A Special Message from Fr. Barnabas: Here's what someone said after watching Faith Encouraged TV: "Thank you Father! You and your teachings have had such a positive impact on me on so many levels." When you support Faith Encouraged Ministries at this time of year, you make notes like...
The word "blessed" has such baggage among us. We feel blessed. We are blessed. We see others who we say are blessed. But we use this word so much we are in danger of missing the meaning, especially when we read about "blessed" in the Holy Scriptures. One of the...
You weren't made for brokenness and loneliness and isolation. You were made to be in communion. And that's because you are created in God's image. So, that begs the question: How does God "know" Himself? What does it mean to be made in the image of God? God knows Himself...
"It's a marathon, not a sprint." Good advice to hear when you're struggling with sticking to a discipline or trying to push through a difficult task. It's even good advice for relationships. Usually, we humans give up too soon! And when we do, we usually regret it later. Or,...
As we approach the Manger in Bethlehem, we are so very familiar with the Story surrounding the Lord's birth. And sometimes that very familiarity gets in the way of actually dealing with the Universe-Shaking Event of God becoming Flesh for our salvation. It is no mistake that He first...
Tribalism has become so unhealthy in our modern age that we are now making up "tribes" to belong to because we are so confused about who we are as a people. But that isn't anything new. Tribalism has been unhealthy since we started choosing sides and reducing our identity...
Rick Godwin once said: "Shame is probably the hardest emotion to sit with, to express. People go out of their way -- people drink themselves to death, people will murder -- not to feel shame. It's that much of a kicker." Wow. It's probably very important to get the...
Is being materially "rich" a blessing? Well, it certainly can be, but material wealth can reveal a deeper truth about what true riches really are! I've known materially wealthy people who were genuinely content and I've known materially poor people who were always discontented, and vice versa. Material wealth...
"Well, to be fair..." I cringed when I heard these words because I knew what followed was an attempt by the speaker to shut down the discussion. After all, everyone wants "to be fair," don't we? Ah, but what is "fair?" Of course, we want to be "fair." It seems...
Where does our desire, across all cultures, to prepare food and celebrate with family and friends? Why does every culture have focused etiquette about formal dinners and responding to invitations? We are hard-wired to be in community. And this flows from the fact that God created us and now...
