Imagine if you attended a church where your life struggle was never mentioned as an area to receive care, and, if it was mentioned, your struggle was the adversarial portion of a culture war commentary. How would your week-to-week experience of church be different? How would you hear words like “community” or “family of God”? For church leaders, step one is to realize that … [Read more...]
The plastic smile: “Pastor, why should I tell someone how much I’m hurting?”
Encouraging people who are hurting or struggling to share their experiences with others in the church is usually good advice. When a person shares, he is often surprised to learn that others have dealt with, or are dealing with, similar circumstances. Rich comfort and encouragement frequently come from such conversations. However, some who hear this advice will push back. … [Read more...]