While walking across the Golden Gate Bridge some months ago, I pondered the engineering marvel of the project itself and the idea behind the expanse. Somewhere, at some time, there was the vision of joining t...

"The battle belongs to the Lord." (Song lyrics) Not long ago, I was having lunch with a pastoral colleague who recently had emerged from a protracted difficulty in the congregation. "Really," he said, "I...

"The heavens proclaim the glory of God and the firmament proclaims God's handiwork" (Ps. 19:1). Not long ago, my wife and I vacationed in California and spent two days hiking through the Redwood National For...

Quick Backdrop The apostle Paul had a lot going for him—he was educated by the finest teachers, he had an enviable religious heritage, and he was a sought-out religious leader (i.e., lots of speaking eng...

Many years ago, when I was a young and aspiring pastor, I was offered a staff position as youth pastor—a position I accepted and served in for nearly three years. What I didn't know at the inception, howe...

In the summer of 1977, my home church hired a young and energetic youth leader. This young man, I soon learned, would have a great impact on my life. He had many gifts, but two of the most important were his ab...

Ministry is filled with many pitfalls—and as youth leaders gain the confidence and trust of teenagers, parents and other church staff, many people begin sharing secrets. How youth leaders handle these confide...

Quick Backdrop Today's devo is very simple: It's one verse, but it's a powerful verse. The What To notice the detail, you may want to print out the verse below or paste it into an e-doc. Then, read the ver...

"And Christ…will Himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast (1 Pet. 5:10). We live in a disposable culture, a disposable world. In fact, many of the items we buy tout the word disposable a...

Quick Backdrop We should take special note anytime Jesus uses the phrase "this sums things up." It always helps to get a boil-down from Jesus. The Golden Rule, which we looked at last week (see that devo here)...