Ray Pritchard pastored in Los Angeles, Dallas and Chicago. Married to Marlene for 38 years, he enjoys being a husband, a father and a grandfather, riding his bike, and playing with Dudley and Gary, beloved basset hounds.
Popular Topics
Anchors for Rahab
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, March 14
Not long ago we received the following email:
Why Does He Eat With Sinners?
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, March 1
The first step in getting well is to admit you have a problem.
The Power of 1
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, February 27
It’s not about the big numbers. It’s about the number 1.
We’ve Almost Reached Our Year-End Goal!
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, December 17, 2012
(New update 12/27/2012: Due to the generosity of our friends, we have reached our goal and are now in the black by $11,786. When you hear me say “$46,000” on the video, just remember that we’ve already reached that goal. Thank you for your support!) I have some good news to share with you. On December 1 we set out to finis…
Finish Strong
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, December 10, 2012
(New update 12/27/2012: Due to the generosity of our friends, we have reached our year-end goal and are now “in the black” by $11,786. When you hear me say “$46,000” on the video, just remember that by God’s grace, we have met this goal. Thank you for your support!) We’re coming to the end of a great year at Keep…
Report from China–Mark Pritchard
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, December 6, 2012
Meet the “amazing twelve” Mark and Vanessa met last month in China.
Report from China–Wesley Wildmon
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, December 5, 2012
From October 25th to November 13th Keep Believing Ministries had staff and supporters ministering in China and South Korea. Each day this week you’ll be taken on a journey to apartment churches, city walls, and into the heart of Christianity in Asia. We hope you’ll join us back here each day to read the stories, see the pictures, and re...
Report from China–Mike Maynard
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, December 4, 2012
From October 25th to November 13th Keep Believing Ministries had staff and supporters ministering in China and South Korea. Each day this week you’ll be taken on a journey to apartment churches, city walls, and into the heart of Christianity in Asia. We hope you’ll join us back here each day to read the stories, see the pictures, and re...
Chinese Believers Featured in Winter Newsletter
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, November 29, 2012
We have just posted the Winter 2012 edition of the KBM newsletter. In it you’ll find a complete report of our recent trips to China and Korea along with pictures of some Chinese believers we met.
China Diary, Part 1
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, October 31, 2012
I am writing these notes from my hotel room in Taipei, Taiwan, which means we are nearing the end of our whirlwind trip. A week ago today four of us left for a visit to China. Two of us–Nick and I–had been to China before. Nick spent a summer in China teaching English in 2006. This is my sixth trip, all of them fairly brief. I’ve ...
How to “Join” KBM
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, October 11, 2012
Recently a new friend discovered us on the Internet. I’m still not sure exactly how he found us, but he did, and he liked what he saw on the KBM website. After two or three emails back and forth, he wrote me this nice note:I am very proud I am part of your team and want to be more active as soon as I find out like membership, ETC. $$$ and I w...
The $100,000 Gift for China
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, August 17, 2012
Not long ago a friend I never met died.I suppose to call him a “friend” would be a stretch because I never met him and never spoke to him. It would be more accurate to say that he was a friend to this ministry and a friend to our China outreach.He was a veteran of World War II who loved the Lord and wanted to see his assets used for Kin...
This Week’s Prayer Update
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, August 2, 2012
Dear Prayer Partners, When Ray answered the phone, he heard a familiar voice. His friend was calling from 8000 miles away to say hello and to check out some thoughts about a sermon he was preaching the next day. As they talked, Ray made one or two suggestions. It was clear that his friend had a good sense of what God was speaking to his he...
KBM Using Facebook for Blog Comments
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, July 12, 2012
Do you Facebook?If you don’t, you’re probably not reading this blog entry. As of March 2012 Facebook had over 900 million users, with that number expected to reach 1 billion in the next few months. One billion people on Facebook.That’s amazing and mind-blowing. When Facebook first started, it was mostly for college students, ...
Sermon List Tops 10,000
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, May 13, 2012
One week ago the sermon email list went over the 10,000 mark for the first time. That’s a significant milestone that was 14 years in the making. I started sending out sermons by email in 1998 shortly after we returned from a trip to India. I started with about 20 names on my list, a handful of friends who wanted to read the sermon they heard ...
On the Road to New England
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, April 20, 2012
This morning we start a major ministry trip to New England. A year ago Marlene and I spoke at a one-day conference for pastors and wives in Brunswick, Maine. A few weeks later we were invited to return to New England for three conferences in Connecticut, Maine, and Vermont.You can find out all the details by going to Church Focus New England. Each ...
Free Apps for China Broadcast
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, April 10, 2012
I have some good news for those who have been following our new thrice-weekly China broadcasts. We now have free iPhone and Android apps that will download the broadcasts directly to your smartphone: Free KBM China Apps The apps automatically download each new Mandarin program. We expect these apps to be the primary way we reach younger listeners i...
Many Join in Prayer to Support China Broadcast
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, March 29, 2012
Thank you!By the grace of God and through your prayers, the first Keep Believing China broadcast on Monday went without a hitch. By now the second broadcast has already taken place. And the 3rd broadcast begins in 20 hours. We intentionally started with a series on the Deeper Meaning of the Cross because we wanted a strong focus on the death of Chr...
