Secret Women's Business

I don't know about you, but some days I am nearly convinced that demonic forces are at work on my computer. The freezing... the error messages... the unexpected restarts... all designed to test my endurance and character. Anyway, today I received the following email about Jesus, Satan and computers for your edification and entertainment: Jesus and Satan were having an on-going argument about who was better on the computer. They had been going at it for days, and frankly God was tired of hearing all the bickering. Finally fed up, God said, "THAT'S IT! I have had enough. I am going to set up a test that will run for forty days and forty nights, and from those results, I will judge who does the better job." So Satan and Jesus sat down at the keyboards and typed away. They moused. They created powerpoint presentations. They e-mailed. They e-mailed with attachments. They downloaded. They did spreadsheets. They wrote reports. They created labels and cards. They created cha...

I had the delightful privilege this week of sharing an hour with a group of CCTC students studying mission in the New Testament. (As a presenter, rather than as a fellow sufferer... well, a fellow sufferer in Greek classes at least... I do enjoy other subjects. I'm still in "recovery" from last semester... sorry for harping on about it). I asked them all to make a single response to a simple question: "What is one thing that helps you to connect with God?" What was remarkable was the diversity of responses around the room... community, aloneness, the Word, music, nature, and other responses I've forgotten (I should have taken notes). Perhaps this level of diversity shouldn't surprise me. We worship the God who created an incredibly diverse and complex natural world, and who has made every person on earth unique. It would be surprising if our spiritual lives did not reflect the diversity we see in other aspects of human life. This experience added poign...

I heard a beautiful story from a Churches of Christ minister recently... whom I shall call “Priscilla” for the sake of anonymity... about a retired gentleman whom I shall call “Jack”. Priscilla was on the ministry team of a church that had a policy that sermon notes should be copied and distributed to the congregation. One day after she had preached, Jack (a newcomer at the church) bowled up to her and announced “I don’t believe in women ministers”. “Oh, that’s interesting” she replied. “And I don’t agree with this!” He then thrust at her the day’s sermon notes with furious circles all over the sermon. “Would you like to discuss this further?” she enquired. He agreed that he would, so she dutifully went to his house the next day and had a long conversation about exegesis, theology, etc. etc. They parted on very cordial terms. The next time Priscilla preached, the man bowled up to her and proclaimed: “I don’t believe in women ministers. And I don’t agree with this! ” He once more thrust...

ORLANDO — Hot glue guns, faux-silk flowers, painted magnets that say "I can do all things through Christ!" — these astonishingly effective tools and skill-building exercises have helped New Life Center's women's group launch dozens of women into world-changing evangelism. "Who knew that crafts were such a potent training ground for the gospel?" says Debby Wentworth, the group's chipper leader, as she finishes painting an irresistibly cute wooden angel. She's joined in the fellowship hall by 120 women, all chatting and doing decoupage. They create darling flower bouquets, seasonal wall-hangings and cozy centerpieces — all for the cause of Christ. As a result of intense craft training, the group has become an engine of world transformation, sending dozens of women into the mission field. "My years spent doing crafts prepared me well for the incredible complexities and challenges of running an orphanage in rural Malaysia," says Tamara Gooden, ...