Seven Things To Know About Revival

Last updated on: August 23, 2024 at 2:44 pm By Lee Ann B. Marino

As long as I can remember, revival has been a rallying cry among a number of Christian denominations. Even though everyone’s definition of “revival” is a little different, many Christians recognize the need for renewal within the faith. Whether they are annual campmeeting-style assemblies or more formal spiritual disciplines, we can all agree that believers have a spiritual work that must be done as we seek to reach ourselves and others with the Gospel. In inspiring these renewal movements, what... Read more

Seven Christian Poets Who Should be on Your “To-Read” List

Last updated on: October 4, 2024 at 5:03 pm By Lee Ann B. Marino

October 2nd is Random Acts of Poetry Day! The goal of this day is to share random poetic outbursts, thoughts, and ideas with the world. A celebration of the arts, the day celebrates poets, artists, and those who have something to say through poetic voice. Whether poetry is your thing or not, there’s no question it has a profound impact on many worldwide. Throughout history, poetry has served as a profound medium to express thoughts of love, angst, frustration, and... Read more

Five More Principles to Finding Contentment

Last updated on: August 7, 2024 at 4:42 pm By Lee Ann B. Marino

In last week’s column, we explored five principles to finding contentment. In a world driven by heavy consumerism, it’s easy to think our happiness will equate contentment. We think that happiness will come from amassing many things, thus we will wind up content. When this doesn’t happen time and time again, we find ourselves left, wondering where we might be led to finding contentment. The world wants to create consumers. God wants to help us find satisfaction. As discussed on... Read more

Five Principles to Finding Contentment

Last updated on: August 7, 2024 at 3:05 pm By Lee Ann B. Marino

If you follow my personal blog, Kingdom Lessons (which I admit is sorely out of date), I’ve been on a cleaning kick for over a year. It all started when I wanted to do a deep clean on my house, only to discover that it’s not possible to deep clean with heavy bookshelves full of books everywhere. This started a full-fledged clean-out process, one that’s progressively done in stages. I’ve cleared out some clothes, shoes, overstocks on office supplies, and... Read more

Don’t Forget the Gospel in Christian Communities

Last updated on: August 23, 2024 at 11:40 pm By Lee Ann B. Marino

My favorite musical is Rent. The gritty, raw drama about late 1980s Bohemian life touched on issues most musicals avoid. Intertwining timely song and dance with issues such as gentrification, drug use, queer rights, and the AIDS crisis, it’s not surprising that Rent won many awards in its day. One of my friends favors the movie Pacific Rim to Rent. They are drawn to the sci-fi nature of this movie, which has a strong cult following. We all tease them... Read more

Five Unsung Leadership Heroes in the New Testament

Last updated on: August 7, 2024 at 12:42 pm By Lee Ann B. Marino

In our last column, we looked at five unsung leadership heroes in the Old Testament. Our brief look at Deborah, Aaron, Huldah, Gad, and Baruch touches on an important truth: Biblical leaders don’t have to be primary figures to serve an important purpose. Each one of the individuals mentioned were leaders in their own right, even if we don’t have several chapters devoted to their leadership abilities. Now, in this column, we will look at New Testament leadership, specifically five... Read more

Five Unsung Leadership Heroes in the Old Testament

Last updated on: August 7, 2024 at 12:41 pm By Lee Ann B. Marino

Those in western culture are frequently familiar with Bible heroes, even if they are not churchgoing. Whether it’s the exploits of King David, the boldness of Peter, or the adventures of Abraham, most people are familiar with these Bible characters, at least in passing. Even in modern times, we’ve started speaking on female Bible figures, especially the women who served in ministry. Regardless, there are still many figures in Bible history – especially Bible leaders – that go overlooked. Here’s... Read more

Why Your Leader Should Never Be an Army of One

Last updated on: July 15, 2024 at 7:55 pm By Lee Ann B. Marino

I remember the day she declared I was an “army of one.” It sounded like a compliment, but something in it didn’t sit quite right. She was in leadership under my ministry, and recognized me as her Christian leadership. She also refused to give regularly, assist with various projects, and wasn’t the best with mutual support. Her “army of one” statement felt a lot like I was capable, so there was no reason for her to assist or help in... Read more

Lessons From Judas Iscariot

Last updated on: July 15, 2024 at 7:50 pm By Lee Ann B. Marino

Among the twelve apostles, we see a variety of personalities and interests. Peter was bold, but sometimes foolish. Matthew was converted while on the job. Philip was an ally for the Greek community. John was deep and philosophical. The different representations, both good and bad, inspire us to follow Christ more closely, regardless of our faults and failings. Yet among the twelve, no name is more reviled than that of Judas Iscariot. I’ve often said it’s a shame that we... Read more

Eight Christian Thoughts for Election Season

Last updated on: July 3, 2024 at 11:53 pm By Lee Ann B. Marino

Whether you love or hate politics, it’s undeniable that the 2024 election season is upon us. We’re already inundated with ads for various electoral candidates at different levels, even though the United States presidential election far shadows everyone else. A total of 468 seats: 33 senate seats and all 435 house seats are up for reelection on November 5, 2024. From a political perspective, the 2024 election represents the possibility for massive change in United States politics. If we listen... Read more