BLOG––Encouraged by Faith

  I was worshipping with family friends one Sunday when the youngest of their five children asked to be baptized. Afterwards, his sister (the only girl in the family) hugged him and said, “Oh, boy, am I ever looking forward to that new man you’re going to be.” I laughed...

Last week I met a woman who knows a friend of mine. Once we made this discovery, we spent a long while comparing notes about our mutual friend’s goodness. Charles moved away from Indianapolis a few years ago, but recounting his virtues together made him so vivid that it felt as if...

  “The church is not a social club.” Through the years, this maxim has made its way into church teaching as if it originated with scripture. It’s a well-intended phrase, meant to remind Christians that our gatherings aren’t about us or even about solving the...

There’s this woman I know. For the purpose of this post, let’s call her Sally. Once a month, I’m forced to spend an hour with her as part of a volunteer commitment. Oh, my friends, these hours challenge me in ways I’m ashamed to admit. Sally is a thorn in my side...

When I was in my early 20s, I almost moved to Florida. At the last minute, I changed my mind, repelled by an abundance of older residents whose lives did not show any evidence of transformation or improvement. Despite their maturity, so many seemed short on character and wisdom.  It was...

Working God’s plan My husband is fast approaching retirement. Many of his cronies are calling it quits. When we were younger, there was always a wedding to attend. Now it’s all about retirement parties—predictable celebrations filled with glorious remembrances of triumph and...

Three ways to build a better prayer life  Failure can be a wonderful tutor of faith. I learned this well when my mother-in-law died. In the moments following her death, I stood next to her bed with family and tried to absorb what had just happened. At some point, my sister-in-law turned...

When we pray to God for guidance, we should not be surprised when he answers that prayer.  In other words, we should look expectantly for his guidance.  In addition to the general guidance given in his word, we might do well to expect that he would speak to us through our...

"How deserted lies the city once so full of people! " - Lamentations 1:1 To me, quarantine has felt very alienating, strange, boring, isolating, monotonous… Has it felt that way to you? I keep thinking about the fact that I both do and do not have the disease: as a young person, I have...

With the current coronavirus concerns, we are meeting in house assemblies until further notice.  Changing the forum for our public worship can be enlightening, but also challenging!  We experience that church is the people––where before we only knew it.  But having...