This week I presented my first talk of the year to our Corporate Team at Buckner and spoke on the topic of Leadership Selection. I reflected on my own journey to my role at Buckner and remembered a favorite story with principles for leadership selection. I shared the story of David being selected as the King of Israel in 1 Samuel 16. So where do you find the best leaders? 1. The best leaders are where they are supposed to... Read more

This week I presented my first talk of the year to our Corporate Team at Buckner and spoke on the topic of Leadership Selection. I reflected on my own journey to my role at Buckner and remembered a favorite story with principles for leadership selection. I recounted the story of the Prophet Samuel (1 Samuel 16:1-13 NIV) and reflected on my leadership assignments over my lifetime. I recall that Samuel was led by the Lord to travel to Bethlehem to... Read more

One only needs to pick up the daily newspaper to witness the profound impact of la herencia Hispana (Hispanic heritage) on our society. From the look and language of our marketing campaigns to the form and function of contemporary fashion; from the music that is crossing over cultural and linguistic barriers to the outcomes of our political elections; the contributions of the Latino community are changing the very fabric of this land we all call home. We are reminded of... Read more

What is justice? Justice is not the purpose of big government. Justice is the passion of a big God. Justice is not a political term to be exploited but a prophetic term to be lived out. What is justice? Justice does not result in pathetic attempts of expediency but in prophetic postures of activism. For justice will at times march, at times it will protest, at times it will sing but justice will always speak on behalf of those that... Read more

As Evangelical Christians, our faith stands universally recognized by a simple symbol: a cross. The cross is both vertical and horizontal. Vertically, we stand connected to God, His Kingdom, eternal truth and glory. Horizontally, to our left and to our right, we stand connected to family, culture, society and community. Immigration reform lies along both the vertical and horizontal planes. Vertically, the heart of God stands moved by the plight of the immigrant and the suffering. Horizontally, immigration reform will... Read more

by Samuel Rodriguez and Robert Gittelson Our commitment, as people of strong faith, is to reconcile conviction with compassion, truth with love, and righteousness with justice. At the end of the day, our number one objective is to reconcile the Rev. Billy Graham’s message with the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s march. In doing so, we advance not the agenda of the Donkey or the Elephant, but exclusively the agenda of the Lamb. Comprehensive immigration reform is about the... Read more

According to a recent report released by the Pew Hispanic Center, Hispanic high school drop-out rates are at a record low. While this is encouraging, there’s still much work needed in order to close the educational achievement gap for the next-generation of Latinos.  The same report also conveys these negatively impacting facts: “Hispanic college students are less likely than their white counterparts to enroll in a four-year college (56% versus 72%), they are less likely to attend a selective college,... Read more

According to the Declaration of Independence, all people are endowed by their Creator, with certain “unalienable rights” amongst which are “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”. How ironic is it, then, that many end up searching for these rights independent of the Creator who is credited with endowing them.  Thus is the tragic irony for many of our Latino brothers and sisters who, as they arrive on our fair shores, leave their biblical values behind in favor of the... Read more

Faith is transparent, transcendent and transformational. Faith equips us to cross over obstacles, shout down walls, break through crowds and walk on the impossible, even in the midst of storms. Faith encourages us to survive the fires of life, overcome the den of lions, silence the serpents and outwit the fox. Faith empowers us to see the invisible, embrace the impossible and hope for the incredible. Faith exhorts us to care for the poor, speak for the marginalized and welcome... Read more

With a convicted spirit and a heart full of compassion, I look across the Charles River in Boston, Massachusetts. This historic city, known for her role in the narrative of our nation’s Revolutionary War chapter, love of sports and birthplace of some of the world’s leading educational institutions, now stands recognized as yet another victim of mindless terror. Yet in this region, over 200 years ago, a man by the name of Paul Revere sounded an alarm; an alarm prompting... Read more