When someone is hearing voices, spiraling in delusion, or trapped in torment, helpers face a hard question: demons, diagnoses, or both? In this thoughtful essay, Jennifer Jill Schwirzer, LPC, EdD, offers a biblically grounded and clinically informed guide for pastors, coaches, and counselors. With clarity and compassion, she calls us to holistic care that honors brain science, spiritual reality, and the hope of Christ for those seeking to escape the darkness.

Negative emotions have become suspect in some spiritual spaces, treated as evidence of demonic influence rather than part of ordinary human life. This reflex to cast out what should be understood ends up multiplying fear rather than healing it. Discernment requires patience, not panic. Growth rarely comes through a single dramatic moment. It comes through the slower work of examining habits, renewing the mind, and walking the long road of sanctification with honesty and care.

Marriage was created to be a blessing, yet abuse can distort it into something harmful and dangerous. Explore the research behind physical and emotional abuse in marriage, including intimate partner violence, narcissistic abuse, and psychological aggression. Drawing from scientific studies, biblical principles, and counseling experience, it offers a balanced, fact-based look at how abuse affects both men and women while reaffirming God’s original purpose for marriage.

Sam Allberry’s resignation after an inappropriate same-sex relationship has reignited debate over “Side B” Christianity, gay identity, celibacy, and biblical transformation. This article explores why identity in Christ, rather than sexual orientation, shapes sanctification, discipleship, and lasting change, while examining the theological tensions between Side A, B, X, and Y perspectives.

Struggling with insomnia, restless nights, or poor sleep quality? Learn the real causes behind common sleep disorders, including stress, circadian disruption, sleep apnea, and lifestyle habits. Discover practical, natural sleep strategies like CBT-I, nervous system regulation, better routines, and faith-based encouragement to help restore deep, restorative sleep and improve overall health.

From 2000–2003, Philadelphia’s Expressly Vegetarian Cafe served a community-favorite Better Burger that became legendary for its wholesome flavor and comfort-food appeal. Made with oats, walnuts, herbs, and simple vegan ingredients, these high-fiber homemade burgers offered delicious plant-based nourishment that kept customers coming back through life’s biggest moments. Now, this beloved recipe can be enjoyed right from your own kitchen.

Explore how online radicalization takes root through pain, isolation, and echo chambers, and discover practical, compassionate ways to help loved ones return to truth. Through listening, curiosity, addressing unmet needs, and persistent prayer, this faith-based guide offers hopeful strategies for countering extremism with understanding instead of division.

27 years in the U.S. One mistake. Time served. Then deportation. Ober left behind a special-needs daughter and a billboard he was funding to share hope in Christ. His story hits close and raises a hard question about how we respond when it matters. A real family, real pressure, and a simple way to step in and help carry the load.

A reflective call to revisit modesty through a balanced, biblical lens. Drawing from personal extremes, the author explores freedom, responsibility, and social awareness in how we present ourselves. Modesty is framed as humility and consideration for others, not rigid rules. The piece invites thoughtful dialogue, urging neither overexposure nor fear-driven restraint, but a Christ-centered approach shaped by love, wisdom, and respect.

Ever wondered if a moment was a sign from God or just coincidence? This reflection explores how to discern God’s leading using reason, judgment, counsel, and conscience. It balances faith and wisdom, cautioning against overreliance on signs while affirming God’s guidance through both quiet conviction and unmistakable moments.

Struggling with insomnia that won’t let you sleep? This personal story traces a lifelong battle with mid-insomnia and shares practical, faith-informed strategies that finally brought relief. From intermittent fasting and light exposure to mindset shifts and sleep reset techniques, discover what actually helped restore deep, consistent rest.

Is the social gospel actually the gospel? This article explores its origins, appeal, and hidden dangers, contrasting it with the true gospel centered on the cross. Discover why lasting change begins with transformed hearts, not systems, and how compassion flows from Christ, not political power.

Does social media activism fuel narcissism? This article explores “communal narcissism,” where moral superiority replaces genuine humility. Drawing on Micah 6:8 and current research, it examines how online justice movements can reward performative virtue, distort empathy, and damage relationships, especially within faith communities. A candid reflection calls readers back to humble, Christ-centered justice.

Somali-born writer Ayaan Hirsi Ali’s memoir Infidel traces her journey from Islam to atheism and, more recently, to Christianity. Her story raises a deeper question: what turns religion into oppression. This reflection explores how fear-driven faith distorts both Islam and Christianity, and why the gospel’s center, a God who sacrifices Himself for humanity, protects religion from becoming bondage and restores faith to its true purpose.

Medical frustration meets practical solutions. After years of allergic rhinitis, hair thinning, and SIBO, Dr. Jen shares three treatments that finally brought relief. From sublingual immunotherapy drops to red light therapy and targeted digestive support, these discoveries highlight the power of human ingenuity and the hope of restored health.

Should pastors address politics from the pulpit? Christians face a tension between moral clarity and partisan division. Issues like abortion, immigration, marriage, and justice are deeply moral and deeply politicized. How can churches preach truth without becoming political? This article explores how to lift up Jesus while guiding believers through complex cultural debates.

Immigration stirs strong emotions, amplified by media narratives and political conflict. How do we stay grounded without losing compassion or conviction? Drawing from psychology, sociology, and Scripture, this reflection explores welcoming the foreigner, respecting civil authority, resisting outrage culture, and choosing humility over pride. Real change begins with real people, not online battles.

Few issues stir deeper emotion than abortion. As a faith-based mental health advocate, I approach it through both Scripture and the human heart. God grants agency, yet calls us to choose life. The unborn are known and loved by Him, and women carry real burdens. This conversation holds moral clarity and mercy together, seeking healing that restores both conscience and hope.

So often the problem with empathy isn’t its existence, but its misplacement. This is why we need, along with more empathy, good discernment to direct its distribution.

By Richard M. Davidson, PhD Senior Research Professor of Old Testament Interpretation Seventh day Adventist Theological Seminary, Andrews University Reveling in Christmas Lights I revel in the lights of Christmas! This afternoon I came home and put up our Christmas lights decorating the entrance to our house. Tonight our whole local Adventist community here at Andrews University is being dazzled by the annual Academy-sponsored “Feast of Lights.” Along with enjoying the beau

The murder and subsequent grieving of conservative influencer Charlie Kirk rocked not only the world, but the Christian Church; and not...

Recently an online war has erupted over the American Eagle ad campaign featuring the blond, blue-eyed actress Sydney Sweeney. So you...

Conservative Evangelical Pastor John MacArthur died July 14 at the age of 86, leaving behind a large legacy. As pastor of Grace Community Church in Los Angeles, he preached from its pulpit up to five times a week for most of 56 years. Known for an expository approach, many lauded him as faithful to Scripture in the midst of compromise. Truthfully, I agreed with him on many points. But his views of submission of women, no. They were extreme. Here’s a direct quote: “A woman, wh

If you haven’t seen the story, congratulations, you’re totally unplugged from the world wide web. Here’s a summary for you: During a rock...