Your Kids Are Watching
In the 1960s, an educational psychologist named Laszlo Polgar conducted an experiment on his own children. He believed geniuses are not born, but rather trained. So, he and his wife, Klara, devised a plan to raise their 3 daughters to become chess prodigies. They homeschooled the girls and filled their home with books about chess […]
Disciple Making, Matthew Bates, and 5-Point Calvinism: Q&A with Bill Hull
*Editor’s Note: Our mission at RENEW.org is to “renew the teachings of Jesus to Fuel Disciple Making,” so we want to take note of an important debate that is currently transpiring between biblical scholars that relates to disciple making. RENEW.org published New Testament theologian Mathew Bates’s book The Gospel Precisely, and he has come under […]
Does Something Feel Off with Modern Church Leadership?
In this article, I’d like to share a journey for me and why it has been so necessary to my own health to walk away from a modern church mentality when it comes to leadership. From the beginning of my ministry years, I have been in conflict internally with this modern church approach, although I […]
Bob Russell on Being a Disciple Making Grandparent
At our 2025 RENEW.org National Gathering in Indianapolis, longtime minister Bob Russell spoke on the joy and importance of being a disciple making grandparent: If you want to learn more about being a disciple making grandparent, here are some resources you’ll find helpful: The book The Disciple Making Grandparent, by David Upchurch and Daniel McCoy (with […]
We Worship the God of Normal Things
When my son, Andrew, was 5 years old, my wife and I read The Message for Kids from cover to cover with him. It’s a fantastic children’s Bible, and we all found ourselves looking forward to each day’s reading. Right about the time we closed the final chapter in that Bible, we found ourselves at […]
Igniting Disciple Making Movements in North America: Four Crucial Steps
There’s a question I get asked. A lot. The question church leaders ask me is, “Josh, why do you think disciple making movements are happening in places like China and India and Africa, but we’re really not seeing them in the West? And what do we need to do differently to start seeing more disciple making […]
You Are Standing on Holy Ground
“Do not come any closer,” the Lord warned. “Take off your shoes, for you are standing on holy ground.” (Exodus 3:5, NLT) “How beautiful are the feet of messengers who bring good news!” (Romans 10:15, NLT) “These boots are made for walkin’, and that’s just what they’ll do, one of these days these boots are […]
Discomfort, a Missing Ingredient in Discipleship
“If you love me, obey my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you.” (John 14:15-16, NLT) As dean of discipleship at our school, I had the privilege of taking our seniors on a mission trip to Puerto Rico. The trip was amazing—but not […]
