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Would you agree that a lot of people ask how people how they are doing, but really don’t want to know the answer? Emily Cummins recommends using body language to show that you really care when you ask someone how he/she is doing. Building meaningful relationships takes time, investment, and intentionality.…

In his book, Leadership and Conflict, Speed B. Leas writes, “Invite the other (even a person who is attacking you) to join you in a common search to identify what the problems are, stay with the other in order to work through the differences, look for alternatives that you both can agree have merit and…

Star linebacker Manti Te'o relationship with a former Stanford student named Lennay Kekua turned out to be a hoax! She never existed! A relationship we heard about for the last year is mere fiction. Manti had us all caught up in the drama of his alleged girlfriends battle with leukemia, and finally her…

A new listing of churches within a denomination has found an interesting trend among young Christians. The survey conducted for Churches or Christ that most denominations are seeing a decline in overall membership. Carl Royster who conducted the survey says he found an increasing number of Americans…

What does manipulation look like? Well The movie Waking Ned Divine begins in the cozy living room of an elderly Irish couple. In the background we hear a television announcer informing the audience that the big jackpot lottery numbers are about to be announced. The husband, Jackie, settles into a comfortable…

British shock-radio host Tim Shaw may have finally learned a valuable lesson about the consequences of our words. While working his usual 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. shift, Shaw told the pin-up girl he was interviewing?on air?that he was willing to leave his wife and two kids for her. Minutes later, his wife,…

One person wrote of experiencing this kind of worship in a very likely place. He says: Locked behind the razor-wire fences of a Florida prison is no place to spend a holiday. I'd spent 15 Christmases under these less-than-festive conditions, but this year my situation looked even bleaker. I was stuck…

One pastor wrote: My daughter, Zoe, is two-and-a-half and loves to play hide-and-seek. Sometimes she hides, but usually the game involves hiding my cell phone. Unfortunately she doesn't yet understand the object of the game. She makes me close my eyes—that much she gets. But it's downhill from there.…

Let me show you what I mean. It’s 3 p.m. in the afternoon. You’re a mom of two toddlers: a four-year-old and a two-year-old. Today’s been an especially hard day. It may have been like the one a mom was having the other day when I called. I was calling her to tell her I was praying for a family member…

The first time the town of Tubingen, Germany, expelled all of its Jewish residents was in 1477. It wasn’t the last. It became a place where anti-Jewish doctrines thrived, especially during World War II. Today, however, the Jerusalem Post reports that not only has a tiny Jewish community returned to the…

One of my best friends from my childhood illustrates this so well. We sort of grew up together. He was a couple of years older than me, but I spent a lot of time at his house, especially on Sunday afternoons. It was the highlight of my life to be able to go out to his house for Sunday dinner, then an…

#1 — The Conflict In God’s FamilyPlease press the microphone to listen to the talk. Requires the free RealPlayer®. Installation instructions available. “The Conflict In God’s Family” — another look at the Biblical basis for understanding the plan of salvation as God’s provision for restoring peace in…

Jim and Edna were both patients in a mental hospital. One day while they were walking past the hospital swimming pool, Jim suddenly jumped into the deep end. He sank to the bottom of the pool and stayed there. Edna promptly jumped in to save him. She swam to the bottom and pulled Jim out. When the director…

“If you have a friend who likes snowboarding, you go snowboarding with him and it strengthens your relationship,” he explains. “Well, God loves justice, so if you seek justice with God, you’ll get to know Him better by being involved in something He cares about.” Harris, Alex & Brett, Do Hard Things,…

“In modern times we define a host of relations by contracts. These are usually for goods or services and for hard cash. The contract, formal or informal, helps to specify failure in these relationships. The Lord did not establish a contract with Israel or with the church. He created a covenant. There…

The better part of one's life consists of his friendships. ~ Abraham Lincoln

Many of our non-Christian friend and neighbors, however, may not know anyone with whom they can unburden their soul, and they don’t know how to reach God. So God sends you and me to be “God” to them, to be as available and compassionate to them as Jesus Christ is to us. Such encouragement is a matter…

A Friend… Accepts you as you are. Believes in "you." Calls you just to say "Hi." Doesn’t give up on you. Envisions the whole of you, even the unfinished parts. Forgives your mistakes. Gives unconditionally. Helps you. Invites you over. Just wants to "be" with you. Keeps you close at heart. Loves you…

Maybe the most overlooked opportunities to reflect a bit of God’s light into someone’s life are with people we don’t know personally. Think of who they are: the grocery store checkout person, the clerk in the department store, the person whom we stop to ask directions (or who stops us), the person we…

Jesus prayed: forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. In the novel "The Great Hunger," a newcomer comes to a farm community. He refuses all friendship with his neighbors and puts out the no trespassing sign. One day a little child from the town climbs underneath his fence…

Neighborly Prayer Some of you may be familiar with a story by journalist Tom Junod. It is a true story of a young man afflicted with cerebral palsy. Cerebral palsy did not affect this young man’s mind, but it affected his motor skills and his ability to speak. The boy could only communicate through typing…

Americans crave the right to choose. We revere our autonomy. We don’t want to participate in a predetermined plot; we want to create our own future. We are the masters of our own destiny—the captain of our ship. No one else is allowed at the helm. The entertainment industry bears out the American preference…

Amazing Embrace Remember when PDA stood for something other than personal digital assistant? It can again with the Hug Shirt, a high-tech garment that simulates the experience of being embraced by a loved one. When a friend sends you a virtual hug, your cell phone notifies the shirt wirelessly, via Bluetooth.…

Teens confused about how to get to heaven A recent LifeWay Research survey of American teens shows that most believe in heaven but have mixed views about how to get there. According to a May 23 Baptist Press story: Results show that 69 percent of teens believe heaven exists. Also, a majority strongly…

The Secret of Our Power to Love Legend has it that a wealthy merchant traveling through the Mediterranean world looking for the distinguished Pharisee, Paul, encountered Timothy, who arranged a visit. Paul was, at the time, a prisoner in Rome. Stepping inside the cell, the merchant was surprised to find…