When Joe White spoke at the Ignite Men's Conference, he carried a massive cross on stage. Then he invited all the men in attendance, in their vulnerability and brokenness, to write their shameful sins onto index cards and bring them to the altar to be nailed to the cross. Romans 8:15 declares that God offers forgiveness and enables them to cry out, "Abba, Father!"
Proverbs 17:22 says, "A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones." Christian comedian Chonda Pierce truly understands both the cheerful heart and the crushed spirit. She is one of the recording industry's best-selling female comedians. But she became clinically depressed after the death of her mother, along with the estrangement of her daughter and the alcoholism and death of her husband,all within three years.
Best-selling Christian novelist Karen Kingsbury considers herself to be an evangelist who happens to write stories. Some of her readers call it "life-changing fiction." In fact, she's following in the footsteps of our Savior. When Jesus needed to plant a seed in our hearts, He told a story, which Scripture refers to as a parable. Not only are Karen's stories capable of making us laugh or cry, but they also often bring conviction. You may finally feel the need to apologize, to make that overdue phone call, to create peace in a relationship.
When pediatrician Dr. Jerry Kartzinel puts autistic children on a dairy and gluten-free diet, 75% of them respond dramatically,like a fog has lifted! He analogizes that these kids are like computers with a malfunctioning hard drive. Only after the "hard drive" has been repaired can "software" like speech and other therapies that are introduced show dramatic results.
Mark and Jenny were concerned when their first-born child wouldn't make eye contact, walked on his tiptoes, and didn't talk. At the age of three, he was diagnosed with autism, which sent Mark into a deep depression.
A key component of a healthy marriage is the ability to humbly apologize. Unfortunately, few of us are very good at that. Dr. Gary Chapman, author of The Five Languages of Apology, asked thousands of people, "When someone is apologizing to you, what do you want to hear them say or do?" Top answers included: express regret, accept responsibility, make restitution, genuinely repent, and request forgiveness. 2 Corinthians 7:10 says, "Godly sorrow brings repentance."
Dr. Gary Chapman, author of the best-selling book, The Five Love Languages, talks about the importance of words of affirmation, quality time, acts of service, physical touch and gift-giving. He says that your spouse will feel truly loved when you emphasize his or her primary love language, and that parents need to determine their child's love language, as well.
Jesus was the ultimate man's man, a rugged carpenter with calloused hands who drove the money changers out of the Temple with a whip! Yet, He also empowered women, which would have been seen by the men in His day as radical and countercultural. Dr. Tim Clinton and Max Davis, co-authors of Take It Back: Reclaiming Biblical Masculinity, talk about men in the Bible and also recount the final words of King David on his deathbed to his son, Solomon, "Be strong, act like a man, and obey God." While the "cancel culture" may have Christian men on the ropes, history would suggest that they need to stand and fight for God and their families.
Hollywood and the popular culture typically portray fathers as toxic buffoons. In response to such unfair and harmful mischaracterizations, Dr. Tim Clinton and Max Davis, co-authors of Take It Back: Reclaiming Biblical Masculinity, present research that underscores the crucial contributions made by strong, godly dads. For instance, 76% of teen girls surveyed said that their father influenced their decision on whether or not to be sexually active; and when a dad divorces, his kids are 92% more likely to fail in their own marriages.
When Pastor Jonathan Pitts took his wife, Wynter, into his arms for their anniversary dance, he had no idea that within a month she'd unexpectedly die at the age of 38. The former executive director of Dr. Tony Evan's ministry, "The Urban Alternative," he shares how he and his four grieving Daughters found comfort through singing their favorite hymns together and by simply being there for each other. In this intimate and heartfelt tribute to Wynter's life, Pastor Jonathan calls upon us to live fearlessly and never to assume we know God's plan.
