Second Coming, Preparation

A young lady busied herself getting ready for a blind date. This was not just dinner and a movie; her date had planned dinner at an exclusive downtown restaurant with live music and dancing. Wanting to make a good first impression she had taken the day off work. She cleaned her apartment; she went out that afternoon to have her hair done and get a manicure. When she got home she did her makeup, put on her best dress and was ready for her date's arrival. His expected arrival came and went, but she continued to wait patiently...

Some Uneasy with Politics in the Pulpit

A fundamental shift is transforming the religious right, long a force in presidential politics, as aging evangelical leaders split on the 2008 race and a new generation of pastors turns away from politics altogether. The immediate short-term result could be a boost for former New York City Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani, who supports gay right and legal abortion. Long-term consequences could deny the GOP an essential building block previously used for capturing the White House five out of the last seven presidential races.

Humility

An elderly minister who survived the great Johnstown Flood of 1889 loved to regale audiences with tales of that harrowing event. When he died and went to heaven, he found himself in a meeting of saints who were sharing their life experiences. He took St. Peter aside and asked if he could tell about surviving the Johnstown Flood. Peter hesitated, then said, "Well, you can tell your story, but just keep in mind that Brother Noah will be in the audience...

Higher End Hotels Eliminating Bedside Bibles

The more you pay for a hotel room, the less likely a Bible will be there. Only 73 percent of luxury hotels provided a Bible compared with 99 percent of economy hotels. Location also plays a factor. Hotels with the lowest percentage of Bibles were in urban or resort areas. Those with the most were located near interstates and airports. One of those hotel chains, Kimpton, notes on their website, "As a result of a formal diversity initiative, Kimpton has embarked on its first ad campaign specifically targeting gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender travelers."

Damascus Road Paved by Former Atheist

Given the recent attention garnered by the "new atheism" and its spokesmen, it was only a matter of time before a defector emerged from within the ranks. Antony Flew, a lifelong outspoken atheist and Oxford philosophy professor, recently published a book, There Is a God: How the World's Most Notorious Atheist Changed His Mind, outlining his journey away from unbelief.

Confession

Jake was dying, and his wife, Becky, was maintaining a candlelight vigil by his side. She held his fragile hand, tears running down her face. Her praying roused him from his slumber. He looked up and his pale lips began to move slightly...

The Feminization of the Priesthood

The Church of England ordained more women than men in the past year, reporting a total of 423 ordinations last year, 213 women and 210 men. That statistical development might seem insignificant considering new female priests outnumbered new male priest by only three, but the significant fact is that women outnumbered men as new priests for the first time, and it won't be the last.

Evangelism, Purpose

Josh McDowell explains that, "An executive recruiter, a 'head-hunter' who goes out and hires corporation executives for other firms, once told me, 'When I get an executive that I'm trying to hire for someone else, I like to disarm him. I offer him a drink, take my coat off, then my vest, undo my tie, throw up my feet and talk about baseball, football, family, whatever, until he's all relaxed...