Christians talk about the importance of fishing and the abundance of fish, and we tell others to fish—but few actually go out and fish, because we feel we’re no good at it. Here's some practical tips so you will be more confident in getting out there and putting your line in the water.
Who’s had the most influence on your Christian development?
When my daughter was a preschooler, she announced in early January that she had made a New Year’s resolution. She was resolved to no longer “eat butter by itself”.
At 21, I decided that I wanted to plant a church to reach the lost. Mind you, I had absolutely no idea how to do it, but I was committed to the idea, and I wanted to figure it out.
I’ve learned to do a few simple, specific things that have transformed hospital visitation from a labourious drudgery into a true means of grace—both for the person I’m visiting and for my own soul.
Pastoral care flows out of God’s grace and the Christian love and integrity which should follow. Being must come before doing.
I am very visible to my neighbours. Every time they stop to wave at my daughter, I find out a little bit more about them, and they about me.
When we base our expectations on the friends in our favourite television show, we are left disappointed because real relationships are much messier than we’d like.
Our confidence is tested to the limit as questions are met with seemingly unending silence. “Will anyone ever speak? Are my questions that bad?” Or we answer our own questions like a solo performer in a surreal theological drama.
Most computers have parental control options that restrict certain websites and who can be contacted, log browser history, allow you to shut down the internet and the computer at set times, plus there are programs like Covenant Eyes that send reports to nominated people about what has been viewed... and yet many parents and educators are unaware of or refuse to use such safeguards or limit internet access to particular educational sites.