“’The A Team’ came from an experience I had when I did a gig at a homeless shelter,” says songwriter Ed Sheeran of the song.

Waking up Christmas morning when I was 15, a couple of things immediately became evident.

At some point finding a way of escape became my sole focus.

“See, girls, God cares about the smallest details of our lives!” My small Christian school’s cheerleading coach bubbled with giddy excitement.

According to anthropologists, since the beginning of recorded human history, man has believed in God.

A recent blog post challenged readers to consider what they'd tell their teen selves now that they're older.

When someone says to you, "Tell the truth," what runs through your mind? Maybe your first reaction is something like, "Uh oh, what did I do?"

When Jill was little, she would often play at a neighbor's house. One such day, a man who was visiting her neighbor quietly led Jill into another room and sexually abused her. Here are some questions you might be asking if you are victim.

At some point during your student years, you'll likely hear a teacher say something like, "You believe what you do because your parents told you to believe it."

In his mug shot, the man’s vacant stare gives the illusion that he’s never been anyone other than the dazed, forty-something drug addict he was in that moment.

Megan* hurried for the band room, frustrated that class had been let out late.

Every time I read Matthew 7:17, I’m launched back to college, huddled around a table in the commons area of the student union.

Want to know a quick, simple way to stop a terrorist? ... Show him reruns of the television show "Desperate Housewives."

Reactionary and inflammatory. Irrational and inciting. Blog posts voiced so much pent-up resentment and hostility that the newspaper’s editor shut it down ...

Previously in "Free Falling," we find the author lying in a hospital wondering why God had allowed Crohn's disease to take almost her entire small intestine...

Where are you, God? Why did this happen? I believed in you. Don't you care about me?

"Where’s Our Revolution," the latest release from acclaimed Canadian singer/songwriter Matt Brouwer, has been nominated for a 2010 JUNO Award for Contemporary Christian/Gospel Album of the Year.

Fresh out of college, my husband and I loaded our beater and headed out to pursue professions in a foreign land: Texas.

I attended a university of over 44,000 students. Variety and nonconformity ruled that Big 10 campus where the more counter-cultural you appeared, the better.

Classically-trained pianist and worship leader Brad Hooks almost lost his chance to be anything--but his mom changed her mind.

A sexual abuse victim shares her story to help others heal and reclaim their confidence after sexual abuse.

As the police officer walked toward my parents' now-mangled Gran Torino, my entire 17-year-old self shuddered. He took in the scene and said, "This looks like a clear case of a teenage driver throwing her door open into oncoming traffic."

"Always remember, Ann, there are no stupid questions, only stupid students."

With school just around the corner, it's time to start thinking about your space. Too much stuff could mean too much time spent cleaning and maintaining a place. That time could be spent with people and helping others. Try one of these methods to simplify and free up time.

National Fine Arts Festival is packed with activity. You're running from room to room for presentations. By mid-afternoon your head is aching,your feet are like weights and you don't see anything but vending machines in sight.

"You can be anything you want to be." "The future is yours." "You can conquer the world!" ... If you attended any graduation ceremonies this spring, you likely heard similar culturally-endorsed slogans.

As the meeting adjourned and faculty cleared the area, I sat among the empty chairs: dazed. So this is my defining moment. I'm going to lose my job because of faith.

Am I supposed to honor my parents when they don’t serve God?

How can I share my faith if I'm an outsider? No one likes me or even wants to take the time to sit with me.

Do you have Mount St. Helens erupting on your chin? Hormonal changes at various times of life, especially during the teen years, can create acne conditions on the skin. It is important to consult a dermatologist for more severe cases of acne, but whether you see a doctor or simply need to take care of your acne yourself, follow some basic guidelines to reduce the severity and spread of acne.

Is there really a God?

How long should I spend doing my devotions?

Teresa Tapp's Hoe Downs incorporate comprehensive, compound large muscle movement along with isometric linear alignment and lymphatic pumping. As with any exercise program, consult your doctor first before beginning any new work out regieme.

How do I know that God is hearing me when I pray? There are many things going on in my family and with my friends, and I've been praying HARD about them, and things seem to just be getting worse.

I've been thinking a lot about what it means to be at the heart of worship.

Lately all we see in the news or magazines is how some bottled spring water is really just glorified tap water. However we need to consider more than the water itself, what about the container it's in?

Homosexuality is viewed by those in the church as simply sin. It is viewed by the secular media and the world at large as an alternative lifestyle, scripted at birth.

In most cases suicide can be prevented if the person gets the help he or she needs. Know the warning signs. If a person talks about suicide, makes arrangements to give things away, has made prior suicide attempts, is in deep depression, changes in personality or has sudden mood changes, don’t blow these signs off.

For anyone out there who is the victim of sexual abuse, I know how you feel…the hurt, doubting God, the loneliness and the questions going through your head. I’ve been there. Let me help.

By definition, hazing is harassment through forcing someone to do something disagreeable--often accompanied by ridicule, criticism or pressure. At its worst, it puts people through harmful and humiliating pranks or group initiations that hurt them physically and emotionally.

Grief is a natural reaction to any important change or loss. Someone might experience grief upon the death of a loved one, divorce or separation of his parents, injury, disability or even the loss of a pet. When a friend faces a tragedy like one of these, it may be hard to know what to do. But you can help!

Cutting is described as "self-injury" or "self-abuse." According to Mosby's Medical, Nursing, and Allied Health Dictionary (1994), self-injury is defined as "a state in which an individual is at high risk to injure (but not kill himself or herself), and that produces tissue damage and tension relief." Those who "cut" usually do it on their wrists, upper arms, and inner thighs.

Ever get confused about fasting? One friend fasts coffee, another all food and yet another from television. Some fast to cleanse their bodies while others have spiritual reasons. Who is right? Why fast? What is a fast? Does the Bible tell us how to fast?

How do you know if you have been baptized in the Holy Spirit?