We Prayed for China Today
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, March 26, 2012
The first Keep Believing China broadcast is now in the books. We have heard from friends in Florida, New York, Michigan, Texas, Oregon, California, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Montreal, South Korea, Nigeria, Tanzania, Alaska, Haiti, Chicago, Pontiac and New Lenox, IL who were praying with us. Here are few pictures we have received:…
Send Us Your Pictures on Monday Morning
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, March 23, 2012
62 hours. That’s how long (as of this writing) until our first China broadcast. This is the culmination of a long process that the Lord put it in motion nine years ago when Josh (our oldest son) went to China to teach English. One thing led to another and then to another, and in the sovereignty of God who knew about this all along, her...
Will You Be One of the 1000 on March 26?
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, March 3, 2012
The first Keep Believing broadcast to China begins in a little over three weeks. On Monday, March 26, at 7 PM in China, we will broadcast our first program from the Trans World Radio facilities on Guam. 7 PM in China equals 7 AM in New York, Atlanta, and Hudson, Florida.That’s 6 AM in Tupelo, Dallas, and Chicago. It’s 5 AM in Denver, Sa...
Weekend Update
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, February 17, 2012
On Saturday morning we leave for a week of ministry at Word of Life Florida. This marks the 19th year that I’ve spoken at the conference center. When we first went there, the center was at the end of a gravel road in the middle of nowhere. I remember speaking to 19 people one morning that first year. Now hundreds come for each session. The pr...
Many Will Pray for China on March 26
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, January 25, 2012
We’ve had excellent response to our call for 1000 people to join us in prayer at 6 AM on Monday, March 26. At that hour the first-ever Keep Believing China broadcast will beam into mainland China from the island of Guam. Here are some responses:From a friend in another country: “I will get up early on March 26 and pray for the First Bro...
3.26.2012
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Mark this date on your calendar: Monday, March 26, 2012. That’s the date of our first radio broadcast into mainland China. At 7 PM on March 26, from the studios of Trans World Radio on the island of Guam, we will begin our thrice-weekly broadcast to China. When it’s 7 PM in China, it’s 6 AM in Chicago (you can do the math for…
A Year-End Appeal from Keep Believing Ministries
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, December 28, 2011
As we come to the end of 2011, we are glad you are part of the Keep Believing family. It has been our pleasure to provide you with sermons, podcasts, videos, and other free biblical resources on the Keep Believing website.To put it simply, if we provide it ourselves, we give it away for free. That’s been our policy from the beginnin...
14 Minutes for China
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, December 17, 2011
On Thursday I wrote about an opportunity to invest in our new Keep Believing China partnership by giving $12.50 to cover the cost of one minute of broadcasting into China. A friend who saw that post sent this note:I just bought 4 more minutes of “air China” time to give as gifts...14 minutes so far.Here’s what I’m doing...
A Gift for China
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, December 15, 2011
Are you looking for a last-minute Christmas gift?What about giving the gift of God’s Word to China? In April 2012 we will begin broadcasting three times a week into China from the Trans World Radio facilities in Guam. Our potential audience in Mainland China will be a staggering 878 million people. That’s more than twice the po...
Christmas Sausage Balls
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, December 12, 2011
In preparation for tonight’s KBM home meeting in Tupelo, Marlene made one of my favorite Christmas treats, Christmas sausage balls. This is the sort of appetizer that works well for almost any occasion. Marlene started making these early in our marriage, and as the boys came along, sausage balls became part of our Christmas family traditio...
Marlene’s Oreo Tuxedos
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, December 5, 2011
A few days ago Marlene finished baking 43 dozen cookies for the KBM China home meetings tomorrow night and next Monday night here in Tupelo. One of her newest creations (to me, at least) was the “Oreo Tuxedo,” a delectable item that is so simple that even I could make it. Here’s the recipe:Oreo cookies.Cream cheese.Crush the c...
Dr. Everett Van Reken With the Lord
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, December 2, 2011
A few days ago we lost a good friend when Dr. Everett Van Reken passed away. My sadness is mixed with gladness because having reached the age of 93, Dr. Van Reken was fully prepared to meet the Lord.I first met him when he came to hear me preach in Oak Park. Later he became one of the first members of the KBM Board of Reference. He and his dear wif...
Anchor at a Strip Club
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, November 27, 2011
In the past few years we’ve heard some amazing stories of how An Anchor for the Soul has been distributed in some very unlikely places. But recently we heard a story that caught us completely by surprise.This is about Anchor at a strip club. A few months ago we donated copies of Anchor to a crisis pregnancy center. They primarily use the book...
Why I Teach at the BI
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, November 18, 2011
This picture tells you all you need to know.I’m in there somewhere, along with about 175 students. We took the picture after the final session on Daniel this morning. Since Tuesday I’ve had the privilege of teaching these students for 10 hours.Someday soon they will be pastors and missionaries. Someday soon they will be youth pastors.So...
The Future of the Chinese Church
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, November 4, 2011
This little boy represents the future of the Chinese church.Earlier this week his mother put him down for a nap in the apartment where we stayed in Dalian. His grandfather serves as a church worker in a Chinese city with very few Christians. He and his mother and father and grandfather came to Dalian to spend two days with us. I was very pleased wh...
