Jonathan McNair

These are hard words. They're easy to say, and easy to ask for, but much harder to give—at least sometimes. I'm convinced that, much of the time, I'm just about the most easy-going person in the world. At least, I feel like the most easy-going person I know. But other times...

Last week, I spent an afternoon with a gentleman in our local congregation who had just returned home after three days in the hospital.  He's home now, and doing better. At 106 years of age, he has maintained a tenacious hold on life. 

As summer ends and school begins, many parents take a deep breath, close their eyes, and take the plunge into the next hectic chapter of life.

My wife and I just returned from a visit to Louisiana. Although our visit was short, we spent part of our trip touring the devastation in the area around New Orleans. I wish every citizen in our nation could see what we saw that day, with their own eyes, not just through the news media.

In the last few weeks and months, more people have attended church than for most of recent memory. But is this just a passing fad? What's the big deal about church, anyway? Besides, is it really necessary to go to church? Why should you go to church?