“Being the good Shepherd did not prevent Jesus from being wounded. Nor does it keep today’s ministers from being wounded.”

There is an expectation that when we worship together we are going to sing. So, let the people sing. Take some time to figure out what your people sing and sing well.

“So it’s just a personality test?” I asked. I have since learned that referring to the Enneagram as “just” a personality test is to its aficionados like calling Beyoncé “just” a singer.

Are you demoralized, pastor? Have you been hollowed out? After telling everyone else about God’s grace, do you need to know it for yourself? May you find it in Bill and Skye’s story.

Marcia Davis reflects on the rescue of the Wild Boar soccer team in Thailand and realizes ‘No matter how deep or dark or hopeless we feel, God doesn’t want us to drown but to emerge triumphant.’

The image of the gun-toting preacher has recurred with remarkable persistence in U.S. history and culture.

“The news over the past few weeks might make you think that places such as my hometown—McAllen, Tex., in the Rio Grande Valley—are under siege from waves of undocumented immigrants and asylum seekers … The view from down here is different.” (via The Washington Post)

What’s your guiding image for ministry leadership?

On Independence Day, let us remember that religious liberty is not a bludgeon but a birthright.

“We support the rule of law, the ‘zero-tolerance’ policy, but we also want to see a compassionate response to the families attempting to cross the border illegally.”

With the release of the new documentary ‘Elvis Presley: The Searcher,’ gospel music expert Robert F. Darden considers Elvis’ religious roots. (via The Dallas Morning News)

Peru’s newfound hope for its national soccer team as a World Cup contender can give insight into the growing missions mindset among minority-world Christians. (via Baptist Press)