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As a father of three daughters, I have developed some strong interrogation skills. My go-to line when boys come over to talk to my daughters is, "If you don't love Jesus, my girls will get bored with you." After I drop that knowledge on them, one of two things usually happens: The boy will agree…

Q: Any tips to help us with our marriage as we cope with stepchildren? It seems that our relationship takes continued hits as we work through their issues. A: You've raised one of the most challenging issues faced by remarried couples. Disagreements about how to raise and discipline the children…

Kerry Willis is pastor of Harrisonburg, Virginia, First Church of the Nazarene. He and his wife, Kim, have a son, Grayson, and daughter, Allison. The son of a North Carolina shrimp boat captain, Kerry has two brothers, Bill and Stephen. All Willis brothers are second-career pastors in the Church of…

Victor Peters was well into semi-retirement as a part-time staff member when I became pastor of Los Angeles First Church of the Nazarene nearly 30 years ago*. I was only 32 at the time and the rest of the staff members were about my age. The other young staffers and I set out to solve the tough…

Interviewing Willimon (WW) is Dean Nelson (DN) of Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego. DN: You've said that sermons should offend people. WW: We should be willing to say what the biblical text says-or what we think it says-and then be willing to get whatever reaction is appropriate to…

Often the most meaningful and teachable moments happen when we least expect them. Those times exist when we have taken the short cuts on the map—you know, the mental map that guides most men—and we gradually find ourselves overlooking the valleys of upstate New York when we should be driving into…

I wish somehow I could go back across the years and take back the insensitive things I said to grieving members of the congregations I pastored. It took the death of our son, Denny, and my subsequent descent into the pit of despair to even begin to understand the many ways grief can affect a person…

God changes lives. Sometimes decisions for Christ seem superficial. Other times decisions make real differences in everyday living. What aspects of the worship environment might foster deeper decisions for Christ? Consider opening the altar during Communion time. Opening the altar during…

The Church of the Nazarene offers a message of hope and reconciliation to a world deeply divided by political, theological, and cultural differences. Too often, however, our communication has reflected the divisions of our cultures rather than the unity we have in the Body of Christ. We unite to…

Haze Motes had an odd way of reading the Bible. Haze is one of the most objectionable and puzzling characters an author ever created. He is the main character in Flannery O'Conner's Wise Blood (1952). Though truly bizarre, Haze saw himself as pure and the rest of the world as distorted. That's why…