In Robert Clinton’s book “Listen Up Leaders!” Clinton did a study on 100 Biblical characters and of those Bible characters, only 11 finished well in life. That’s pretty dismal. One out of ten finished well. Clinton’s further study revealed that this was true in contemporary life. Many are having great starts but only a few […]
Once upon a time, a man punished his five-year-old daughter for using up the family’s only roll of expensive gold wrapping paper before Christmas. Money was tight, so he became even more upset when on Christmas Eve, he saw that the child had used the expensive gold paper to decorate a large shoebox she had […]
I received this note from a man who has been attending our church. This man is an intelligent, articulate and compassionate person. On the outside, he could pass for an attorney or a college professor. But there are areas of life that he wrestles with just like all of us. I wanted to have you […]
So many gifts we receive come unwrapped. These gifts can come to us in all sorts of forms. Some unwrapped gifts come as experiences, loving words or gestures. Some unwrapped gifts are so subtle you can almost miss them. Though there is never a bow, a name tag or bright wrapping paper to an unwrapped […]
This past Wednesday I had the great privilege of teaching our Junior High students at our Youth Group meeting. Really I had a blast. I’m not certain the kids learned that much but we sure had fun. The time I spent with these young people made me so thankful for the leadership of our Youth […]
This past week, I received a note from a good friend, Steve Hinderhofer reporting to us the progress being made in the class he is teaching, Financial Peace University. Steve and Mary have been leading this class for several years and have led a class in Grundy Center where they live. This is a part […]
Heartland Vineyard Church is in its second year of offering School of Kingdom Ministry, a 29 week course where students study their Identity in Christ and the Ministry of the Holy Spirit. Roi Lene and I are both enrolled as students, as are Amos Groenendyk, our new Student Ministries pastor, and his wife Alison, as […]
Last night at about 8:00 p.m., I experienced a miracle. “A miracle?” you say. Now just so I can validate that statement, let me give you a definition of the word “miracle.” miracle (mir-uh-kuh-l) – an extraordinary event in the physical world that surpasses known human or natural powers and is ascribed a supernatural cause. […]
In Eugene Peterson’s wonderful book, “Running with the Horses,” he describes a time in his life where he watched a mother bird teaching her three chicks how to fly. The mother swallow got alongside the chicks and started shoving them out toward the end of the branch – pushing, pushing, pushing. The end one fell […]
The foundation of all that we believe, say, and do is the Kingdom of God. Jesus proclaimed, explained and demonstrated the Kingdom of God throughout His life and ministry. The Kingdom of God can be defined simply as the rule and reign of God. The Kingdom of God becomes a reality when Jesus is the […]
In light of the reports of Minnesota Vikings star running back Adrian Peterson charged with child abuse for giving a “whoopin’” to his son, I saw this article written by Chip Ingram. There is no vocation more important than parenting. Disciplining your children, though tricky, is vital to the health of you, your child as […]
Read More… from The Most Important Lesson in Life: Obedience
Have you noticed that people can form opinions about other people that can be pretty twisted? I was doing some research on well-known Christian leaders and as I sorted through the Internet entries, I found radically different opinions about each person on different websites. These leaders were either viewed as saints or heretics, apostles or […]