By David Faust Psalm 90 Walking through a mostly empty church building, a friend of mine noticed the minister’s young daughter standing on the stage with a microphone in her hand. She sang, “Jesus loves me, this I know, 40 Bibles tell me so.” My friend laughed, “Hey, if 40 Bibles say it, […]
The Lesson and Life — April 22, 2012
By Alan Ahlgrim Everyone suffers; sometimes we even bring it on ourselves. When we eat or drink too much or live for too long on fast-forward, we usually pay a price. There is an undeniable link between sin and suffering. However, sometimes our sickness isn’t rooted in our personal sin, or even in our […]
Where You Live — April 15, 2012
By Dan Lentz 1. Distribute sheets of paper and ask group members to draw a series of stick figures representing the various people groups they routinely come in contact with (children, the elderly, Caucasian, Hispanic, wealthy, poor, and so on). Then ask group members to show and explain their papers to the rest of […]
Samaritan woman finds living water–The Uniform Lesson for April 22
By Sam E. Stone Early in Jesus’ ministry he reached out to those ignored or snubbed by others. The Samaritans were such a group. Considered “half-breeds,” these were the children of Jews who had intermarried with pagans. Many from the Northern Kingdom were exiled years before, but some remained in the land. They married […]
A doorkeeper in God’s house–April 15, 2012
By David Faust Psalm 84 Who are some of the most important but least-heralded people in your church? The greeters. They are the friendly individuals who shake your hand and welcome you when you arrive for worship. As they hand you a bulletin (and maybe a copy of the lookout), you sense that […]
