Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. (2 Corinthians 5:17)

God’s children are preparing to go back to school. That means the back-to-school shopping season has arrived. Prepping children for the coming school year is not only time consuming and costly but exhausting. If you are running ragged, you aren’t alone: You’re among 3.1 trillion families with children who are making last-minute treks to the store.

“Is this what God wants for me?”

It’s the question that keeps us up late into the night or runs through our heads during morning commutes. We might ask this question when choosing a college, when interviewing for a job, or when wondering whether the place we’re planted is where we’re supposed to be. 

Watching thunderstorms is one of my greatest joys in life. Every time a good, Midwest storm rolls into my college town of Seward, Nebraska, I abandon my half-finished homework, hurry outside, and watch gleefully as the sky flashes with lightning. My friends know the drill. There’s no way I’ll be able to focus on anything else, so I’ll be back when the storm blows over.

I consider my love of lightning more than a random infatuation. Yes, it’s a beautiful part of nature, but it’s more than that to me. Every lightning bolt reminds me of God and His promises.

A few weeks ago, at my sister’s high school graduation, the commencement speaker gave several pieces of what he believed to be crucial advice. One of these encouragements was for the graduates to make real friends.

The other day I was listening to a pastor speak about the priority of prayer. He said the following:

• Scripture records the disciples asking Jesus to teach them one thing: how to pray (Luke 11:1).
• When Jesus overturned the tables in the temple, He gave the temple a name: “a house of prayer for all the nations” (Mark 11:17).
• Jesus’ first words from the cross were words of prayer: praying for His Father to forgive His tormentors (Luke 23:34).

Clearly, prayer was a priority for Jesus.

Is it for you?

Did you grow up with traditional family devotions?

Many of us visualize parents and children gathered around the dinner table after a relaxing dinner. But did you ever consider that thanking God that your sick two-year-old in the back seat didn’t vomit on the way to the doctor’s office was a kind of family devotion? After all, even a quick prayer of thanksgiving from a mom’s heart reflects lifestyle faith.

During my ministry as a missionary, schoolteacher, and pastor, I have learned that children respond differently when told what they must or must not do. Some are naturally obedient and eager to please. Others react with defiance. There are also those who require an explanation, something simple or a more elaborate justification. Often, adults have no choice but to play the trump card—“Because I said so.” This useful phrase appeals to the bottom line: authority. The conversation is over; there will be no further argument or explanation. The child must comply simply because the adult has authority over the child.

I’ve learned a lot in the forty-plus years I have spent as a parish pastor and Christian husband. Inspired by my recent work in my Bible study Reclaiming the Heart of Marriage, I’ve distilled forty lessons I’ve learned relating to Christ and the church, male and female, parents and children, pastoral care and congregational ministry, and other general observations. 

In my first two blogs in this series inspired by Rev. Dr. Alfonso Espinosa, we discussed Christian thanksgiving and loving others in the three estates of Christian vocation. In this post, we’ll continue the discussion by looking at how Christians can live out faith that engages the culture.

I stood aside as Denny, a retired police officer, slowly worked through the church narthex. The tall man bent to be at eye level with each child in the church narthex between Sunday morning services.