When I’m working from home, the desk I use is an antique desk built by my husband’s grandfather. It is the type with a drop-leaf front that, when opened, provides a work surface … and when I open it – oh my!

I’m tired. My brain doesn’t shut off from the things on my “To-Do” list. I really need to send one, last email before going to bed. Maybe I should fold the laundry and finish up the dishes. Sound like you?

As any elder knows, the church is quite often involved in different levels of spiritual warfare.  Satan’s greatest desire is to destroy any community of believers – any church – in which he can get a “foothold” (Eph. 4:27).  Paul shares powerful words about the regular, daily, ongoing spiritual warfare we face in 2 Cor. 10:3-4:  

“We are human, but we don’t wage war as humans do…

Trials … they come in all shapes and sizes, and usually when you least expect them. One of my biggest trials came in the body of a three-year-old boy when he started having seizures.

In our dining area sits a perfectly round oak dining table. As empty-nesters, it is mostly just me and my lovely wife, Ms. Carol, at that table. There is nothing fancy…

As an elder are you a worrier?  Is today simply a stress rehearsal for tomorrow?  Do you stew, fuss, and fret over your role in the church?  Do you experience the occasional butterfly in your stomach, or do you endure a whole fighter squadron of them flying in formation when you’re required to make important decisions in the life of the church?

In this age of pandemic, we have developed a whole new vocabulary. One of these new phrases, “super spreader,” is defined by Wikipedia as “an unusually contagious organism infected with a disease” – which reminds me of a hilarious story!

Thank you for being God’s vessel!  Thank you for pouring out His love, giving when perhaps you don’t feel like giving, valuing what God values, standing according to His laws, and showing others how to live. 

Engage … For me, “engage” is a word that stirs memories from years past. One of my favorite television shows – and movie series – was Star Trek. After charting a course deep into space, Captain Jean-Luc Picard, of the starship Enterprise, would often give the command…

Elders should consider staff reviews as a matter of pastoral care.  We are furthering the formation and development of the ministry team, not criticizing or passing judgment.  In fact, without a formal and routine process of review, it can degenerate into a personality contest.  After all, “feedback is the breakfast of champions” (Ken Blanchard).

To my sisters who see passed the narrative, 

To my sisters who are awake in the Spirit, 

To my sisters who sense the battle in the heavenly realms, 

To my sisters who know they are called…

Churches are not political townhalls where incivility reigns.  Yet, the incivility which pervades our common culture, at times, finds itself creeping into the church.  In every case, such moments are no less than despicable and destructive.  But those moments will happen, because…

Many of us wish we had a magic wand that would take all our troubles away or dissolve the issues we are not wanting to face. Often, we feel isolated and stuck, but we soldier on and put up a brave face. We forget about a great resource – our friendships as part of our community of faith…

Being an elder’s wife is an honor and a privilege, but also a great responsibility. Whether one knows it or not, others are always watching. Time and again, as I walk through our church, friendly faces…

Peter Drucker, the late leadership guru, said that the four hardest jobs in America are, President of the United States, University President, CEO of a hospital, and a Pastor. He didn’t reveal how he arrived…

Within the past four years, two major events have occurred to redirect the focus of my life: I retired from a job that I had held for almost 31 years; and my husband was named an elder in our church. These events have begun to teach me new things about service, giftedness, and the importance of staying open to surprises.

Strange title for a book chapter, isn’t it: Enjoying Difficult People? Why not exiling, or at least enduring … perhaps we sometimes wish for erasing? Why enjoying difficult people?

Change is something we all talk about, but rarely do we ever actually study it in order to understand the process and do it well.  …  In a recent e2 blog, Mark Taylor provided this formula:

R = A/T ± S …

These last few years I spent time dealing with where I was in my grief after the loss of my husband and grandchild to cancer. I have spent time lamenting in prayer and in the Word. God kept pointing out to me over and over again one of my favorite verses…

The most important institution in time and space is the family.  It is not the church, as vital and indispensable as the church is. ..