ESL in the Bible Is ESL in the Bible? Well, sort of. Jesus never really addressed the issue of language teaching, but He did talk about loving our neighbor. Matthew 22:34-40 highlights a question Jesus was once asked: “Which command in the Law is the greatest?” In His answer, Jesus pointed to two commandments: 1. […]
The Role of ESL in a Church’s Ministry to Internationals Read More »
In this blog, I will share my experiences with a positive psychology activity that helps people feel more grateful quickly and easily. First, I’ll briefly discuss gratitude and its benefits, and then my experiences trying a simple activity (Three Good Things) that helped me experience more gratitude and joy in my life. Why Should Christians
Easy Gratitude: A Mental Health Therapist Tries “Three Good Things” for a Week Read More »
Has someone asked you to help them learn English, and you don’t know where to start? Learning any language is a marathon, not a sprint, and understanding this concept and a few basic principles about learning a new language can guide you as you help your friend in their English study. Understanding Language Levels Unfortunately,
How to Help a Friend Learn English Read More »
How Culture Shapes our Presentation of the Gospel How does culture tend to shape our presentation of the gospel? I have already touched on this some: we are much more direct in our communication style than many other cultures in the world, and we tend to think that this is much better . .
Communicating the Gospel Cross Culturally Read More »
What Aspects of a Person’s “Being” Do We Need to Consider as We Share the Gospel? There are three aspects of every person’s being which need to be active in “believing” or “having faith” in Jesus, regardless of cultural background. One of those aspects is the intellect. The fact that I mention this first does not
Communicating the Gospel Cross Culturally Read More »
Big Picture Basis When starting an ESL ministry, it is important to know your goals for the ministry. Do you want to teach English Bible stories? Do you want to provide basic English conversation practice? Do you want to help students study for their green card? Is your ESL ministry a service to the community
An ESL Ministry Journey: Getting Started Read More »
How is the Gospel Best Presented? If our Christ-given task is to make disciples, we also need to examine how we present the gospel. Do most of the long-lasting decisions that lead to people becoming committed followers of Jesus come from five-to-15-minute concept-centered presentations of the gospel, or do they come from some other longer, relationship-based sharing of
Communicating the Gospel Cross Culturally Read More »
What is The Gospel? Any time a person decides to communicate the gospel there are always several things that need to be considered. Here are just a few: What is the gospel? (In other words, what are we trying to communicate?) How is the gospel best communicated? What aspects of people’s “being” do we need to
Communicating the Gospel Cross Culturally Read More »
Starting an ESL ministry at your church can be both an exciting and daunting task. Several years ago, my husband and I looked around our international church and realized that there were quite a few people who would really appreciate a place to learn more English. It all started with a woman I’ll call Ann. Church members
An ESL Ministry Journey Read More »
English as a Second Language (ESL) Ministries face a myriad of challenges: quality volunteer acquisition, training and retention, program funding, student participation and growth – to say nothing of lasting spiritual fruit. Often ESL ministry directors start off with little more than a heart for the Lord and their community, a handful of classes, and
Obstacles to Opportunities Read More »
