Recent Updates

Certain situations bring out the Martha or Mary in each of us—think holidays and weddings. By nature and design there are those who work hard to make events be all they can be and those who enjoy them for all they’re worth. We need each other in that way. But we also need to be careful, lest we let our strengths and gifts get in the way of God’s presence in our lives.

Watch as Mark Matlock and everyone else at the PlanetWisdom student conference do the Harlem Shake. This video was shot and edited by The Skit Guys producer Brian Cates. We think it turned out awesome.

Would you think twice about buying a house that had cracks in the foundation? Probably so, and yet it can be so easy to invest our lives and build our families on aspirations that have no eternal value. We lose focus on the things God tells us are important and begin prioritizing things that will ultimately distract us from God and our true purpose.

We are a people who love to shop. Clothes, electronics, cosmetics, cars, food—there always seems to be something on our shopping list. And because we are expert consumers, we constantly ask ourselves, “What does this do for me?” We want the very best product, one that will not only do its job but exceed our expectations. That’s fine for buying a toothbrush, but we need to be careful that the same self gratifying approach doesn’t creep into how we view God and his church.

Adultery, greed, evil, deceit, debauchery, envy, slander, pride, murder. Whatever the sin, whatever the unrighteousness, whatever is not of God, is what keeps us from him. If given half a chance, sin will take root in our hearts and sprout guilt, shame, hopelessness, and ultimately give birth to more sin.

Over the years my kids have made little crafts for me in their preschool and Sunday school classes: a short poem signed with a thumb print or a heart cluttered with misplaced stickers and glitter. Sweet as those treasures still are to me, they don’t compare to how my heart moved when I got my first “i luv u” note written in large colorful letters with a hand drawn picture of my daughter and I. Unprompted and spontaneous, those three little words (okay, one word and two letters) meant so much because they came from the heart.

A list of video and skit resources to help a discussion on dating, true love and waiting for teenagers.

Sometimes it’s easier to be intentional about inviting someone to church and talking about God when it’s not so close to home. If you’ve ever been on a mission trip or participated in a service project with your church, there’s a certain adrenaline and enthusiasm that gives you the courage to step out in faith. But when you get back to your own neighborhood, that passion can get lost in the day to day.