Mary offered a prayer of faith to receive the birth of Christ and the world has never been the same. It’s like a breath of heaven for Christmas! It’s a powerful prayer of submission that helps us abandon to God the outcomes of situations. When God spoke to Mary that she was to become pregnant…
Jesus smiles. Yes!!! Don’t you love this picture of Jesus smiling so warmly? It’s my favorite. It reminds me that Jesus delights in the Father and in us too! It’s hidden from many people, but the smile of Jesus is everywhere in the Gospels. Jesus “rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit” (Luke 10:21, NASB). John…
The other day I was talking with Kevin, one of our ministry partners. He and his wife have two small children, he leads the marketing department for a company, and he volunteers in his church. He’s a busy guy! In our conversation, he was telling me how much our “Breath Prayer Guides” have helped him. He…
Jesus is with you in your storm. If you really see this you’ll experience the deep peace that guards your heart (Philippians 4:7). Here’s a Scripture meditation to help you experience Christ’s loving presence with you: Dark storm clouds pelted torrents of freezing rain on Jesus and the disciples, gale winds whipped their boat in…
Paul says of his pastoral ministry, “I magnify my office” (Romans 11:13, KJV). Pastor, do you magnify your office? Paul’s example and instruction is not just for professional church pastors—though it’s especially for them!—it’s for all of Christ’s ambassadors. So let me re-ask the question. Bible teacher, small group leader, marketplace worker, elder, counselor, leader,…
If you speak from a pulpit, classroom, blog, podcast, or small group you have a great opportunity to bless people. In my early 30’s I spoke to two thousand people in a church meeting and I was so panicky that I was sweating and tongue-tied. I vowed to never do that again! Like 75% of…
Many years ago I was at a pastors’ retreat and a friend excitedly handed me his newly published book. I complimented him, but inside I flamed with jealousy. I was in the midst of an extended fast from writing books. It ended up being fourteen years! When Richard Foster relinquished “The Celebration of Discipline” his…
We were sitting in a chair on a Montana ranch at the edge of a forest surrounded by mountains. Kristi and I had just finished leading three days of Soul Shepherding training for a community of pastor couples. Now we were enjoying our own retreat time in a 100-year old cabin. Have you ever enjoyed…
Sadly, we’ve all seen Christian leaders fail because they lacked emotional wholeness. Our godly intentions can be overrun by our personal shortcomings. Angry reactions, lustful impulses, conflict avoidance, emotional distance, prideful self-reliance, power plays, or the inability to work well with other people sabotage godly purposes and lead to failure. Usually when leaders fail or…
We’ve been providing care, counsel, and prayer to pastors and other servants of Christ for a number of years. One of the most important things we do is help them to rest in God. Every pastor and ministry leader I (Bill) know — starting with the one that looks back at me in the mirror! —…