Two Days With the Pastors in Dalian
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, November 1, 2011
For the last two days Mark and I have been speaking at a pastor’s conference in Dalian, China. To put the matter that way probably makes people think of hundreds of pastors gathered in a large church sanctuary, with bright lights, a worship team, and high-powered services.That might happen in America.But we are i...
Student Night in Dalian
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, October 30, 2011
Friday night was a new experience for us. I’m not sure exactly where we were in Dalian because it was late and Chinese cities are a forest of skyscrapers. Pastor Peter led us to a building where we took the elevator to an upper floor and entered an apartment where a house church meets. There were about 40 university students there, all in the...
Day 8: The Students Say Thank You
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, October 28, 2011
The students take center stage in the final video from Jeju Island....
Day 7: A New Stove for the BI
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, October 27, 2011
Here’s the video from Day 7, in which a gift that started in California ended up heating a tent in Korea....
Day 6: Kent’s Story
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Here’s the video from Day 6 of our Korea-China trip with a glimpse into the classroom and a Korean student shares his story....
Day 5: Betsy’s Story
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Here’s the video from Day 5 in which you get a glimpse of our first session with the students and also we share a testimony from Betsy, a student from Taiwan....
Day 4: Visit to a Buddhist Temple
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, October 24, 2011
Here’s today video in which we visit a Buddhist temple on Jeju Island.
Day 3: Young Nak Presbyterian Church
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, October 23, 2011
Here’s the video from Day 3 of our Korea-China trip featuring our visit to the Jeju Young Nak Presbyterian Church....
Day 2: Airport Evangelist
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, October 22, 2011
Here’s the video from Day 2 of our trip to Korea and China in which we meet a man carrying a cross at the airport in Seoul:...
Good Times at the KBM Board Meeting
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, October 17, 2011
Here’s a scene from the KBM board meeting on Saturday morning. L-R Peter Faulkner, Chris Johnson from Trans World Radio, Cliff Raad, Doreen Mahlstedt, MaryAnn Spiegel, Dave Hoy, Ray Pritchard, Marlene Pritchard, Nick Pritchard, Mark Pritchard. Board member Skip Olson took the picture. Webmaster Derek Taylor arrived a few minutes after this pi...
2 Million Visits to the KBM Website
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, October 5, 2011
This afternoon I did some research into the traffic at the Keep Believing website. Since the site debuted in March 2008, we have had:2,033,484 visits to the website.1,101,217 unique visitors.7,435,672 pageviews.Visitors have come to us from 226 countries and territories. Just recently we added our first visitor from Somalia. Here are a few ran…
KBM Launches China Partnership
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, September 30, 2011
“I think you should consider a partnership with Trans World Radio."That simple comment, made a year ago by someone we met at a Bible conference in Michigan, started a discussion that led to a major decision.Last Saturday the Keep Believing board voted to enter a strategic partnership with Trans World Radio (TWR) to do ministry in China....
On My Way to LA
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, September 19, 2011
Today I’m flying to Los Angeles to take part in the Fall Church Institute at Mt Sinai Missionary Baptist Church. When I received this invitation a few months ago from Pastor George Hurtt, I was glad to accept because he asked me to speak on one of my favorite topics–expository preaching. I’ll be leading a workshop on preachin...
Nick’s Story
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, September 5, 2011
“I stole soap from Walgreen’s so I could wash myself at a fire hydrant.""I lived in my car near Humboldt Park until I was arrested.""I don’t remember much about my 20s because I was on drugs the whole time."When the police arrested him, he was put in jail for 30 days. Sometime during that period he fo...
KBM Mobile Site Launches Today
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, August 24, 2011
The brand-new KBM mobile website launches today. If you have an iPhone or an Android or some other smartphone, you can access it by typing in m.keepbelieving.com. There is also a link at the top of www.KeepBelieving.com that can be seen only by smartphone users. Using a mobile site means that we have optimized the font size and the margin…
Keep Up Your Calling
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, August 4, 2011
I love this note. This is why we do what we do. ...
Latest KBM Newsletter Now Online
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, July 1, 2011
The Spring 2011 newsletter has just been posted online. In this issue we share good news about our recent one-day pastors conference in Brunswick, Maine. You can check out our travel schedule for the rest of the summer and learn how we serve as “quartermasters” for the body of Christ around the world. Plus you can learn what we’ve...
Chicago, Here We Come
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, June 24, 2011
It’s a quick trip this time.This morning Marlene and I are flying to Chicago for a Keep Believing board meeting. We fly in today, meet with the board tomorrow, and then fly back on Sunday. More than once we’ve driven up for a board meeting. But as much as I enjoy a long road trip, driving 625 miles on Friday and doing it again on S...
Why We Use the Internet
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Just a moment ago I ran some numbers on the KBM website, starting on March 3, 2008 (when we launched our website) through June 7, 2011. Here’s what we discovered. Since March 3, 2008 we have had . . .6,541,848 pageviews resulting from 1,763,768 visits to our website, based on954,643 unique visitors who came to us from 225 countries/territorie...
