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What do we do when our culture provides us with a counter-narrative to the one in Scripture, one that, on the surface, appears far more alluring, satisfying, and fulfilling than the one that Scripture offers?

In August, Calvin College professors Judy Vander Woude, Peggy Goetz, and Jill Bates traveled with speech pathology students to China to work with children with special needs at the GIFT Parents’ Support Center. 

In this fast-paced, adventurous, and thought-provoking juvenile novel, author Lauren Wolk has created memorable, complex characters.

We asked our reviewers to offer their five favorite titles of 2018 in a number of categories. 

We asked our reviewers to offer their five favorite titles of 2018 in a number of categories.

Using donated apples, Pease (Minn.) Christian Reformed Church has baked and sold thousands of apple pies over the last nine years as a fundraiser for participation in the Global Partnership Program with World Renew.

These news stories, features and columns from 2018 made the top 10 in reader engagement, as counted by The Banner’s web analytics software. Thanks for reading!

It sits prominently way up on the third shelf to the left of our fireplace. It’s a robin’s-egg-blue 1961 Chevy pickup truck and trailer with white trim made by Tonka at 1/18th scale. In the trailer is a plastic Black Angus steer with one horn slightly chipped.

Our churches are called to explore various ways to reach their communities through both evangelism and social justice.

All I really remember about my first few years of lessons is that I wanted to play. My brother and sister both played, and it looked like fun. When I started, it was the pure joy of creating something beautiful and meaningful out of nothing.

Foles shares his faith without forcing it on people. His personality, especially his humility, comes through in the narrative.

We asked our reviewers to offer their five favorite titles of 2018 in a number of categories. 

We asked our reviewers to offer their five favorite titles of 2018 in a number of categories.

We asked our reviewers to offer their five favorite titles of 2018 in a number of categories. 

As the Ontario municipality of Emo held its first meeting with its newly elected municipal council in December, three members of Emo Christian Reformed Church were sworn in to new or continuing roles.

From Dec. 10-26, riders on horseback traced a 330-mile journey through South Dakota and Minnesota to remember history and pray for reconciliation. Elmer Yazzie, a Navajo artist from New Mexico, is riding and sketching with the group this year.

The annual practice of setting New Year’s resolutions has taught me that my sins and failings, even those that come before January 12, will not be the end of me. In Jesus Christ and through the Spirit, God is more faithful than I have yet to imagine.

"I thank you on behalf of my family for supporting the ministry here at Calvin Theological Seminary. God has used it to help me through one of the most difficult times of my life. And I believe he is giving me the skills and resources necessary to care for people and lead them to the hope of the gospel."

At their worst, social media sites seclude us from face-to-face interactions. But they also offer unique opportunities to connect with others

Nicholas Wolterstorff’s new book, In This World of Wonders: Memoirs of a Life in Learning, is due in bookstores Jan. 16. (Eerdmans)

Trench is effective pop music that speaks life into lonely spaces—both external and internal—that may not otherwise receive such care. It is also an album that props itself on weighty images and aesthetics without shouldering any of the burden that bore those images.

In this surprise-filled novel for adults, author Esi Edugyan offers profound insights into the hearts of people both enslaved and free and portrays the vast reaches of the earth, contrasting immense beauty with stark harshness.

Our church leadership is talking about faith milestones. What are they, and why should we be interested?