When my sons were little, we used to join hands and have prayer at the end of the day. Then I'd give them a kiss good night. When my son Phil was about 9 years of age, he got in bed one night and said, "Mom, I can't remember whether Dad kissed me good night or not." So, Judy told me. I tiptoed up the steps, bolted through his door like I was a monster, and dove in his bed and wrestled with him and ...

On that tragic morning of September 11, 2001, The Brooklyn Tabernacle lost four of its members. One victim was a police officer. The officer's funeral was held at the church building, and Rudy Giuliani, then mayor of New York City, had been asked to share a few thoughts. In his book You Were Made for More, Jim Cymbala, pastor of The Brooklyn Tabernacle, records what the mayor shared with the audience ...

The late Max Cadenhead, when he was pastor of First Baptist Church in Naples, Florida, riveted his congregation one day with a bold confession.

"My message today is on the parable of the Good Samaritan," Max announced. "Let me start with an illustration.

"Remember last year when the Browns came forward to join the church?" he asked. Everyone nodded; the Browns were a very influential family. "Well, ...

Actress Reese Witherspoon, who plays the role of June Carter Cash in the movie Walk the Line, describes the benefit of attending church:

"I was raised going to church every Sunday, and I go to church most Sundays with my kids. For me, where I'm at in my career, so many people want to put you in a place that you're not real and treat you like you're not real. For me it's a great experience of grounding, ...

To John Barrier, it wasn't the 60 cents, it was the principle. Barrier walked into his bank to cash a $100 check and then asked the receptionist to validate his parking ticket. Even after mentioning that he was a "substantial depositor," Barrier's request was refused. The receptionist explained that validation was only given for transactions involving a deposit.

Barrier felt his appearance—dirty construction ...

Our fallenness makes us want to be a part of not just any group, but an exclusive group. By definition, every society includes people who connect, who belong to one another. Yet every society includes people who feel left out, who don't get chosen at recess, whose invitations to dance get turned down, who get blackballed and cold-shouldered and voted off the island. We exclude others because of pride ...

Several years ago, when I worked as a campus chaplain at Norfolk State University in Virginia, I received a 2 a.m. call from Willie, an African-American who was one of the student leaders in my campus fellowship group. Rubbing the sleep from my eyes, I listened to his clearly distressed voice.

On his way home from an outreach concert, he had stopped at a giant open-air supermarket to purchase a bag ...