KBM Launches YouTube Channel
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, April 14, 2011
Call it Video 2.0.A year ago we launched our first-ever video page on the KBM website. Since then we’ve been adding sermons, FAQs, a new feature called “sermon briefs,” sermon illustrations, and travel videos from our trips to Africa and China. As the video page has grown in content, it has also grown in popularity.Today we take a...
KBM Retreat Ignites Big Dreams
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Over the weekend twenty-three people met at the Olford Center in Memphis, TN for our first-ever KBM “Dream Team” Retreat. Although our board has met before for weekend get-togethers, this was the first time our board plus staff plus ministry volunteers have come together. It was a grand success in every way. Twenty-th...
Anchor # 8 on Moody’s All-Time Bestseller List
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, March 18, 2011
I just received a copy of a brand-new history of Moody Bible Institute written for their 125th anniversary called The MBI Story. On pages 203-204 author James Vincent mentions that four of the top eight all-time bestsellers from Moody Publishers have been released in the last 25 years. Coming in at number 8 is An Anchor for the Soul. I had no idea ...
KBM Releases First Ebook
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, March 5, 2011
I have some big news. We are releasing our first-ever ebook. My book “In the Shadow of the Cross: The Deeper Meaning of Calvary” is now available as an ebook. It is now available in both Kindle and Nook formats. We have also added a PDF version.Here’s the back story. About ten years Broadman & Holman published “In the Sh...
“Where Do You Get Your Support?”
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, February 24, 2011
A few days ago a woman stopped me and asked a question: “Where do you get your support?” I’ve been asked that a few times lately, so here’s the short answer, in bullet points:We rely 100% on the gifts of God’s people.It’s been that way since we started Keep Believing Ministries five years ago. Our funding co...
Anchor in Afghanistan
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, February 23, 2011
In the last three months we have shipped almost 60,000 copies of An Anchor for the Soul from our Book Depot in Chicago. From the beginning of this ministry in 2001, we have always put a priority on donating copies for the men and women serving in the United States Armed Forces. Thousands of copies have ended up in Iraq and Afghanistan.How do those …
Year in Review–A Baker’s Dozen
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, January 5, 2011
In the last few days we’ve been wrapping up a very eventful year at Keep Believing Ministries. So what did we do in 2010? Rather than write a long letter, I decided to list a Baker’s Dozen that will give you a quick snapshot of where we’ve been and what God has been doing through this ministry. In 2010 we . . . Completed the...
A Weblog Review of 2010
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Since this is the last week of 2010, I have been taking stock of the past year and thinking about all that has happened. It’s certainly been eventful for us personally and for our ministry. Here are some of the monthly highlights from the KBM weblog: JanuaryBrit Hume Doubles Down Brit Hume reaffirms his conviction that Tiger Woods needs Jesus...
Two Ways You Can Help KBM This Month
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Here are two ways you can help Keep Believing Ministries this month:1. Shop at Amazon.com and use the KBM web link.I’m sure you’ve done most of your Christmas shopping already. Maybe you are already finished. But if you’ve got some shopping to do, for Christmas or for any other occasion, click on the KBM Amazon.com link first. By ...
We Need You to “Like” Our New Facebook Page
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Last week we debuted our brand-new Keep Believing Facebook page. Now we need your help.We need you to visit our new page and click on the “Like” button. That’s all you have to do. Visit and Click. Simple and easy to do.We’re hoping for 1000 people to “Like” our page during the month of December. For each person w...
Shop at Amazon.com and Help KBM
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, November 22, 2010
Are you doing any online shopping this year? The answer is probably yes since the day after Thanksgiving is “Black Friday” and next Monday will be “Cyber Monday” when millions of people will shop for special deals online. Many people would rather “point and click” than brave the crowds at the local mall. It&rsq...
“Journey to Africa” – New Video
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, October 28, 2010
In April a team from Keep Believing Ministries spent two weeks in Uganda and Kenya. One of our team members, MaryAnn Spiegel, came back home with over 300 video clips. Josh took the clips and combined them with still photos to produce a short video. The music you hear in the background comes from Krystin Ndela, one of Africa’s most popular Ch...
Off to Asia!
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, October 8, 2010
It’s 4:45 AM and we’re on our way to the airport. We’ll be meeting with Skip Olson in Detroit on one of the legs of our flight. 26 hours from now, we should be in Jeju Island at the brand new Word of Life Center there.
18 Hours and Counting
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, October 7, 2010
We leave in less than 18 hours.After months of prayer and planning, it’s finally time for us to travel to Korea and China. On Friday morning Marlene and I fly to Detroit where we will meet KBM board member Skip Olson who is going with us.This particular trip really started three years ago when our friends at Word of Life Korea asked if I...
First Look at the New “Anchor for the Soul”
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, October 3, 2010
In early 2011 Moody Publishers will release the new edition of An Anchor for the Soul, the short “gospel book” that was first released in 2000. The front cover of the new edition includes a label that reads “Over 500,000 in print,” a number that includes the more than 400,000 copies that we have donated to ministries across ...
