Gospel.com Blog

What were the best youth ministry resources and innovations of 2007? Youth Ministry Exchange asked their readers to help them pick the best new book, innovation, worship song, and musician of the year for youth ministry. Stop by the YMExchange site and see who made the list.

What did your 2007 look like? In honor of the new year, several ministries are looking back at the highlights of the old year. Let’s take a quick trip down memory lane, shall we?

• Humorist James Watkins has a very thorough month-by-month review of 2007. Good, bad, or ugly—if it happened in 2007, it has been the subject of James’ witty commentary.
• What an interesting year 2007 was! So at least says David Bruce of Hollywood Jesus in his visual reflection on the year gone by. From scientific discoveries to our entertainment choices, there’s a lot of good material for thought and discussion.
• Christianity, and religion in general, was in the news a lot in 2007. Terry Mattingly comments on the top ten religion stories of the year over at the GetReligion blog. And over at The Culture Beat, Jim Dalhman weighs in with his reactions to the list as well.

As the year comes to a close, it’s not uncommon for people to look for ways to make last-minute, end-of-year donations to worthy causes. If you’re looking for a ministry to donate to this year, why not consider one of these ministries from the Gospel.com community? This list of organizations covers all sorts of outreach and ministries types, so you’re sure to find a ministry with a vision you can get behind.

Here’s our (partial!) list of ministries worth supporting. And remember, even if you can’t support your favorite ministry financially, all of these ministries would appreciate your prayer support, and many of them have ways you can contribute your time or talents instead of your money. Without further ado, here’s the list:

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What lies in store for you in 2008? Lots of people like to make resolutions for the New Year—tasks to accomplish, habits to break, lifestyle changes to make. Making a realistic list of New Year’s resolutions isn’t a bad idea. If you want to make some changes in your life in 2008, here are some resources that can help:

• The main problem with New Year’s resolutions is that they’re much easier to make than to keep. Max Frazier offers some advice on making New Year’s resolutions that will achieve results.
• Getting back on track financially has got to be one of the most common resolutions people make—and it’s also one of the toughest to keep. Cindy Sumner shares some ideas for making a financial fresh start that might be helpful. And if you really need to step back and get your financial situation in order, there’s a great series of practical essays about Christians and personal finance by Ray Porter.
• Do your New Year’s goals seem way too big to be achievable? Consider breaking them down into smaller, more accomplishable goals. Blaine Smith has some encouraging words about the importance of small beginnings when setting goals for yourself.
• The Back to the Bible radio program spent a week talking about five words of resolution for the New Year. (Link goes to the first day of the discussion.) Their conversations offer a lot of good insights into making personal resolutions that will truly accomplish something for you and your spiritual life.

Tomorrow we’ll point out some useful resources for another popular New Year’s resolution—reading through the Bible in 2008!

As you’re pondering resolutions for 2006, have you considered making regular Bible reading a part of your New Year? It sounds like an intimidating task, but a number of ministries have reading plans and other resources to help you delve into the Bible this year:

• Back to the Bible has five different plans you can follow to read through the Bible in a year–just choose the one you want and check back each day for your daily Bible reading.
• If you prefer to receive a daily Bible reading via email, E-Word Today lets you do just that.
• Year of the Bible recommends that you commit to spending just five minutes a day reading the Bible, and has online tools to help you do that.
• Daily Manna from the Net and the Bible League both let you sign up to receive a daily Bible verse via email.
• And of course, if you prefer to read through the Bible at your own pace, the Bible Gateway is always a good option.

Lots of ministries are using email and the web to help us spend more time in Scripture each day. If you’re feeling called to do more Bible reading, consider trying out one of these free services!

Columnist James Watkins has been making humorous annual predictions (with a serious message) since 2002, and he’s back this year with some startling and daring guesses about what the New Year holds. Will there be armed conflict in 2006? Will a famous Hollywood couple divorce? These are the questions that only James can answer.

Yesterday we looked at several ministries offering some New Year’s Resolution advice. Here’s another to add to that list: The Greatness of Small Beginnings, the latest essay by Blaine Smith. From the article:

…we shouldn’t underestimate the value that taking any initial step toward a goal has upon us psychologically. Suddenly our psyche is committed, and we become more alert to opportunities that will move us toward our dream. Others become more aware of our intentions as well and are more likely to try to help us.

Yet the spiritual aspect of taking the first step is even more important. The seemingly insignificant small beginning often gets much closer to the heart of the biblical idea of going forward in faith than we realize.

If you’re not familiar with him, Blaine is a great inspirational writer–for years now, he’s been writing solid essays dealing with the trials and challenges of everyday life. Well worth bookmarking!

They’re easy to make and (alas) even easier to break: New Year’s resolutions! If you’re thinking about making some New Year’s resolutions for 2006, a couple of Alliance ministries have some insights.

Does one of your resolutions involve spending less money or working your way out of debt? MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) published some good advice a year or so back that still applies today: making a financial fresh start. Their advice? You’ll have to read the article, but here’s a hint: “keep it simple.”

The next ministry to check out is Back to the Bible, which is running a five-part devotional series this week called “Five Words of Resolution for the New Year.” The series just started yesterday; you can read the first installment here. Tune to their Radio page to read or listen to the next four messages as they’re broadcast.

Last but not least, Village Schools of the Bible has a good piece on making New Year’s resolutions that you can keep.

Enjoy!