Personal & Spiritual Growth

Would you like to take better care of your body but aren't sure what to do? Focusing on our souls doesn't mean we should neglect taking care of our bodies. But often we are so busy caring for others and keeping to our schedules that we think we can't...

We are used to having our parents help us, but how do we handle it when the tables are turned and our parents are the ones who need help? Declining health, financial needs, divorce, relational issues—what's an adult child's role when their parents...

Are you facing an unexpected financial crisis or anticipating the possibility of difficult times ahead? Financial problems happen for so many reasons, but right now the uncertainty of the future, coupled with unstable economic conditions, means that...

Caring for aging parents is complex and challenging even under the best of circumstances. How do we help them and remain sane when distance, dementia, depression, disaster, divorce, disintegrated relationships, deteriorating health, and discouragement...

God's love is unconditional, right? Actually, God cares too much about us to be unconditional in his love for us. In Real Love: Better Than Unconditional? biblical counseling expert David Powlison explains that God's love is both different from and...

It is difficult and sometimes frightening not to have the good opinion of others. No one likes to face the possibility of rejection, humiliation, or opposition. Yet, making our goal others' approval confines us to a small world where life consists of...

Arguments. Betrayal. Inattention. Some of the reasons that relationships shatter. Anger. Confusion. Hurt. Frustration. Some of what we feel when a relationship falls apart. We all have experienced how hard relationships can be in this broken world...

You made a commitment to Jesus (or maybe you didn't), but now you are questioning everything. Is there a God? Are you really forgiven and accepted for Jesus's sake? It sounds too good to be true. And if the Bible really is true and Jesus really did rise...

Where is God in all this? Does he really love me? Perhaps you are asking questions like these in the midst of tough situations that come your way. You want to trust God's plan for your life, but when hardship intrudes, it is often difficult to believe...

If you are experiencing financial difficulties, you might be feeling anger, discouragement, fear, or even panic. There are many reasons people struggle financially-job loss, unexpected expenses, poor decisions-but, whatever the reason, money troubles...

When life falls apart, we feel deep confusion. Our emotions may shatter no matter how strong we have been. Our minds fill with unanswered and painful questions like the following: "Why me?" "What did I do to deserve this?" "Is there any hope for my...

Is a personal God really involved in our suffering? And if he is, what in the world is he up to? Why would a good God allow suffering in his world? William P. Smith addresses these and other hard questions by reflecting on what the Bible teaches about...

How many times have you tried to change a behavior only to find yourself doing the same thing again? Do these phrases sound familiar? "There I go again!" "I've had this struggle for years, and I just can't seem to win." "I do okay for awhile, but then I...

Do you ever feel like your past is haunting you? Maybe it's a mistake you made that can't be made right or something that was done to you that can never be undone. You see the effects of it in your daily life, but struggle to know how to move forward...

Everyone is afraid of something. Fear is part of the human experience of living in a broken, fallen world. We try to manage our fears, but our coping mechanisms impact our faith. We hoard resources and stop praying for provision. We stockpile...

What if your human parents were violent, deceptive, cold, or even just occasionally disappointing? Can their failures keep you from understanding God's love and having a growing relationship with your heavenly Father? Some say that you can't know God's...

Prickly, defensive, nasty, volatile, withdrawn, miserable...aren't there days when you feel surrounded by difficult people? How do you cope? You can try avoiding them, gossiping about them, or giving them a piece of your mind. But wait! Don't your...

You spend your days (and maybe nights) helping someone else. If you are a caregiver for someone who is chronically ill, you have already discovered there is a need to be more compassionate, thoughtful, and sacrificial than you ever anticipated. But, to...

Everyone experiences hurt in relationships, but most of the time we are able to forgive and forget. But sometimes we experience a major hurt that lingers in our minds and leads to bitterness. We feel trapped by the resulting hostility, ongoing broken...

Are you living under a cloud of guilt that you can't seem to shake no matter what you do? Do you feel guilty about everything, all the time? We all have different ways of dealing with our guilty feelings, but none of them work for very long. Timothy S...