When You’re On the Internet, You’re In Our Neighborhood
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, September 23, 2010
Several months ago we began working with Will Troxler, a young man who has his own design studio, to help us put together a tabletop display that we could use when we speak around the country. Working on this display forced us to ask the question, “What is the heart of Keep Believing Ministries?” We tried this and we tried that until we fina...
Behind the Scenes at a KBM Board Meeting
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Last Saturday the Keep Believing Board of Directors met in Oak Park, IL. Skip Olson provided a few candid shots from our meeting. Bert Duncan of Tupelo, MS and Brian Bill of Pontiac, IL could not be with us.Because of his senior status on the board, his wisdom and his unstoppable optimism, Cliff Raad deserves a picture all by himself. Going f...
KBM Joins ECFA
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, September 14, 2010
That “alphabet title” may seem mysterious, but we think it’s very good news. Last week we received word that Keep Believing Ministries has been approved for membership in the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA). Suffice it to say that ECFA represents the “gold standard” for evangelical ministr...
August was # 1
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, September 6, 2010
August was # 1.That’s a phrase you hardly ever hear. We usually talk about the “dog days” of August when things are hot, people are wrapping up summer vacations, and students are getting ready to go back to school. There aren’t any major holidays in August. The stretch run in baseball doesn’t start until September, foo...
Kind Words From Around the World
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, September 1, 2010
This summer we’ve been working on a tabletop display for KBM that we can take with us when we travel. As part of that project, Marlene gathered some of the comments we’ve received from people around the world regarding this ministry. Today she showed me what she had put together. It’s far more than we need for the display and more...
Introducing Two New KBM Board Members
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, July 14, 2010
We had our usual fun time at the Keep Believing board meeting on Monday night. We started with a pizza supper punctuated with lots of laughter that continued throughout our meeting. Because our board is spread out, we don’t see each other very often so when we do, we always laugh a lot. It’s wonderful to be part of a group where you are...
“We Make It Because You Do!”
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, July 9, 2010
This morning I found this very encouraging comment on the weblog. It sums up why we call our ministry “Keep Believing.” And it emphasizes that we all have to help each other out. Sometimes your faith will be stronger than mine, and I’ll need your faith to help me stay strong. Sometimes my faith may be stronger, and you can “…
My 3052 Best Friends in the World
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Do you Facebook?If you are reading this, the answer is probably yes, and since when did “Facebook” become a verb anyway? The answer is, since Facebook more or less took over the online world.Don’t believe me? Check out these numbers from the official Facebook Statistics Page:400 million users worldwide.50% of active users log on e…
New KBM Refrigerator Magnet
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, July 3, 2010
When I arrived home from this afternoon, I was happy to see that we had received a shipment of our brand-new KBM refrigerator magnets. For the last several years we have given away thousands of magnets featuring a bright orange heart to signify that we are called to keep believing with all our heart.This new design moves in a completely different d...
How Do You Do This?
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, July 2, 2010
Here’s a neat story from this week at Cannon Beach. On Monday I mentioned that Keep Believing Ministries supplies free copies of our little “gospel book” called An Anchor for the Soul free of charge to prison ministries, military ministries, relief agencies, crisis pregnancy centers, street ministries, rescue missions, and for mis...
KBM Summer Newsletter Now Online
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, June 21, 2010
We just posted the summer edition of the KBM newsletter. In it you’ll find a pictorial report on our recent trip to Uganda and Kenya along with a profile of Derek Taylor, the KBM webmaster, news about our summer travel schedule, and some fast facts about the KBM website. Check it and see the latest news about what God is doing through Keep Be...
An Unexpected Letter
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, May 28, 2010
"Thank you so very much for all the encouraging sermons over the years. My husband and I were missionaries in the Middle East for 16 years.”
Uganda Pastors Conference
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, April 15, 2010
“Pastor Ray, do you mind if I ask you a question?""Not at all.""What should we do if a Muslim man with four wives converts to Christianity and wants to join our church? We know what the Bible says about marriage, but we want to minister to all his wives and his children too. How do we do that and still be true to the B...
Uganda Picture Gallery
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, April 12, 2010
Here are the first pictures from our trip to Uganda.
New sermon audio – Can We Still Believe in Life After Death?
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, April 7, 2010
We have a new podcast about a question posed by religious leaders who wanted to trick Christ. This topic that matters just as much today as it did 2,000 years ago when Christ was asked about it: Can we believe in life after death?
Check Out Our New Podcasting Page
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Recently we redesigned our podcasting page to make it easier to use. When we started podcasting two years, we had only a few podcasts online. Today we have over 100 and the number grows every week as we add sermons, radio interviews, and special Christmas and Easter programming. Here are some of the new features you’ll notice:1. We now list t...
Copyright Good and Bad
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, January 29, 2010
Yesterday I received a note from someone who wanted to know my views on those who use my material in their own preaching and writing. It seems that he had run across an unusual case (at least it is unusual in my experience) and wanted to know my opinion. How do I feel when I find out that other people out there somewhere, unnamed and unknown to me,...
This and That
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, January 23, 2010
*I’m writing this note at 11:45 PM on Friday night. In just a few hours I’ll be on my way to the SIM Missionary Village in Sebring, Florida. It’s a lovely spot established for missionaries who have returned to the States after 30 or 40 or 50 years on the mission field. I’m the speaker for their Bible conference that starts o...
