June 2020

• I have been contacting pastors from around the country who have returned to onsite worship. The percentage of post-COVID attendance is astoundingly the same. Uniformly the pastors report around 30% of post vs. pre-virus attendance with the noticeable absence of young families with children and those adults in the most at risk groups. The virus is not going away any time soon.

It was Father’s Day 2007. I woke up in a NGO compound in Ed Daein, Darfur, that was surrounded by nine foot walls that were topped with embedded broken glass and barbed wire. My son, 25 years old at the time, lay in a cot covered with mosquito netting just a few feet away. In less than an hour we would be undertaking a risky three hour journey into the rebel held territory of Adilla in the area of Southern Darfur. We met with the Muslim leaders in a clay brick structure that housed the local official’s offices. Ginghamsburg’s outreach had been working in this area through the building of schools and sustainable water yards for over two years, along with our partner the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR). The leaders thanked us and assured us that we could continue our work unharmed because we were bringing much needed resources to their people. One Muslim Sheikh even asked me why we as Christians were helping Muslim people. That was the first opportunity, after two years of productive work in the area, that opened the door for me to tell about Jesus, who came to tear down the walls that divide all people.

How is your marriage doing in quarantine? Marriage health can be challenging during “normal” times. But marriage health during 24-hour lockdown can become terminal if not made a priority. Relational stress has only been compounded by children’s homeschooling, financial fears and the demands of work from home.

Carolyn and I have made the health of our relationship a priority during challenging seasons of our marriage. But many of you know that wasn’t always true. We shared the story of our own struggle in an interview in our home a few years ago. I would encourage you as a couple to sit down together after the kids are in bed and take six minutes to watch this together. Click below, and take ten minutes after viewing to share with each other insights from our story that relate to your own relationship. We believe that God’s intention is for your marriage to thrive and not just survive. We are praying for your marriage health!