Hi! I’m Melody Westbrook and I am a recovering Pastor’s Wife. My husband and I recently resigned after 35 years of pastoring two churches. We moved from Oklahoma to Illinois in 1991 to plant a church in Edwardsville. As we departed, my identity as pastor’s wife quickly faded. I was warned about the loss of […]
Columns
The whole story
“So, Samson died too?” The question hung in the air as we read a chapter in our new Bible storybook. “Well, yes,” I said, glad for the author’s intro that explained even heroes aren’t perfect. Flawed, foolish Samson died alongside his enemies. Earlier in the collection of stories told by Kevin DeYoung, the children of […]
Why we’re here
A consultant assisting IBSA with strategic planning recently challenged us with this question: “Why does Illinois need a Southern Baptist brand of disciple?” He wasn’t downplaying the Great Commission nor disparaging Southern Baptists. He was making the point that there are many other Christian groups in Illinois, in fact many other evangelical groups. Especially in […]
A Brighter Day: The wisdom of ages
A friend recounted her visit to a family member in an assisted living facility. Not only did she spend time with her relative, she also had a long chat with a few other residents and their families. “I don’t think we do that enough,” she said, explaining how the group—varied in age and life experience—simply […]
We all need a break—from burnout
We’ve all experienced burnout. Maybe your burnout story involves being overworked, cutting a vacation short due to an emergency, or navigating a family crisis. Maybe it’s a result of Covid-19. Ministry burnout often comes over time as a result of multiple events. Take David for example. In 1 Samuel 18-21, we read about David’s marriage […]
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