Friendship Gathering This Thursday Night
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, January 19, 2010
If you live anywhere near Tupelo, MS, you are invited to our first-ever KBM Friendship Gathering this Thursday (January 21) from 7-9 PM at the home of Bert and Danna Duncan, 1876 Pecan Grove in Tupelo. This is a home version of the Friendship Banquet we had in Chicago in October. We’ll start with some refreshments, then we’re going to h...
2010 Travel Schedule
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, December 30, 2009
For those who are interested, here is my 2010 travel schedule so far. Check the Travel page for updates during the year.January 9 KBM Board Meeting, ChicagoJanuary 24-29 SIM Missionary Village, Sebring, FLFeb 2-5 &nbs…
KBM Year-End Report
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, December 22, 2009
We have just posted the KBM year-end report. In previous years our reports have been text-heavy. This year we tell our story with lots of pictures. Plus we included testimonies received from around the world about the impact of the sermons, the website, An Anchor the Soul, our missions trips, the conferences, our teaching at Bible institutes, and s...
Saved on Christmas Eve
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, December 9, 2009
His life changed on Christmas Eve.Scot is serving time in a Michigan prison. When fellow inmate gave him a copy of “An Anchor for the Soul,” he decided to see what the book was all about since his friend had read it and like it. “After I started reading it, I couldn’t put it down.” On Christmas Eve he developed a sever...
Shop Amazon.com and Help KBM
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Are you doing any online shopping this year? The answer is probably yes since yesterday was “Cyber Monday” and sales were even better than on “Black Friday,” the day after Thanksgiving. It seems that more and more of us would rather “point and click” than brave the crowds at the local mall. It’s definitely ...
KBM Banquet Slideshow
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, November 10, 2009
On a rainy night in early October, 230 people gathered in Elmhurst, IL for the first-ever Keep Believing Ministries Friendship Banquet. Alex Garcia took some beautiful photographs that night. You can check out his website for more examples of his work. Derek Taylor put the pictures together into a video slideshow that captures that evening of celeb...
Help Wanted for Anchor 10th Anniversary Edition
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Next year marks the tenth anniversary of the publication of An Anchor for the Soul. Well over 400,000 copies of that little “gospel book” written in “Wal-Mart English” are now in print. God has allowed us to give away hundreds of thousands of copies to prisoners across America and to soldiers serving in the Armed Forces. Plu...
Readers Theater Audio Now Online
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, October 5, 2009
The KBM banquet last Thursday night featured a Readers Theater that highlighted letters we have received. Most of the letters came from prisoners who read An Anchor for the Soul, but we included one letter from a soldier in Afghanistan and another letter from from a young lady whose life was changed by reading Stealth Attack. Amber Cussen, Dina Kre...
Shop Amazon and Help KBM
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, October 4, 2009
Did you know that you can help Keep Believing Ministries every time you shop at Amazon.com? Because we are part of the Amazon Affiliates program, we receive a small “referral fee” for every purchase you make on Amazon.com when you go through the Amazon.com link on our homepage. This applies to almost everything at Amazon.com–book...
The Memory of Your Abundant Goodness
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, October 2, 2009
One of the most meaningful moments at last night’s Friendship Banquet in Chicago happened after it was over. I can’t remember a time when I hugged so many people. It was like that from the time we arrived at 6 PM until we left around 10:15 PM. People started arriving an hour early–one couple drove from Holland, Michigan, another c...
On the Road to Sumas, Washington
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, September 21, 2009
This morning I’m starting a long journey that begins in Tupelo and will end late this afternoon in Sumas, Washington. If you’ve never heard of Sumas, well, that’s not surprising because it’s a tiny town located on the northern edge of Washington, just across the border from Abbotsford, British Columbia. To get there I’...
Friday Night Musings
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, September 18, 2009
**I’m writing this note from our hotel room in Birmingham, Alabama. We drove over from Tupelo this afternoon so we could have dinner with Nick and Elizabeth. Tomorrow we plan to visit the Alabama State Fair in nearby Pelham–if it ever stops raining. It seems like we’ve had rain for two weeks, and the current forecast calls for mor...
We’re Glad to Share What God Has Given us
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, September 13, 2009
Here is the 8th and final thing you need to know about Keep Believing Ministries . . .8. We’re glad to share what God has given us.That means we give our stuff away. All of it, all the time. We give away all 800+ sermons, all 300+ articles, and the 100+ podcasts. And we give away blog entries also. We give away our FAQs. We email a free sermo...
I’m Looking for a Sermon from August 2005
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, September 4, 2009
Saturday Update: We found the sermon tape. A friend in Indiana had it in a box of cassette tapes. Thanks to everyone who helped in the search.
We’re Excited About Equipping the Next Generation
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Here’s the sixth important fact you need to know about KBM . . . 6. We’re excited about equipping the next generation.That means we want to do whatever we can to help train the next generation of rising Christian leaders in America and around the world. The future always belongs to the young. Once you reach the ripe old age of 56 (...
