One of the sad ironies about the way that church is done today: we are a relationship-based organization that is really bad at relationships… It’s a miserable revelation that many committed Christians have had to endure in these recent years of scandals and schisms–that a lot of our church friends are fair-weather friends, whose love and support depends on if you’re still in good standing…
Jesus placed a high value on friendship, demonstrated through his words and modeled in how he related to others. This holds true for us in our current world… close friendships provide protection against mental health issues such as depression and anxiety, response to stress, and heart health in difficult times, while loneliness increases the risk of heart attack, stroke, and premature death…
When my wife, Linda, passed away in April 2023, I wasn’t prepared to go through the pain that comes with such a grief journey. The first three months were the hardest for me.
I must thank at least six different kinds of friends who brought their caring gifts to minister to me during my time of suffering. Each friend came at just the right time using their different gifts which contributed to my timely and proper healing. I hope you can learn and follow the examples of my friends so you can also care for your friends well as they are going through their suffering.
Forming deep friendships is challenging, so we’ve compiled some time-tested tools and tips for making the most of the close relationships in your life. Whether you have a core group of friends or still working to form new ones, this free resource may include the key to unlocking your next deep friendship.
We in the Church often think in this way— our focus is being in tune. How do I get my biblical doctrine right? How do I ensure I’m doing what’s right? But did you ever wonder if being in tune was the purpose of music? This perspective of being in tune, connected to God first, is important, even necessary, but at the same time, using the same analogy, being in tune is not sufficient for good music.
How can Christians better understand and better respond to the tragic events surrounding the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza? Here's a look at the three central views shaping today's conversations around war in the Middle East...
Dear Reader, have you ever been in a situation where you had no power? I remember being in a foreign country among refugees, learning that some of them had no documented status; they had entered the country years ago to avoid being killed in their home country, and now had no hope of education and no visible hope of what we would consider a viable future..
It is a mistake to think that being a Christian believer, church, or nation means that we will have a stronger moral character or a clearer conscience. It is even more of a mistake to think that one’s beliefs are right because they are “Christian?"
I had growing concerns about my church. At one time, it had been the organizing center around which my entire life had revolved: spiritual, social, and even professional... But that was before the new “vision” the head pastor had sprung on all of us...
*Many of our articles may also be read in Chinese in KRC Magazine online.
You can now listen to Project Arctos articles on YouTube:
Communion is “the sharing or exchanging of intimate thoughts and feelings”. In a sense, it’s being truly known. Without communion with God and others we lose a link with what it means to truly live.
Prevailing cultures, those with authority, often overlook or dismiss those who don’t meet the expectations set in place, creating barriers to true communion. The overlooked often are given little opportunity to be heard and to shape the larger culture.
As members of the body of Christ, we’ve seen firsthand how youth groups, college ministries, and church life (and really, any group of people) often work. In these settings, we have seen and lived in the shadows cast by prevailing cultures. We know what it feels like to be left out, forgotten, and dismissed and to give into feelings of bitterness, anger, and self-imposed isolation. But there is hope.
Andy Crouch, former editor of Christianity Today, says the basic law of cultural change is this: “to make more of it.”
Life’s too short to sit on the sidelines. Join us and develop your gifts to create something more. Join us in communing with God, creating together, and connecting with one another.
We in the Church often think in this way— our focus is being in tune. How do I get my biblical doctrine right? How do I ensure I’m doing what’s right? But did you ever wonder if being in tune was the purpose of music? This perspective of being in tune, connected to God first, is important, even necessary, but at the same time, using the same analogy, being in tune is not sufficient for good music.
How can Christians better understand and better respond to the tragic events surrounding the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza? Here's a look at the three central views shaping today's conversations around war in the Middle East...
Dear Reader, have you ever been in a situation where you had no power? I remember being in a foreign country among refugees, learning that some of them had no documented status; they had entered the country years ago to avoid being killed in their home country, and now had no hope of education and no visible hope of what we would consider a viable future..
It is a mistake to think that being a Christian believer, church, or nation means that we will have a stronger moral character or a clearer conscience. It is even more of a mistake to think that one’s beliefs are right because they are “Christian?"
I had growing concerns about my church. At one time, it had been the organizing center around which my entire life had revolved: spiritual, social, and even professional... But that was before the new “vision” the head pastor had sprung on all of us...
A look at how the paradigm shift shared in 1st Timothy is needed to build better relationships with the opposite sex, a further step towards healthier Christian relationships.
