One way to keep our fingers on the pulse of the people we teach is to know what they're hearing and watching. Here are some top tens for Christians:

Top Ten Christian Movies (by profit)

10       Jonah: A VeggieTales Movie

 9          God’s Not Dead

Leadership is broken because leaders are unbroken

The demise of Solomon should scare us out of our complacency and drive us to our knees.  Once the wisest man on earth, then one of the most idolatrous men in the world, and finally a murderous man, Solomon shows us the role of the heart in leaders.  How did this come about?  One thing you must understand:  Solomon allowed his heart to outgrow his altar, as he became a victim of the principle of except...

Could this happen to us?

Holy week has commenced and Resurrection Sunday draws near. And, if you read blogs, my guess is that you also use other forms of social media and are probably drowning in Easter activities via Pinterest, Facebook, etc.

I mean did you know you can even make a tomb out of a donut and an Oreo? Yeah, neither did I until everyone posted it on Pinterest.

These activities bring fun and joy, but if you only do one Easter activity with your family this year, I challenge you to make it a gospel devotional based on 1 Corinthians 15.

Last week Gospel Coalition posted my blog on the recent set of movies that questioend how we are engaging this area in the public square. I am reposting the link here now that it is off their main page. It has been widely recirculated.

Here is the full link:

http://thegospelcoalition.org/mobile/article/tgc/hollywood-movies-and-the-bible-should-we-rewind-on-how-we-view

The core blog is below:

Pray without ceasing--I'm learning what that means this week:
       My friend and renowned author Carolyn Custis James's diagnosis of stage 1 lung cancer and her surgery today.
       My friend and long-time Bible teacher Shirley Hotchkiss's miserable bout with brain cancer causing such severe nausea that she ended up in the hospital this week.  
       An unnamed friend who lost a promising ministry opportunity because someone snuck in and sabotaged the hiring process this week.
       Oh, Lord, I'm reeling from a bad news tidal wave week and I want it to stop.

Well, we finally heard the scientific report on the Jesus Wife manuscript from a year and a half ago. Yes, right before Easter, as always. The sense of PR timing is so consistent.

One of the first poems I remember memorizing as an elementary student is, “A Dream Deferred” by Langston Hughes.

What happens to a dream deferred?

Does it dry up 
like a raisin in the sun? 
Or fester like a sore-- 
And then run? 
Does it stink like rotten meat? 
Or crust and sugar over-- 
like a syrupy sweet?

Maybe it just sags 
like a heavy load.

Or does it explode?

March madness has ended. The NCAA tournament is over for another year. Today many will feel a little bit of sadness that the momentum of the unpredictable, drama infused and entertaining madness has concluded. Do any folks who sacrifice for the tournament ever say, “Yeah, that was so worth it?”

Cherry and Beth met in a MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) group at their church, hitting it off immediately. They loved the mutual connection with another mom, understanding the stresses and joys of having small children about the same age. Their weekly playdates became the highlight of each girl's week. They would chat on the phone every day, comparing notes on what they would be fixing for dinner or what great, repeatable golden nuggets their toddlers spouted. That morphed to texting each other throughout the day, at least once an hour.

Our topic of conversation around the table at lunch yesterday was “faith in the workplace.” My husband Ron had recently attended a conference on that very subject so he had some “takeaways” to share with us and discuss. For a Christian, all of life is an extension of our faith, including the time spent at work and the relationships made there. But, how do you live out your faith at work without stealing time from your employer?