Though Lori has been active in ministry for many years, my first exposure to her came at one of Family Time’s first podcast recordings. From the moment I met Lori, I knew that she had a passion to help families in the name of Jesus. Lori’s years of training and [...]
When God gave me a passion for family ministry it was so exciting to learn about resources that others had benefited from for years. There were many times when I felt like I was late to a party. This was true when I first discovered Shepherding a Child’s Heart by [...]
Any time I see the name, J.I. Packer on a book, I become instantly interested. If you have never heard of this man, google his name. Hop on to YouTube and watch some videos. I bet you’ll begin to see why I admire the legacy this man left for [...]
Recently, I was scrolling through social media and began seeing a quote by D.L. Moody repeatedly shared by many of my friends. It was the typical situation of one of us finding a quote that we liked and then agreed with the statement by sharing it. My friends were quoting [...]
I met Dr. Williams years ago through a recommendation from a mutual friend. I was in an early season of exploration in family ministry and I was hungry for guidance. Our first meeting was over a Zoom call in which I asked him too many questions. However, he was gracious, [...]
Here again I find myself recommending one of the few books that I’ve read more than once! Two amazing Christian leaders, Dr. Richard Ross Ph.D. & Dr. Ken Hemphill Ph.D., collaborated to produce, for churches and families, a seemingly one stop shop on the topic of family ministry. After reading [...]
Chris Shirley was one of the reasons I returned to Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary for training in family ministry. He serves as the Associate Dean of the Jack D. Terry School of Educational Ministries and is a professor of educational ministries. His expertise includes, but is not limited to, family [...]
A few years ago, my wife started noticing that I had the ability to fall asleep basically anywhere! Also, when I would fall asleep in random places, I often looked pretty funny. So, in good humor, my wife started documenting these random sleep moments and the funny faces I would [...]
When I was initially exposed to prominent family ministry voices, Brian Haynes came highly recommended to me. At that stage in my growth, I was like a sponge. I loved reading as much as I could in this new (to me) world of family ministry. Authors like Brian were blowing [...]
As a child of the 90s, I grew up in a great era of basketball heroes. I just knew that one day I would be slamming the ball like Shaq or confusing defenders with super-human dribbling skills like Iverson. Unfortunately, I’m only 5’9” and can’t jump very high. Although there [...]
Rewriting Fathers by Brandon Cave and Preston Cave If I’m honest, it has always been hard for me to get excited about books that are targeted to fathers. I love the topic, but so many of the books, I see on the shelves, seem to market ideas that don’t really [...]
I’m going to jump out there with an assumption...You kids probably don’t know enough about you. Now, again, I know I’m assuming things here, but its something that I’ve noticed over the years. For many children, the lives and backgrounds of their fathers remain a mystery, but who cares? Family [...]
"Raising Worry-Free Girls" by Sissy Goff I’ll never forget the moment that I found out I was going to be a dad. I was on a church staff retreat in Broken Bow Oklahoma. It was an early morning, and my pastor was cooking us breakfast. My wife and I [...]
A Uniting Dad I’ve always been interested in music. During my adolescent years, I focused an enormous amount of time on the different tones that guitars and amps could provide. I had a certain tone that I loved and always sought to imitate that tone within my own equipment setup. [...]
Youth Ministry That Lasts a Lifetime by Dr. Richard Ross Dr. Richard Ross is a youth ministry professor at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and has served faithfully in that role for several decades. He is a sought-after speaker and author in youth ministry but is also a scholarly and passionate [...]
Growing up, I always felt the need to give the impression that I could defend myself. Even though I had never been in a real fight, I worked to give off the impression that I could stand my ground if necessary. Most of the guys around me did the same [...]
Family Ministry Field Guide: How Your Church Can Equip Parents to Make Disciples by Timothy Paul Jones For the life of me, I cannot remember how I was first exposed to the writings of Dr. Timothy Paul Jones of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.1 Regardless, I’m very thankful to have [...]
Recently, I scheduled an appointment to get a haircut. This is a monthly ritual for me, and I always look forward to spending time with my barber. We always have great conversations about a myriad of topics but in this particular visit, the discussion drifted toward the topic of family. [...]
I first heard about Dr. Donald S. Whitney through a book entitled The Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life . I was assigned that book while in seminary, and it meant the world to me. 1 From then on, I paid attention when I heard his name mentioned. Eventually, I [...]