As we navigate 2024, we see additional uncertainty with a looming U.S. presidential election, ongoing larger wars in places such as Myanmar, Israel/Palestine, North Africa, Sudan, and Russia/ Ukraine, and a time roughly four years into a post-Covid world.
It’s with all of this in mind that we are reminded of Moses’s prayer, asking God to “teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”
Looking back, I can clearly see it as one larger theme gifted to my Big Grand Uncle, my family line, and to me by our Creator God. It is larger because God in His grace pointed us to His majestic attributes and design—the invisible beyond the visible of the world. God revealed Himself not only in my youth through creation but to my family in a hunger for the truth of His character.
There are a handful of times in my life where God has surprised and ‘spoken’ to me even more overtly than I’d ever expected. At a time when I was feeling particularly discouraged with the return on my efforts in life, I was grumbling internally (partly to God, but mostly to myself) as I walked the short distance down the street…
“…and to this day I weep at the remembrance of being and feeling seen by God that day."
An encouragement to those Christians trying to build a close relationship with God, from one who has been practicing and refining his relationship with God for many years.
“In my heart, I was craving for a true relationship in which I could see God as a Father and a Friend… With this kind of spiritual pursuit, I have been blessed to be on a pathway to continue developing a really close and intimate relationship with God.”
What wisdom would you give to your old self on following Jesus well?
I say, “The Lord sees you. It feels insufficient, but plant that truth deep in your heart. He sees you, and he’s with you…” and “He will use the mundane to reveal Himself. God will use the mundane to reveal Himself…”
One of the key elements to forming good friendships is simply to be willing to be open to new experiences, to cater to each others’ needs.
The loneliest people I know tend to have a narrow idea about what they are willing to or be interested in doing.
I’m more and more convinced that the best way you can foster a good friendship is to go and do something they want to do (even if you really don’t want to).
As a Christian, what do you do when you realize that the life you always thought you were going to live has disappeared? When your career, your future, your hopes and your dreams, all of it has turned into an insubstantial mist that vanishes in the morning light. This is the same revelation that burdens the writer of Ecclesiastes when he laments: “Vanity of vanities! All is vanity” (Ecclesiastes 1:2).
In this edition, we examine what a love for God and a love for one’s neighbor looks like. With the advancement of the Church, we can take a look at what Paul says when he mentioned many members yet one body. Each member of the body is going to give and receive love differently, and when we’re able to examine what each member of the Body is able to contribute with humility, our “hearts can be enlarged” to receive new perspectives and practices.
Christianity and mental health care can co-exist beautifully and wonderfully to make a difference and save lives. Oftentimes, they are seen as two different entities working in opposite directions resulting in Christians feeling ostracized and ashamed for having mental health challenges…
One of the laments I hear from my sisters in Christ all the time is that they would like to be discipled by wiser men in their congregations. But in some cases because they are seen as mere helpers of men by those men or they have to be afraid they might assault or harm them, they have to settle for whomever will teach them.
My daughter Hanna was born in June 2023, and for the first time in my life, I became responsible for the life of another person. With this change came questions around my calling in Christ. What should come first, ministry or family life? Is my number one priority in life to raise my children or to go where God is calling me? How do we decide what comes first?
Communing with God face to face isn’t reserved for the “greats” in times past, but that access, that face-to-face friendship is something we all have access to in the present.
Prayer is the one activity that ties together the faculties of the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual.
How does one process the immense loss of their life-partner? George, a recent widower after 52 years of marriage, shares his candid experience of his first few months without his wife. Together they wrote books and led workshops of healthy intimacy in Christian relationships.
In this edition, Expectations Revisited, our writers take a closer look at how we go about Church and the Christian life, in ways that are historically reflective, introspective, constructive, sometimes critical, and sometimes whimsical.
What does your dream church look like? Surely no church is fully perfect, but whether you’re reflecting on what church was like for you growing up or what your current church is like, there are likely some aspects which you wish were a little different.
Praying for revolution is risky and it comes with consequences we are not always ready for. When the Spirit moves, it shakes up everything.
Are we listening to those who offer the philosophy of the age or are we listening to people who are teaching us the truth?
We often are tempted to think that the message is more important than the medium, that as long as we can share the message of the gospel, the rest doesn’t matter. As long as a soul is saved, who cares what else happens?
If we think this way, we will begin to lose sight of what the Church actually is…