by Sam Rainer | Dec 26, 2007 | Uncategorized
One of today’s Christian Post headlines reads “American Christianity Remains Strong in 2007.” The tagline is derived from a recent Gallup Poll reporting that the vast majority of Americans identify with a Christian faith. The breakdown looks like this on a national... by Sam Rainer | Dec 24, 2007 | Uncategorized
The folks over at the Pew Research Center got my attention today. They reported that people who attend religious services weekly tend to be happier than those who do not attend or attend less often. This correlational pattern crosses denominational lines. The finding... by Sam Rainer | Dec 20, 2007 | Uncategorized
I’m a city-boy. I grew up most of my life inside large urban areas. My wife is a country gal. Her family raises their own beef. So when we started looking for a home, I was thinking a downtown loft. She wanted farmland. So we compromised. Our home borders corn fields... by Sam Rainer | Dec 16, 2007 | Uncategorized
I am putting the final touches on my first book (co-authored with my father). The tentative title is Essential Church. The bulk of the work is based upon a three-part research project on why 18-22 year-olds leave the church and how to get them back. The manuscript... by Sam Rainer | Dec 14, 2007 | Uncategorized
Sitting at a table during our last church fellowship, I asked a woman who was visiting, “Do I know you or have we met before?” She just looked at me with a wry grin. I thought I recognized her, but I wasn’t sure why. “I know you, and we’ve met many times before,” she...
