Category Archives: Relationships

Conference on forgiveness

Posted on May 5, 2013 by

As I travel and teach about forgiveness and restoring broken relationships, people share many stories with me. Some have sinned in ways that make them feel beyond the reach of God’s forgiveness. Trapped in a prison of regret and guilt, … Continue reading →

Posted in Anger, Bitterness, Broken Relationships, Christian Counselor, Counseling, Difficult people, Discernment, Divorce, Divorce and Remarriage, Forgiveness, Guilt, Reconciliation, Relationships, Repentance, Restoration | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Love’s Musical Crescendo!

Posted on May 2, 2013 by

I don’t have any musical abilities and I certainly don’t know how to read music. My secretary, however, knows music and plays the piano. In my last few sermons, she heard me use a word that comes primarily from the … Continue reading →

Posted in Community, Gospel, Gospel-centered, Gossip, Grace, Love, Love Wins, Marriage, Relationships | Tagged , | Leave a comment

A closer look at love

Posted on May 1, 2013 by

Relationships are miserable when love is absent. But is there an objective way to identify true love?  Love defined The fourteen qualities of love in First Corinthians thirteen offer the best available description of love known to humans. This text remains one of … Continue reading →

Posted in Broken Relationships, Choosing a mate, Counseling, Dating, Divorce, Divorce and Remarriage, Engagement, Ethics, Guidelines for living, Guidelines for marriage decision, I Corinthians 13, Love, Love Wins, Marital Separation, Marriage, Radical love, Relationships, Selfishness, Should I get married?, True Christianity? | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Overcome division with core values

Posted on April 26, 2013 by

Conflict management 101 “Virtually all theorists of conflict management agree that parties to a conflict must share larger or ultimate values in common as a basis on which to resolve their differences”  ( Hugh Halverstadt, Managing Church Conflict, p. 212). Two great examples … Continue reading →

Posted in Relationships, Church discipline, Conflict, Leadership, Spiritual growth, Fellowship, Church growth, Unity, Debatable Matters, Reconciliation, Elders, Pastors, Local Church, Wisdom, Church Leadership, Legalism, Peace, Church membership, Community, Spiritual gifts | Leave a comment

Conflict and Unity in the Church

Posted on April 22, 2013 by

The story is not a pleasant one when a Church becomes a center of conflict instead of love. Yet the story is not exceptional either as many of our letters in the New Testament reveal. I smile when people say … Continue reading →

Posted in Christian life, Christianity, Church, Church growth, Church Leadership, Church membership, Community, Conflict, Family life, Fellowship, Holy Spirit, Life of a pastor, Local Church, Reconciliation, Relationships, Salvation, Sanctification, Spirit filled, Spiritual transformation, Unity | Leave a comment

Godly sorrow vs. worldly sorrow


Posted on April 9, 2013 by

  Leaders and members of a local Church must be willing to occasionally speak truth into the lives of those who don’t appear to desire it. This is part of being a truthful body of the one who said, “I am the … Continue reading →

Posted in Relationships, Church discipline, Conflict, Church, Leadership, Fellowship, Church growth, Discipline, Discernment, Unity, Godly sorrow, Reconciliation, Elders, Disciple-making, Church Leadership, Accountability, Emerging Leaders, Restoration, Church membership, Community, Small Group leaders, Christian Counselor | Leave a comment

When confronting others

Posted on March 15, 2013 by

  Loving confrontation is sometimes necessary in genuine relationships. We participate in deception when we allow people to believe they’re on good terms with us despite their violations of the relationship. Confrontation is simply a matter of integrity for those who won’t … Continue reading →

Posted in Broken Relationships, Conflict, Confrontation, Counseling, Difficult people, Discernment, Divorce, Elders, Gospel-centered, Judging others, Marital Separation, Parenting teens, Reconciliation, Relationships, Repentance, Restoration | Leave a comment

Don’t give up on your marriage

Posted on March 8, 2013 by

  Marriage problems? How bad is it? Has the “D” come up? Do you feel hopeless about things ever getting better? Perhaps you’ve thought about divorce but you’re afraid of the consequences. What would your family and friends think? Could you … Continue reading →

Posted in Divorce, Divorce and Remarriage, Family life, Love, Marital Separation, Marriage, Reconciliation, Relationships, Restoration | Leave a comment

Christian community

Posted on March 3, 2013 by

  What kind of community life should a local Church pursue? This is best answered by closely looking at the “one-another” commands in the New Testament. These are exhortations about how to relate to each other as Christians in community.  … Continue reading →

Posted in Christian life, Christian worldview, Christianity, Church, Church growth, Church Leadership, Church membership, Community, Ecclesiology 101, Elders, Emerging Leaders, Relationships, Religion-not the answer, Small Group leaders, Social Networking, Social Networks, Spiritual growth, Spiritual transformation, Unity, Wisdom | Leave a comment

Humble, loving, truth-telling Christians in community

Posted on March 1, 2013 by

  God desires to use the lives of those who have experienced His love as plausibility cases for the truthfulness of the good news of salvation. This is a little overwhelming to contemplate but God has chosen to make a case … Continue reading →

Posted in Apologetics, Change, Character, Christian life, Christian worldview, Church, Church growth, Church Leadership, Church membership, Community, Conflict, Elders, Emerging Leaders, Evangelicals, Evangelism, Giving, Gospel, Gospel-centered, Grace, Greatness, Honor, Humility, Jesus Christ, Kingdom, Leadership, Legalism, Life of a pastor, Local Church, Love, Mercy, N. T. Wright, Narrative, Pastors, Poor in spirit, Reconciliation, Relationships, Religion-not the answer, Repentance, Salvation, Servanthood, Small Group leaders, Spiritual growth, Spiritual transformation, Submission, Testimony, True Christianity?, Walking with God, Witness | Leave a comment