Teach Them While They’re Young

Q. My wife and I want to begin teaching our son how make a budget and live on one. He’s 16, and he has a part-time job and a hand-me-down car. Is this a realistic idea?

Several months ago I wrote an article for River Region’s Journey about trust. After more thought, I have realized the importance of looking at any concept through multiple lenses. Trust is a complex concept. Trust is important in clinical work, but it is important in any relationship. A patient introduced me to Brene Brown. If you visit her website, brenebrown.com, you will find multiple videos on TedTalks, YouTube, and the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN). She begins with an anecdote about her 3rd grader who shared some hard things about herself with a couple of friends. When she later walked into her classroom, many children pointed at her and laughed. When telling her mother this story, she said, “I will never trust anybody again.” This is a decision that will isolate any of us as long as we refuse to trust anyone.

The last will and testament of the late evangelist Billy Graham was recently released to the public, and it contains some wise words that not only apply to his family members, but can provide challenges for each of us.

It’s Saturday night. If you don’t usually attend a church service on the weekend, you may be thinking, Why even bother going to church this Sunday?I don’t know or like any of those people. What would I get out of spending two hours sitting in a pew? Wouldn’t I be better off watching the game with friends, helping someone in need, or advocating for a cause?

Forest Park Ministry Center is an outreach of Montgomery Baptist Association’s Compassion Ministries, which has been in existence for around fifty years. “Compassion Ministries began in 1968 when Miss Gladys Farmer, a missionary, was called to Montgomery for the purpose of leading community ministry. The Montgomery Baptist Association recognized the need for its member churches to become not only aware of the needs surrounding them, but to engage people outside the walls of the church who need to know the hope of Jesus Christ and the life change a relationship with Him will bring,” said director Donna McCullough. “Today, Rev. Neal Hughes is the Director of Missions and Mrs. Lisa Rose is the Director of Compassion Ministries, which encompasses Forest Park Ministry, Samaritan Inn Ministries, Conversational English, Mixtec Task Force, and a partnership with Foster Care.”

I have been married to Kyle Christian Searcy for 27 years. We obviously have learned a lot about each other. But there are surprises around the corners as we continue to grow our relationship. Instead of presuming I know everything about men based on what I know about Kyle, I asked him to share with you directly what men need as husbands. Here’s Kyle…

RRJ:  What goals have you set and achieved? In your opinion, where does your drive come from?

Charnelle:  Two of the first goals I set were to obtain my cosmetology license and become a certified group fitness instructor. Once those goals were met, I started setting new ones. I graduated from Mississippi State University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management, commissioned in the Air Force, obtained my Teachers of English to Students of Other Languages (TESOL) certification and began teaching English as a Second Language. 

In a recent church skit, a man named David played the part of Goliath. That irony set me to thinking, “Isn’t there a lesson here?  Did David become Goliath?”

The Gospel Comes With a House Key

by Rosaria Butterfield

“Imagine a world where the power of the gospel to change lives is ours to behold.” This is the soul-stirring, gospel-focused message that Rosaria Butterfield proclaims in her most recent book, The Gospel Comes With a House Key.

My family recently received the exciting news that beginning in July we would have the opportunity to experience a “new beginning” and return to the River Region to serve Prattville’s First United Methodist Church.  What a true joy to return to a place that has been so formational in our spiritual and family journeys, but a transition that has caused us to lean even deeper into the love and provision of God in our lives.