KBM Friendship Banquet Update
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, August 31, 2009
On Saturday the Keep Believing board met in suburban Chicago to put together the final plans for our Friendship Banquet on Thursday, October 1, in Elmhurst, IL. Because this is our first time to plan a banquet, we’re putting it together from the ground up. From the beginning we expected 200-300 to attend. At the moment, a month in advance, we...
We Support God’s Work Around the World
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, August 21, 2009
Several weeks ago I started a series to explain what Keep Believing is all about. You can read the previous installments here:We’re an Internet-Based Ministry We Believe in the Power of Preaching We Support Gospel Outreach Through the Book Depot We Encourage People Everywhere to Keep Believing in Jesus It occurred to m...
This and That
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, August 12, 2009
*Last night I spent an hour talking with Peter Wang in China via Skype. As you can tell from the picture, he was wearing a brand-new Keep Believing t-shirt that we sent over from the States. For over three years Peter has been preaching my sermons to the house church he pastors. Only he doesn’t just preach my sermons directly. He studies the ...
We Encourage People Everywhere to Keep Believing
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, August 7, 2009
Here’s the fourth thing you need to know about KBM:4. We encourage people everywhere to keep believing. Sometimes it’s hard to keep believing.I remember saying that–in an off-the-cuff manner–at a KBM board meeting several years ago. It happened at the end of a planning retreat, as I was giving my final comments just bef...
We Support Gospel Outreach Through the Book Depot
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, August 6, 2009
The third thing you need to know about KBM is . . .1. We support Gospel outreach through the Book Depot.This part of the story goes back almost 12 years, long before the formal beginning of Keep Believing Ministries. Shortly after I wrote a book called What a Christian Believes, we began partnering with Prison Fellowship to give away copies of the ...
We Believe in the Power of Preaching
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Here is the second thing you need to know about KBM . . . 2. We Believe in the Power of Preaching. People who come to our website often talk about how much we have to offer. And we do have a lot to offer. But the heart of this website, indeed the heart of our online ministry, rests in the 850+ sermons we make available free for downloading. How...
We’re an Internet-Based Ministry
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, August 3, 2009
During our travels in the last three weeks–to Florida, Ontario, and New York–I had numerous opportunities to share with people the vision of Keep Believing Ministries. Along the way I answered quite a few questions about who we are and what we do. Over the weekend I realized that I need to start sharing those answers with a larger audie...
Feel Free to Use Our Material
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, July 16, 2009
I received a note from a friend in a distant state saying that he wanted to use some material from one of the sermons he found on the Keep Believing website. He wondered if he had permission to use our material, and if so, what he should say to the congregation. Since that question comes up from time to time, let me state our policy:1. All the mate...
You’re Invited to the Banquet
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, July 10, 2009
A few weeks ago we announced our first-ever Keep Believing Friendship Banquet on Thursday, October 1 in Elmhurst, IL. We’re inviting all our Chicago-area friends to join us for an evening of celebration as we share what God is doing through KBM. We are preparing a video of testimonies from around the world about the impact of our Internet min...
Pray for Colson Taylor
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, July 8, 2009
I am writing this note to ask you to pray for Colson Taylor, the newborn son of Derek and Deneen Taylor. Colson arrived several weeks earlier than expected, and since then he’s had a rough go of it. Derek started this webpage where you can go for the latest news and also to offer your prayers for Colson and for the whole family.Derek and Dene...
Join the KBM Prayer Team
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, June 19, 2009
We need your prayers!Since February we’ve been sending out a weekly Keep Believing prayer update by email. It’s about one page long and contains some personal updates on the ministry, news about our travels and current projects, and some special prayer needs.If you would like to be part of the KBM Prayer Team and receive the weekl...
Saturday Sundries
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, May 30, 2009
It happened entirely by accident, but yesterday I watched Amazing Grace, the story of William Wilburforce, the man who led the fight to end slavery in the British Empire. Somehow I missed seeing it when the movie came out in 2007, but yesterday Marlene found it on TV and we watched it together. If you need some encouragement to believe in the power...
October 1–Hold That Date
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Over the weekend we finalized plans for our first-ever Keep Believing Friendship Banquet on Thursday, October 1 in Chicago. In the weeks to come we’ll give you more details about the who, what, when and where, and how you can make your reservations. But for the moment just hold that date–October 1–for our Friendship Banquet.
Saturday Afternoon Retreat
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, May 16, 2009
I’m writing this update from a meeting room at our hotel in suburban Chicago. At the moment the KBM board (minus Peter Faulkner and Alan Pritchard who couldn’t be with us) is in the middle of our afternoon session. We’re a little behind schedule, mostly because we’ve had such excellent discussions that we didn’t want t...
Retreating We Will Go
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, May 15, 2009
In just a few minutes Marlene and I will be driving to Memphis to catch a flight to Chicago for the Keep Believing board retreat that begins tonight. This is the fourth time we’ve met together like this. In June 2006 the board came to Tupelo for a weekend retreat. That was back when we lived in the cabin in the woods, and we were so far out i...
Updated Resources
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, April 23, 2009
A few months ago we opened a no-frills section of the website called Recommended Resources. I call it no-frills because there are no pictures or other fancy designs. If you click on the link, you will see what I mean. We have gathered on one page some of our favorite online resources. We start with a section called Bible Study Resources for those p...
