María y su familia eran miembros de lo que ella considera una iglesia hispana saludable. Pero, llorando en mi oficina de consejería, compartió la historia de abusos que su hija sufrió y la respuesta inimaginable de los líderes de su iglesia.

Maria and her family were members of what she considers a healthy Hispanic church but, as she sobs in my counseling office, she shared her daughter’s story of abuse and the unthinkable response from her church leaders.

What are the little things we let divide the church? As small differences carve deeper divides in the church, we must be careful not to turn our eyes and weapons against our brothers as the Israelites were tempted to do. We must fight not to look at those who have been in the trench with us and wonder if they, too, are just a little too dangerously different.

All of us have someone in our lives that we really don’t know how to love—or at least we don’t know how to love them well. Maybe, it’s just someone you can’t love all the time. Both Scripture and modern research show us that loving relationships are key. But what does that look like?

What is persecution? How does it effect the global church, and what should we be learning from them? Sally Hinzie answers these questions and more as she outlines Dr. Carl A. Moeller & David W. Hegg’s book: The Privilege of Persecution (And Other Things the Global Church Knows That We Don’t).

Far too often, there seems to be a tendency for husbands to get on the other side of “I do,” and put the relationship on cruise control. But how do we keep from getting too comfortable? How can we continue to grow and love well?

“Do you have any good websites I can visit for demographic data on my neighborhood?”

If I’ve been asked that question once, I’ve received it a dozen times. Many pastors and church leaders now understand the need to know their ministry context and contextualize their mission strategy to engage their neighbors in a meaningful way. But how do we find and use those resources?

Identifying, developing, and supporting rising young leaders is an important part of any organization and no less for the church. Robert Kidd, Director of Spiritual Care & Values Integration for the Methodist Hospital System, delivered a paper on this topic at a recent conference for Chaplains. UBA believes that pastors and mentors in the church must be alert to identify and nurture the next generation of leadership. Excerpted here are five points from the seminar for both mentors and rising leaders to consider.

Una de las dolorosas lecciones que aprendimos en UBA fue que no teníamos anticipadamente suficientes mecanismos creados para responder a las historias con rapidez adecuada. Aprendimos esa lección junto con muchas otras agencias y organizaciones. Es con esto en mente, que comenzamos un nuevo nivel de preparación.

¡Solo no se puede! Muchos en el ministerio sufren del síndrome del llanero solitario, comienzan y terminan solos, pero irónicamente, aún el llanero solitario necesitaba un compañero. ¿Conoces el principio 2+?

We can’t do it alone! Many in the ministry suffer from the lone ranger syndrome—they begin and end alone. Ironically enough, even the “lone” ranger needed a companion, though. Do you know the 2+ principle?

Today, we feel the loss of a good friend and a great man, Ron Towery. He faced death the way he lived his life—with matter-of-fact practicality and full of faith, never wavering in his belief and confidence in the Lord. We will miss Ron intensely, but we rejoice that his pain is gone and that he is in the presence of his Savior.