September

Jeffrey O. Brown

The world is opening up,” screamed the newspaper headlines. After 18 or so months of the pandemic, my wife and I welcomed the news with gratitude and relief. We could now visit Pattiejean’s mother in Bermuda, hospitalized for 10 months.One visitor per day was allowed, but pastors and chaplains were additionally welcome, so I entered the hospital in this capacity. The nurse told me, “You can’t see Mrs. McMahon just yet, Pastor, as her daughter is with her. But let… Continue reading...

Critical oxygen production for India’s second waveCOVID-19 is hitting India particularly hard. The aggressive second wave of the pandemic has overwhelmed hospitals that are unable to arrange an adequate oxygen supply for the mounting case numbers. Agencies are reaching out to expand the number of ICU beds across hospitals, oxygen support services, medical equipment and PPE kits, vaccination services, supply and availability of medicines, and enhanced testing facilities… Continue reading...

M. Lee

It seemed like an ordinary summer evening as we headed home to get ready for school the next day. Our car had been having mechanical problems, but we had used someone’s truck to jump-start it and were on our way. We were only five miles from home when, as our car sat momentarily on the train tracks waiting for the car ahead to move, it stalled. We sat silently for a moment and then, in the most surreal way possible, we saw lights flashing. We looked over our shoulders,… Continue reading...

Ryan Rogers

Dare to Lead is rich with leadership gold. The following list of one-liners gives a sample of the precious insights that dare us to lead: “Clear is kind, unclear is unkind” (44). “We can’t both serve people and try to control their feelings” (69). “Whenever perfectionism is driving us, shame is riding shotgun” (79). Convicted yet? Applying any of these concepts to leadership requires something of the leader: courage. The author, Brené Brown,… Continue reading...

Wellington Barbosa

Pastoring communities whose members are increasingly demanding, cultured, and aware of contemporary trends has become quite challenging. The ease of access to the internet popularized information, making it common to both large and small cities. As a result, pastors are being challenged to raise their level of knowledge and the ability to articulate their ideas. Sermons need to be intelligent yet original, profound yet accessible, newsy yet accurate.The concern… Continue reading...