Department: Author: Mary Li MaWhy do churches often mishandle clergy abuse? Why are the first instincts of church leaders after the exposure of power abuse to follow the same pattern—denial, silencing, spinning the narrative, and blaming the victim? Why does it always take so long for victims of su
Department: Author: Trevor DenningAll children want to hear their fathers say, “I love you.” Unfortunately, for many dads those three words are impossible to speak.Jake (Seth Bowling) is a successful lawyer flirting with a drinking problem that could ruin his career. His father, Herb (Nick Searcy),
Department: Author: Sonya VanderVeen FeddemaIt’s 2006, and Pastor Matthew Goodman is arduously navigating the complex megachurch machinery that is Calvary Community Church in Chicago. In a church culture where image is everything, Pastor Goodman, in his mid-50s, feels the sinister effects of aging,
Department: Author: Paul DelgerSeth and Jenna Herlich planned to take their music in one direction, but God had another purpose for the husband-wife duo. “Our ministry started like Jonah,” said the couple on their website. “We were being called to play music for churches, but we kept running away f
Department: Author: Dave Beach“To desire eternal life with all the passion of the spirit.To keep death daily before one’s eyes.”The lines above form the epigraph of a timely new title, The End of the Christian Life: How Embracing Our Mortality Frees Us to Truly Live. Some might wonder how these two
Department: Author: Trevor DenningWhen truth is on par with fiction, it’s not usually in a good way. But even then, sometimes there are moments that remind us God is present.In five bite-sized parts, Shootout: The Battle for North Hollywood, an Audible Original podcast, tells the true story of the
Department: Author: Greg ChandlerAndy Littleton has been involved in some form of ministry since the age of 18, when he became a youth ministry leader at his home church in Tucson, Ariz.But for most of that same time period, the founding pastor of Mission Church, a congregation affiliated with the
Department: Author: Daniel JungMy third-grade teacher once told our class, “Most of you will never have a biography written about your life.” The year was 1988, and the assignment was to write a book report on a famous person. This was my teacher’s overly pragmatic explanation of the biography genr
Department: Author: Sonya VanderVeen FeddemaImitating the cadence and rhyme of ‘Twas the Night before Christmas, author Glenys Nellist’s poetic narrative invites children and adults to share the wondrous revelation and surprise that Mary Magdalene and the disciples experienced on the first Easter m
Department: Author: Micah Van Dijk“Try Jesus, not me.Cause I throw hands Try JesusPlease don’t try me.Because I fight I know what he said about getting slapped. But if you touch me or mine, we are going to have to scrap. TRY JESUSTobe Nwigwe is a family man who sings about his faith, hopes to m
Department: Author: Kayleigh FongersUp-and-coming music collective Maverick City Music is known for pushing the boundaries of worship music, and the latest EP, Move Your Heart, is a prime example.Originating in Atlanta, Ga., Maverick City Music was founded with the intention of creating space for d
Department: Author: Andrew ZwartAnyone who genuinely wants to better understand matters of race in North America has no shortage of good books to choose from. They might, in fact, feel overwhelmed by the sheer number of good choices, from The Color of Compromise to Caste. At the same time, those wh
Department: Author: Sonya VanderVeen FeddemaWhen a young girl looks at the faces of some of her peers, she notices that their big eyes—“like sapphire lagoons”—don’t resemble her own. She loves the contours of her own eyes “that kiss in the corners and glow like warm tea,” and she’s proud that her m
Department: Author: Jenny deGrootDo you recognize the name Greta Thunberg? Her face? Her voice? Her piercing eyes? Someone you have followed? Ignored? Mocked?The documentary, I am Greta, covers a year in the life of the Swedish 15-year-old climate change activist and is worth watching.Thunberg’s lo
Department: Author: James DekkerJohn Terpstra, of Hamilton, Ont., is a poet and cabinet maker. Fittingly, his writing often hovers over themes of spirit and place. In Wild HopeTerpstra offers a sequel to In the Company of All: Prayers from Sunday Mornings at St. Cuthbert's. In that first collection
Department: Author: Paul DelgerNEEDTOBREATH’s highly anticipated recording, “Out of Body,” does not disappoint. It’s the seventh full-length album from a band making music for 20 years and probably the most unfiltered one. “Looking at my sons, I’m constantly reminded to be in the moment,” said lead
Department: Author: Michelle Loyd-Paige“That day, I pick up my sorrow and lock it in my heart so that I can be strong and care for Kayus and Papa. But sometimes, like today, the sorrow climb out of my heart and stick his tongue in my face.” —AdunniThe Girl with the Louding Voice was a New York Time
Department: Author: Lorilee CrakerAuthor Robin W. Pearson (A Long Time Comin’) is a rarity in Christian fiction: An African American who writes about the faith and family focus of African American characters. She’s also a top-drawer storyteller, having won a Christy Award for her first novel. In he
Department: Author: Jenny deGrootThe well-loved easy-reader novel series, I Survived, received a renewal this spring with the release of a graphic novel adaptation. The original I Survived the Sinking of the Titanic, 1912 was released in 2010. Ten years later, the first of the series has been reima
Department: Author: Trevor DenningDespite what the TV crime shows want us to think, serial killers aren’t as prevalent now as they were in decades past. Maybe it’s due to advanced technology, or maybe because of decreased hitchhiking, but at the moment we seem to be spared the Zodiacs and Bundys th