Gary Neal Hansen

Theology. It's good for you.

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You are here: Home / Archives for Prayer

A Children’s Sermon on John 17:1-11

May 17, 2023 by Gary Neal Hansen 6 Comments

children's sermon on John 17:1-11

Writing a children’s sermon on John 17:1-11 brings the same challenges as many other passages of John’s Gospel. Rather than telling stories, John really likes to present long speeches of Jesus. They are theologically rich, but they are complex and abstract.  No story, complex, and abstract — that’s basically three strikes against any children’s sermon!  […]

Filed Under: Bible, Church Year, Ministry Tagged With: 7th Sunday of Easter, Children's Sermons, Prayer, RCL Year A

Finding Friends (Letters to a Young Pastor)

April 26, 2016 by Gary Neal Hansen Leave a Comment

Finding Friends

Dear ____: One of the best things that can happen to you in seminary is to broaden your friendship network. I’m glad you have been getting to know Christians whose backgrounds and opinions are very different from your own. But actually, that is just the start. Find some dead friends I really hope you will […]

Filed Under: Prayer Tagged With: Finding Friends, John Calvin, Letters to a Young Pastor, Prayer

Helping Christian Community Thrive: Drawing Close to God

October 6, 2015 by Gary Neal Hansen 2 Comments

If you call your faith “a personal relationship to God” you already know it is true: You should be drawing close to God. How can you say you have a relationship that matters if the two of you don’t spend time together? There’s a name for drawing close to God. It’s called praying. Christians used […]

Filed Under: Community, Prayer Tagged With: Acts 2:42, Community for Mission, Divine Office, Lord's Prayer, Prayer, psalms

Join Me for My First Webinar! “A Prayer Life that Gives Life”

January 12, 2015 by Gary Neal Hansen Leave a Comment

Thanks to the good folks at the Presbyterian Outlook I’ll be doing my first webinar on February 17!  The title is “A Prayer Life that Gives Life: Renewing Faith and Ministry in Lent.” (Get the details and sign up here.) Prayer is CRUCIAL Lent is a time to renew our connection to God. Prayer is […]

Filed Under: Church Year, Prayer Tagged With: Kneeling with Giants, Lent, Lenten disciplines, Prayer, Webinar

Guest Post on ChristianMomThoughts.com: “Training Wheels for Your Child’s Prayer Life”

October 16, 2014 by Gary Neal Hansen Leave a Comment

I am thrilled that Natasha Crain invited me to write a post on her great Christian parenting blog, “Christian Mom Thoughts.“ Natasha writes on apologetics for parents, equipping them to help their kids grow in a strong and well-informed faith, and she now has a book under contract with Harvest House. Check out her work — but […]

Filed Under: Guest Posts, Prayer Tagged With: Daily office for kids, Prayer, St. Benedict, Teaching kids to pray, Teresa of Avila

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Theology. It’s good for you.

I'm a Church historian by trade. My writing, speaking, and teaching explores the Christian past to equip today's disciples. Join me here for regular posts on the best of theology, spirituality, community, and ministry. read more…

Recent Posts

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