Blog

Healing: Learning to Bond Having good emotional connections is as natural as a plant taking in water. But we are not plants living in the Garden of Eden. Therefore, we ...

Peter: The Reluctant Sufferer I was talking to a group of about a hundred experienced pastors and church-growth leaders in a training seminar. The topic for the day was how ...

The Serenity PrayerGod grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.As the ...

Learning to be mature in self-boundaries is not easy. Many obstacles hinder our progress; however, God desires our maturity and self-control even more than we do. He’s on our team ...

Christians often have a warped way of looking at work. Unless someone is working “in the ministry,” they see his work as secular. However, this view of work distorts the ...

God expects His boundaries to be respected. When He makes choices, or says no to us, that is His right, His freedom. If we are to have a real relationship ...

The law of cause and effect is a basic law of life. The Bible calls it the Law of Sowing and Reaping.You reap whatever you sow. If you sow to ...

It almost sounds like some kind of advertising slogan, but this little play on words really says it: “God will make a way” begins with God. It’s not your belief ...

Be Clear about “You” and “I”Any good confrontation takes into account that two people are involved. This sounds obvious, but it really isn’t, and it is an essential part of ...

We have personal boundaries, personal property lines, in our relationship with God. God has designed the world so that boundaries are to be respected. He respects ours, and we need ...

A successful confrontation will always involve balancing grace and truth.Grace is your being on the side of, or “for,” the other person as well as the relationship. Truth is the ...

“Problem kids” don’t evolve in a vacuum. Every problem child generally has a problem context, and kids with healthy limits don’t grow out of thin air. Although by nature we ...

Extended Tip 3: Dealing With People In CrisesDefinition: Responding to people in crisis or experiencing a tragedy should be done in a manner that keeps the group intact and brings ...

Session 4: Determining Your Group’s PurposeIt’s important to determine your group’s purpose. Determining your purpose is done by answering three questions: What kind of group do we want to be? ...

Extended Tip 2: When Groups Get Messy Part 2 – Conflict ResolutionDefinition: Conflict is normal! In every group, there will be people with different opinions, people who bug you, and ...

Extended Tip 1: When Groups Get Messy Part 1 – ConfrontationDefinition: Confrontation means taking feedback to the next level. It is often seen as a negative thing, but avoidance only ...