Making the Most of Christmas: 10 Ways to Enjoy an Effective Christmas Season
Christmastime may be the most wonderful time of the year, but it can also pass in a flurry of frenzied activity, with no time to enjoy the significance of the season. Below are ten suggestions for making the most out of Christmastime. 1. Die to self. Let your personal...
Introducing a New Resource: the Stewarding Life Planner
It seems that everywhere I go I get asked similar questions: How do you organize your life? How do you plan your time? How do you determine your priorities? These are excellent questions—questions, in fact, to which I’ve sought answers for years. After writing the...Growth Points 43: Pressing into the New Year with Godly Passion
It’s all too easy to enter the holiday season and then the New Year in a rut of rote activity as opposed to with zeal for the Lord. We need the spirit of the Apostle Paul who said, “I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus”...
Before You Start
Has God recently placed something new on your heart? Perhaps you’re feeling burdened to launch a new ministry or begin a new goal? There’s nothing that fuels my energy like dreaming for the future and planning action steps for a God-given vision! But before I...Growth Points 42: Thinkfulness Is Thankfulness
Someone told me years ago that thinkfulness is thankfulness. It’s true, and I’ve never forgotten it. When I pause to ponder the goodness of God, it brings thankfulness to my heart. When I ponder unfinished tasks and looming deadlines, gratitude escapes. (If...
When You Count Your Blessings, Begin Here
When you begin your Thanksgiving gratitude list, what do you include? Most of us probably begin with God’s gifts of salvation, family, church family, and friends. We then move to tangible gifts such as shelter, clothing, vehicle, and financial provision. If we stay at...
How to Slay the Enemy of Gratitude
Do you know the single greatest enemy of gratitude? It’s not poverty. It’s not stinginess. It’s not mistreatment. It’s expectancy. That’s it—expectancy. We don’t often recognize the expectancy in our own hearts, because it seems so normal—so right—to us. But we can...
In the Long Heritage of Baptists
Over the years, I’ve often told our church family here at Lancaster Baptist Church, “I’m Baptist born and Baptist bred, and when I die I’ll be Baptist dead.” At times, this has been a fun, catchy phrase, but in reality I fully mean these words because I believe in my...
Battle Mentalities
Spiritual leadership is no walk in the park. It was never intended to be. It is a battle. When Paul wrote to Timothy to instruct him in church leadership, he admonished: Fight the good fight of faith…—1 Timothy 6:12 We are in a war, and you and I are the soldiers....
The Resilient Life
Overcome the Crises and Anxieties of Life through Christ
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Pastor Paul Chappell
Dr. Paul Chappell is the senior pastor of the Lancaster Baptist Church and president of West Coast Baptist College in Lancaster, California. His biblical vision has led the church to become one of the most dynamic independent Baptist churches in the nation. He has been married to his wife, Terrie, for over forty years and is the father of four married children all serving in Christian ministry.
