity—they blame others for what they are not doing.