Remember Your Calling

In an article for LeadershipJournal.net, Dave Stone writes: "To keep Christ at the center, we must remember why we do what we do. In the midst of the pressure of sermon prep, sometimes I have to pause and reflect on my calling. I often think back to a summer camp during my sophomore year of Bible college. I was lying atop a smelly bunk bed in the early morning hours when I scribbled this entry in my journal:

Nominate Best Books, Most Influential Preachers

In the March-April issue of Preaching, we will be recognizing the 25 most important books on preaching of the last quarter century. In May-June, we will be publishing a feature on the 25 most influential preachers of the past 25 years. E-mail Michael@preaching.com to cast your votes.

The Primal Problem

In his new book Primal (Multnomah), Mark Batterson talks about reclaiming the core of the Christian faith. Early in the book he observes: "It goes without saying that Christianity has a perception problem. At the heart of the problem is the simple fact that Christians are more known for what we're against than what we're for.

The Indescribable Gift

May you remember the Gift upon a tree about two thousand years ago. God gave His Son's life to provide forgiveness and eternal life for all who will repent of sin (Acts 17:30-31) and believe the gospel (1 Cor. 15:3, 4). This is the greatest benefit ever bestowed by a benefactor upon a beneficiary!

Stand for Truth

In an article on "Preaching and Applying Truth" in a past issue of Preaching, Bob Russell wrote: "A wealthy businessman in our community who had pledged a million dollars to our building fund came to me before it was collected and asked me to perform his wedding--his third wedding. Because of the circumstances surrounding his previous divorce, his situation didn't fit into our marriage policy. It really was tempting to try to find a way to accommodate his request, but I decided to follow the policy. (Partly, I confess, because I was afraid the elders would fire me if I didn't follow their guidelines!)

Preaching & Leadership: A 25th Anniversary Retrospective

The relationship between preaching and leadership is a natural one, Maxwell explained in an interview in the January-February 1998 issue: "All great leaders are effective communicators," Maxwell asserted. "It is the vehicle for the vision. For me to know where I want to take a group of people and not have the ability to cast that dream, preach that message, communicate that heart, makes the dream impossible. The vision won't be accomplished.

Ministry Mentoring

Though numerous books have been written on the subject, each chock-full with success stories, mentoring is just plain hard work. Mentoring is never easy. Just ask yours; he or she will tell you. When others gave up on you, he or she didn't. Somewhere, somehow, they saw something, felt something, believed in you when you didn't believe in yourself. Today, your life is a confirmation of his or her vision and tenacity.

Pass the Birthday Cake, Please

With this issue, we begin our celebration of the 25th anniversary of Preaching magazine. Given that most publications don't survive five years, we figure that survival ought to be worth at least a nice birthday cake. (I'll take chocolate, a corner piece, please.)