Recent Articles
Advent – A Divided Nation’s Time for Choosing
Our nation faces a choice between two ways of understanding who we are as a people and seeing our move toward a future. Advent presents us with an invitation to choose among the voices calling for our attention and our allegiance.
December 7, 2020
In today’s curated news and analysis headlines: Local church news; Religion and the Georgia Senate runoff race; Atheists are sometimes more religious than Christians; and more.
People of Good Faith: David Turner
David Turner, an Alabama native, is pastor at Central Baptist Church in Richmond, Virginia. He is ecumenically married to Christy Haga Turner, an ordained elder in the United Methodist Church (Westhampton UMC in Richmond).
Government Must Compromise, Respect Others
We have become a government of deadlock, gridlock and stalemate over the last 20 years. No one has been willing to compromise, budge or give in order to get. We need to learn to compromise and respect others’ perspectives.
US Majority Plans Family Gatherings at Christmas
Most US adults plan to gather with family during the Christmas holiday despite the pandemic, a report said. Those with evangelical beliefs were more likely than the general public to say they would visit family more this year.
Look Back | 5 Ways to Teach Kids Art of Civil Discourse
How can you help your children to share their thoughts with gentleness and respect in a culture that seems to have no room for healthy public discourse? These five steps can help give the next generation the tools they need.
December 4, 2020
Today’s curated news and analysis headlines include: For churchgoers during the COVID-19 pandemic, a deadly lesson from the 1918 flu; Is there a connection between faith and firearms?; Students protest after BLM murals painted over with ‘God Bless America’; and more
Good Faith Media Offers New Racial Justice Resources
Good Faith Media has dedicated a portion of its site to racial justice resources, collaborating with Carol Ann Vaughn Cross to provide curated articles, books, videos, podcasts and other digital content.
An Old-New Mission Field Many Churches Ignore
Older adults have gifts to give to a church’s life and outreach. Some also have needs, including isolation, loneliness, frailty and food insecurity. Older adults are a booming population, but many churches ignore this ministry.
Friendship as Antidote to Loneliness – Part 3
No sane person would say they don’t want any friends, but many people who say they have lots of friends actually have none. Making true friends is an intentional process. Here are three steps to help you find friends.
December 3, 2020
In today’s curated news and analysis headlines; Barna survey says 97% of conservative Christians voted for Trump; Inside the white supremacist global network; In the Tuscan countryside, a 15th century monastery is now a home; and more
The Tracks We Leave Behind
We all leave tracks in people’s lives. Whether they look like smiles or sorrows, strength or scars is entirely up to us. And you may have to clean up some muddy tracks first, but it’s never too late to start.
The Bible Doesn’t Tell Me So
The Bible does not support the abuse of anyone, yet those men who manipulate and abuse their wives can make it say just about anything. They have weaponized the Bible, using it to harm and not to heal.
Friendship as Antidote to Loneliness – Part 2
Pursuing romance is easy compared to the pursuit of friendship. To develop true friendships requires effort; it takes time and intelligent practice. Sadly, many people never begin that journey, going through life in isolation.
December 2, 2020
In today’s curated news and analysis headlines: Senate candidate says wearing a mask is a Christian act; Eric Metaxas, Christian radio host, tweets lies about the presidential election, tells Trump ‘Jesus is with us in this fight’; How a Supreme Court bent on protecting religion could harm it; and more.
Donald Trump Goes to Church Every Sunday
President Donald Trump may be golfing most Sundays, but his presence in America’s churches will be felt for a long, long time. While his glowing face may not appear among the worshippers, he is most assuredly there.
When Righteousness and Peace Kiss
The text for the second Sunday of Advent – the week the Peace candle is lit – sends mixed messages of comfort and dismay, restoration and destruction, and the hope for renewal against a grim backdrop of inevitable dissolution.
Friendship as Antidote to Loneliness – Part 1
Many of us have few true friends we can count on. Even in marriage, many couples live essentially alone together, rearing children, supporting each other’s life goals. but never approaching the intimacy a friendship can hold.
New Nurturing Faith Books Explore Atonement, Yoga
Abba, Father by Leroy Spinks and Namaste, Newbie! by Jim Dant are the latest releases from Nurturing Faith books, the publishing imprint of Good Faith Media. They’re available to order now in the GFM bookstore.
December 1, 2020
In today’s curated news and analysis: A Yale psychiatrist argues that Trump’s psychosis has infected his most loyal followers, and offers a solution; Secular Democrats offer recommendations to counter rising Christian Nationalism; The ghosts of segregation; and more.
SCOTUS Ruling Not a Religious Freedom Victory
The recent Supreme Court ruling wasn’t a victory for religious freedom because the case wasn’t ultimately about the right to gather or the right to worship. It was all about money.
Emerging Voices | A Problem in Women’s Bible Studies
Society has conditioned women to constantly compare themselves to others and always come up short. Even our typical women’s Bible studies don’t help because they can reinforce the very patterns they are trying to erode.
Religious Bias Behind One Fifth of US Hate Crimes in 2019
More than 7,000 single-bias hate crime incidents involving more than 8,500 victims took place in 2019, with more than one-fifth of these victims (20.1%) targeted due to religious bias on the part of the offenders, FBI data says.
Good Faith Media Releases Mobile App
Complementing the mobile-friendly website GoodFaithMedia.org, Good Faith Media has released a customized mobile app. It’s now available providing quick access to daily articles on weekday mornings.
November 30, 2020
In today’s curated news and analysis headlines: Proud Boys, Freedom Riders and Racial Healing; the Supreme Court and ‘Religious Freedom’; What we can learn from solitude; and more
Gratitude is Just the Beginning
While it’s important to be thankful, we could benefit from spending less time counting the blessings we enjoy and more time remembering those who suffered the most in making such benisons possible.
How Flexible Are Your Family’s Rituals?
Rituals begin as convenience or habit, eventually acquiring and bestowing authority and legitimacy. The longer a ritual is performed, the less flexible it becomes; any change is threatening. After all, we’ve always done it that way!
Share, Record Your Family Stories This Holiday
The National Day of Listening is the Friday after Thanksgiving. This holiday, get in touch with older family members and provide space for them to tell the family stories as you record them. Our stories bind us together.
US Thankful for Relationships, Experiences
What are you thankful for? If you’re like 84% of respondents in a LifeWay Research survey, you chose family. Other common responses included health, friends and memories. Wealth received the fewest affirmations.
November 25, 2020
In today’s curated news and analysis headlines: COVID-19 pandemic forces families to change Thanksgiving plans; Pompeo’s rights commission distilled decades of white evangelical hopes; the biblical warrior Goliath may not have been so giant after all; and more.