Early in my ministry, I thought of prayer as something mostly personal and disconnected from the practical work of ministry. Later, I came to believe that prayer was important preparation for the work of ministry. Over time, I’ve come to more deeply believe that prayer is the organic engine of fruitful ministry.

A passage in which I see this reality in action is David’s prayer related to his plans for his son, Solomon, to build a temple. What strikes me is that this is a...

We’ve seen the news stories and heard the rumors. Maybe we ourselves have been hurt by a narcissistic church leader. It’s easy to throw the term around and diagnose others from afar—but what is narcissism, really? And how does it infiltrate the church? 

Chuck DeGroat has been counseling pastors with narcissistic personality disorder, as well as those wounded by narcissistic leaders and systems, for over twenty years. He knows firsthand the devastation...

One of the joys of my life before COVID was traveling. I love visiting other countries, each with its own diverse culture and beautiful people.

Last year, prior to our anniversary trip to Europe, Alan and I crafted a detailed plan of all of the sites we would visit. We researched, made reserverations, and printed out tickets with confirmation numbers on them.

Everywhere we went we had guaranteed entrance. Our tickets proved that we had paid the price and could enter the site.

...

I love to soak in a story about Jesus in one of the gospels. A while back, I spent quite time reflecting on an early encounter of Jesus and one of his first followers, Peter. As you read this story, see if you can imagine the scene:

¹One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, the people were crowding around him and listening to the word of God. ²He saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. ³He got into one of the...

Alan loved getting the opportunity to talk with a fellow author about the challenge of hurry in our world today. Today, we're sharing his recent conversation with Jeff Bethke, author of To Hell With the Hustle. In today’s episode, you’ll gain insight into how we can reclaim our lives in an overwhelmed, overspent, and overconnected world. 

Jeff is the New York Times bestselling author of Jesus > Religion and It’s Not What You Think. He and his...

Today we’re sharing a five part framework for change. We’ve been using this process in our own lives for years and it has kept us on track.

Last Fall, our book What Does Your Soul Love? was published. It’s a book about necessary change--a book about how to cooperate with the transforming work of God in us and through us. What does it take to stay on this journey of change over our lifetime?

We know that you’re the kind of person who is hungry to make...

Some fun news! Alan and I just signed contracts for our next book projects. Alan’s book will be about anxiety, or rather, non-anxiety (better known as peace). And I will be writing a book for women about the voices in our heads and how to deal with them.

One of the first things I do when writing a book or other large content piece is raid my own journal. I believe it is our own lives that inform our leadership and even our content development. What I have lived and learned is the...

The other day, I was meeting with a leader in a coaching session and we were talking about the challenges of doing our work differently because of COVID-19. I was sharing that I have refocused a lot of what I do towards more writing and more coaching. He shared the stress of living so much of his life on computer and phone screens.

After a bit more conversation, I heard myself say this sentence: “In fact, I have so much important work right now that I’ll never get it done...

Many of us treat suffering like a problem to fix. Simply put, we’d rather not suffer at all, but if we do, we prefer it to be short. But what if our pain or suffering linger? What if it doesn’t go away quickly or at all?

We may wonder if God sees us or if we’ve somehow failed God. We may question God’s very nature. If God loves us, why does he allow us to hurt? Today, I’m talking with KJ Ramsey who has suffered with pain every day for the last 11 years....

I’m well past the child-bearing years. My sons are all in their 20s. But those long ago days of pregnancy and little people are still as fresh in my memory as ever. I can still picture their little cherub faces and tiny chiclet teeth. And I can remember how their hair smelled like cookies until they were about five years old (yes, even dirty, stinky boys can have cookie hair).

All of this brings to mind Isaiah 49:15:

“Can a mother forget the baby at her breast
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