Today's Christian articles from July 2007

Today's Christian archives from July 2007

Beyond "Tinky Winky" perspectives.(The FinePrint)(children's television program Teletubbies' Tinky Winky)
July 1, 2007... As we were finishing up this issue of TC, we received the sad news that he Rev. Jerry Falwell had died. The 73-year-old television evangelist, college president, and conservative activist was an influential figure for sure. He also was quite...

I'm a wife.(Lite Fare)(Cartoon)
July 1, 2007... "I'm a wife, a mother, a daughter, an executive, a cook, a housekeeper, a Sunday-school teacher, a chauffeur, and a soccer coach. That's only 19 pounds per woman!" [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Extreme worship.(Lite Fare)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... My husband is the pastor at our church, and he often calls on different members to lead the congregation in prayer. One man, being asked to pray, was nervously trying to thank God for our ability to come together for corporate worship....

Call the EPA.(Lite Fare)(United States Environmental Protection Agency)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... My church held a baptism service at a local lake, and I decided it would be a great opportunity to publicly declare my faith in Jesus Christ. It was a beautiful, sunny day and the lake was crowded. As the pastor led me into the water, I...

Occupational hazard.(Lite Fare)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... At a wedding reception, my friend and I sat next to a lovely woman and her podiatrist husband. During the celebration, I noticed they hadn't gotten up to dance once. Smiling, I asked the woman, "How come you two aren't dancing?" "You're...

The Tithing Challenge.(Quick Takes on People, News Reviews)
July 1, 2007... Testing God is usually discouraged by pastors and churches. After all, there are pretty good reasons for avoiding the practice. In Matthew 4:7 Jesus quotes from Deuteronomy: "It is also written: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'" In...

What God sees.(Quick Takes on People, News Reviews)(Interview)
July 1, 2007... In each of her appearances on last year's edition of American Idol, finalist Mandisa Hundley was a surprise--shocking audiences by forgiving judge Simon Cowell for insults about her weight, singing the overtly Christian song "Shackles (Praise...

"Battle Hymn of the Republic": mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.(Story BehindTheSong)
July 1, 2007... Very seldom do people of the world pick a sacred song, done in a simple yet beautiful way, and make a "hit" of it. But such was the case with Julia Ward Howe's "Battle Hymn of the Republic." During the Civil War the soldiers used the...

Fasting, prayer, and pride.(Everyday Theology)(Interview)
July 1, 2007... Q. God has done some amazing things in my life as a result of fasting and prayer. I want to share with others what He has done and give Him the glory. But in the Gospel of Matthew, it says we're not to let others know when we fast. I never...

Fire from heaven.(Bible IQ)
July 1, 2007... We may be better than our ancestors at predicting the weather, but something we share with the folks of biblical times is our awe--and fear of--lightning. More often than not, the phrase "fire from heaven" in the Bible refers to lightning....

A woman called job: after losing two children to a rare disease, Nancy Guthrie has become an unofficial spokesperson for finding God's hope in the midst of suffering.
July 1, 2007... Nancy Guthrie doesn't look like someone whose faith has been severely tested. She's an attractive woman with a soft but assured Tennessee accent. When she teaches the Bible, she speaks with a gentle authority. An author and publicist, she has...

After the fire: a Methodist pastor and her two congregations discover hope amid the ashes of adversity.(Julia Bolling)
July 1, 2007... After experiencing events during the past year that are best described as miraculous, Methodist minister Julia Bolling knows something about the power of prayer. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Bolling, who also works as a part-time hospital...

The chewing tobacco diet; God used a student's addiction to teach me something about my own.
July 1, 2007... A chewing tobacco habit helped me lose weight. Wait! It's not what you're thinking. I'll explain. I'm a teacher. One morning as class was starting, I noticed one of my teenage students walk past with a big wad of something stuffed in...

Creating the good in Hollywood; Christian screenwriters are changing the television and film industries from the inside out.(Bryan Coley and Barbara Nicolosi )
July 1, 2007... Getting Dramatic: Actors perform a staged reading of a screenplay by an Art Within member. Materialism. Drugs. Infidelity. Narcissism. When Christians talk about Hollywood, we usually shake our heads and go on about how terrible it is....

Role called: forget limousines and million-dollar mansions. For many Hollywood actors, life is more about paying the bills and living out their faith.(Interview)
July 1, 2007... Christians in Hollywood? It's not as unusual as you may think. Karen Covell of the Hollywood Prayer Network says "there are currently a recognized 5,000-plus Christians working or striving to work in the Hollywood entertainment industry....

The road to Emmaus; John Green's Chicago ministry offers hot showers, home-cooked meals, Bible studies, and friendship to male prostitutes seeking refuge from the streets.
July 1, 2007... When a gnawing crack addiction engulfed Andy's * life almost two decades ago, he abandoned family and friends. He was sleeping on park benches in Chicago's exclusive Gold Coast area when another homeless man suggested he earn an easy $250...

The off beat evangelist; Blue Like Jazz author Donald Miller doesn't pass out tracts. Instead, he finds common ground with non-believers--and helps other Christians to do the same.
July 1, 2007... Donald Miller seems an unlikely evangelist--at least by conventional standards. In his books Through Painted Deserts (a revision of Prayer and the Art of Volkswagen Maintenance, 2000) and Blue Like Jazz (2003), the former youth pastor sets...

Persecution report.
July 1, 2007... Myanmar Bold in the Face of Adversity Myanmar (formerly Burma) has been designated a Country of Particular Concern by the U.S. State Department for its severe religious freedom violations every year since 1999. And in those eight...

The lastlaugh.(Cartoon)
July 1, 2007... "We heard you're planning to change the worship service to an earlier time... We'd like to suggest 1948." [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]