Gospel.com Blog

With the current (and escalating) crisis in Israel, Lebanon, and other parts of the Middle East, it’s hard to know what to think or how to respond. Arab World Ministries issued a brief report today on the situation that includes a call for prayer for those caught in the crossfire:

Many have come to accept the status quo of warfare. “Here we go again!” they say, anticipating that this will be a long-run conflict. But what does this mean in practical terms?—lack of electricity, scarcity of provisions, and disruptions to work, school, and every day life. Fear for their future, and for the safety of friends and family all become daily realities and pressures. Of course, those in Israel face similar concerns with the fear of suicide bombings and other reprisals alongside the swapping of missile attacks from either side.

This might seem like “business as usual” to a jaded outside observer, but it’s a very real and horrific situation for those caught in the middle. Let’s heed AWM’s call to prayer and pray both for God’s protection for the innocent and for a swift end to the violence.

How do you run a successful Bible study online? Participating in a Bible study online instead of face-to-face has its advantages–scheduling meetings isn’t a problem, and it can let you explore Bible topics with friends and family around the world. But it poses its own set of challenges as well–without in-person interaction, it can be harder to keep focused and to keep people committed.

Barry Willey of the Officer’s Christian Fellowship has written a short essay on how to study the Bible online in which he addresses some of these challenges. The essay has useful advice for anyone interested in an online Bible study, but might be especially useful to military men and women stationed abroad who want to interact and study with family back home.

How much should Christians rely on the “power of positive thinking?” In recent years, numerous popular authors have suggested that thinking and talking positively can have a beneficial impact on one’s emotional and spiritual life. Is this true? Can we improve our circumstances by talking positively to ourselves?

That’s the question Blaine Smith addresses in the latest installment of his Nehemiah Notes column. He looks at numerous examples of “self-talk” in the Bible itself, and concludes that while there can be value in “positive talk,” it’s not a substitute for true spiritual transformation. Read through the entire piece and see if you agree.

Several noteworthy new items at the InterVarsity Press website recently: a new installment in the Online Pulpit column, and a new book.

In the latest Online Pulpit column, Candie Blankman takes a look at one of the unique challenges of ministry–what she calls “foxhole preaching,” or the temptation for ministers to look at each sermon as a single, isolated project. Blankman suggests that rather than “popping up” each week to deliver a sermon and then retreat back into the church office, pastors and assistant pastors alike would benefit from planning out their sermons with a much longer time period in mind–weeks and even months! That’s an ambitious undertaking, but Blankman argues that results are well worth the extra effort.

Secondly, IV Press has quite a bit of information up about a new book called The Suburban Christian, an exploration of what it means to be a Christian in 21st-century suburbia. There’s a lengthy interview with Albert Hsu, the author, about the book; and you can also keep up with Hsu’s thoughts at his blog.

The Bible Gateway has made a big new addition to its library of online Bibles: Today’s New International Version, a new translation that aims to render the Bible in contemporary English while being as faithful as possible to the original texts. Many thanks to Zondervan, who made the TNIV available to the Bible Gateway.

You can start reading the TNIV at the Bible Gateway; it’s included in the drop-down list of available versions on the front page. If you’re curious about the philosophy behind the TNIV translation, you can read an overview here or, for more detailed information, visit the TNIV website.

With so many flashy distractions–TV, video games, pop music–to compete with, how can you instill a love for reading in your kids? Christian speaker and author Cheri Fuller has written a short piece with some practical ideas for making books and reading an integral part of your kids’ lives. It might seem an impossible task, but Cheri argues that it can be done!

We recently noted WorldMap.org as a great tool for missions research. If you liked WorldMap’s approach, another missions-resource site worth visiting is the Joshua Project. The Joshua Project also features a huge amount of demographic information about people and places around the world, with a special focus on “unreached peoples”–people groups that have yet to hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

At the Joshua Project site, you’ll find huge lists of countries and people groups, complete with demographic information for each group and maps showing you exactly where they live. It’s a great resource for anyone who wants to see what parts of the world are most in need of evangelists and missionaries, and a good reminder that no matter how “small” the world gets, the challenge of evangelism remains!

Last week, over 9,000 of America’s teachers gathered in Orlando for the NEA 2006 convention. Since the creation/evolution issue is an important one for schools and educators today, the Answers in Genesis ministry made a special effort to reach out to convention-goers with its message of Creation.

Answers in Genesis blogged its outreach efforts at the Propoganda in the Classroom blog. Stop by to see why AiG decided to pursue this outreach effort, and read about their interactions with convention-goers.