This is a guest post by Trillia Newbell (Managing Editor for Women of God Magazine). To see the entire series click here. Summer: a time for sunshine and relaxation. As I look ahead to the summer, the thought of gathering seashells all day long sure does sound appealing. The hustle and bustle of life often slows and rest can become my craving....

This is a guest post by Todd Engstrom (Community Pastor at The Austin Stone Community Church). To see the entire series click here. Summertime always prompts images of grilling in the backyard, vacation road trips, watching baseball, and adventures in the neighborhood.  In the church, it’s often a season where we “take a break” from ministry and community. I’ve always found...

The summer is usually a time when people vacation and generally pull themselves away from their typical schedules. Sadly, this is often reflected in their spiritual lives also. During the summer church members are less engaged and involved in community life at their church. Summer church attendance reflects this well. In response to the summer lull, many pastors and...

I still remember the kids’ team meeting for The Gospel Project where we looked through the list of Bible stories we were going to introduce to kids. Session 5 was the story of Job, not a story you come across very often in typical kids’ Bible studies. The decision to tell kids – even preschoolers – the story of Job...

Working on kids curriculum was a big shift for me. Early on, The Gospel Project was focused on adults, but once it expanded to include all age groups, I suddenly found myself wading through reams of paper, editing kids lessons to make sure they focused attention on Jesus Christ and what He has done. I was not the most experienced in...

A pastor asked me one time about the missional strategy behind The Gospel Project. “We’ve got people in small groups who study the Scriptures but aren’t involved in reaching out to their community with the gospel,” he said. “How can I get them motivated?” In response, I mentioned how our natural tendency as church leaders is to reinforce the commands related...