SBC Life Articles by John Revell

We've all probably seen it, and most of us have been tempted to participate. One of our brethren holds a differing view and automatically becomes a target for criticism. Often there is a good-natured exchange of harmless bantering, but what about when it moves beyond being "good natured" and "harmless?" What about when the differences […]

You've probably seen it before — the pastor is bearing a heavy load; he's under a lot of pressure from a myriad of sources, and he has been for some time. A staff member catches him at a weak moment, rubbing him the wrong way, and bam! He explodes, yelling at the man, unleashing all […]

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)--Roused from his sleep by the sudden jolt of waves crashing against the ship's hull and the roar of gale-force winds, and scrambling from his hammock as his cabin started to fill with seawater, he heard a shipmate on deck scream that the ship was sinking. He raced up the ladder to the deck but met the captain who shouted for him to bring a knife. As he rushed back down to retrieve it the man who had been behind him went ahead and was instantly washed overboard.

Much has been said in the last two years concerning the influence of religious faith upon the ballot box. Following the massive turnout of "values voters" in the last election, it is suddenly in vogue for candidates of both major parties to passionately affirm their own personal religious convictions and to declare their unflagging commitment […]

Most pastors recognize the God-ordained role and responsibilities associated with fatherhood. Indeed, we have stood in the face of a liberal society and unashamedly proclaimed God's Word on the matter. We have admonished the fathers in our congregations not to buy into our culture's distortion and belittling of the honored station and so shirk those […]

Pastor, how much time do you spend each week in prayer — for your sermon, the church, the salvation of the lost who have visited your church, those marriages that are struggling, your own spiritual growth? Unquestionably, prayer is essential to the effectiveness of a pastor's ministry. We pray for wisdom, direction, insight, protection, and […]

There is a troubling contradiction between what is preached from the pulpits and what is practiced in the marriages of many pastors today. Because pastors handle God's Word weekly, if not daily, it seems we would be especially sensitive to the passages pertaining to marriage. We study those passages, and even preach from them in […]

In 1897, while on a prolonged visit in London, Mark Twain received an unexpected visit from a reporter representing the N.Y. Journal. It seems that a report concerning the illness of Twain's cousin had been misunderstood in the States, and some had wrongly concluded that Twain himself was at death's door. On that occasion, the […]

Face it — most of us can quote Acts 1:8 forwards and backwards. Throughout the history of Christianity, this passage has served not only as the challenge of evangelism and missions, but it has identified the scope of our evangelism and mission endeavors as well — and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, in […]

If you are particularly astute, you may have noticed a glaring absence in last month's issue of SBC LIFE. Starting in January 1996, for ninety issues, readers could find the name A. William (Bill) Merrell above the title Editor on page 2. In the January 2005 issue, Bill Merrell's name was missing from the masthead. The alteration was especially poignant for those of us in a position to take notice. The absence was not an oversight or an editorial error; rather it marked Bill's completion of one strategic and dynamic ministry and his bittersweet transition into another.