Philippines Trip Report
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, April 22, 2009
We have just posted the report from our recent trip to the Philippines (March 26-April 7). During that time we visited Davao City and Bukidnon on the island of Mindanao and spent several days at at the end of the trip in Manila. We have packed the report with as many pictures as possible.As for the finances, we are grateful for those who gave to ma...
5810
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, April 14, 2009
That’s the number of subscribers to the Keep Believing weekly sermon email, according to our webmaster Derek Taylor. The number is the highest ever and continues to climb. I can remember when I started sending out the sermons in late 1998. We started with 15 names and slowly added from there. Each week I would write a brief introduction and t...
We’re Going to the Philippines!
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, March 26, 2009
It is 4:42 AM as I write this note. In a little over an hour we leave for the airport. This happens to be one of the rare trips where we can fly from Tupelo. Once we leave here we fly to Memphis, then Detroit, then Tokyo, then Manila. The total time in transit will be about 27 hours, the longest leg being thirteen hours from Detroit to Tokyo.There ...
Pray for the Keep Believing Philippines Project
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, March 23, 2009
This week’s prayer update focuses on the KBM Philippines Project. We’ve attempted to give you a day by day guide for praying for us during the next 2 weeks. We appreciate and depend on your prayer support while we’re away and can’t wait to give you a report of what God is doing in the Philippines when we return.We p...
FAQs for You
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, February 24, 2009
I’m happy to announce a brand-new section of the KBM website called FAQs, which stands for Frequently Asked Questions. Those who surf the Internet know that most websites have an FAQs section for questions that com up over and over again.For some time we have wanted to devote a major section of the website to answering questions about the Bib...
News and Notes
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Herewith a collection of (mostly) unconnected items . . .*This morning I’m going to be on American Family Radio from 11 AM-12 Noon Central Time. To listen live, click on the link and then click on “AFR-Talk.” You can also watch the live video stream.*We have just posted a new sermon called Miracles Come in Many Varieties. We sent ...
Tuesday News and Notes
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, February 10, 2009
*The February edition of theKBM February 2009 newsletter is now online. The headline reads “Keep Believing Goes to the Philippines.” *Did you know that you can know make comments on any of the 800+ sermons in our database? We just added that feature a few weeks ago. *We’ve added two new blogs to our Blogroll—Post-Darwi...
303,662 Visits
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, February 7, 2009
At the KBM board meeting today we talked about the fact that we are an online ministry. Since we redesigned our website in March 2008, we have had 303,662 visits from 206 countries. Increasingly we understand that we are not building a ministry in the usual sense of buying land and buildings. Not that we’re against that. We aren’t. We m...
Preaching This Sunday in Elmhurst
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, February 3, 2009
This Sunday I will be speaking at the Elmhurst Christian Reformed Church in Elmhurst, IL for the closing service of their annual Missions Emphasis. This year’s theme is “Our God Reigns.” A few months ago they moved to their new location at 155 W. Brush Hill Road, next to Roosevelt Road in Elmhurst. They have two morning worship se...
Would You Join Our Prayer Team?
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, January 18, 2009
We would like to invite you to join the KBM prayer team. Here’s what you need to know. As God continues to open new doors, we feel the need to build a strong base of praying friends who will uphold us in prayer. We know that many people pray for us already. Now we want to go to the next step of giving those friends regular updates so they wil...
Pentagon Prayer Breakfast
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Last September I spoke at the Pentagon Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C. We have just posted the podcast of the message I delivered that morning to a group of around 100 military personnel—from enlisted men and women all the way up to a three-star general. When I announced that I was going to speak on “Why you need your enemies and y...
Year-End Giving—3 Days Left
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, December 29, 2008
If you are planning to make a year-end gift to Keep Believing Ministries, please note that your envelope must be postmarked no later than December 31 in order for your gift to be tax-deductible for 2008. The same holds true for online giving. Your gift must be recorded before midnight on December 31. Thanks in advance for your support. This ministr...
December 2008 Newsletter
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, December 19, 2008
Check out the Keep Believing Ministries December 2008 newsletter. You’ll find the latest news about Keep Believing China, a report on the Pentagon Prayer Breakfast, and an update on the worldwide reach of our website. Did you know that since March, we have had 248,000 visits from 200 countries? …
Grateful for the KBM Board of Reference
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Yesterday and today I’ve been thinking about how much I appreciate the Keep Believing Ministries Board of Reference. We don’t say much about them, but they are an important part of our ministry team. Back when we were starting this ministry (in May 2006), we approached some key Christian leaders asking them to lend their support for thi...
Email Update—Three Ways You Can Help Us
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, December 14, 2008
Several weeks I mentioned that the weekly sermon email (sent to 5200 people) has been blocked by AOL for the last six weeks. This sort of thing happens from time to time because the sermons somehow get wrongly rejected by the anti-spam software programs. This means that 500-600 people haven’t been receiving the sermons at all. They don’...
Odds and Ends
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, December 11, 2008
**We just sent out the final sermon in the three-part series from Psalm 103. Although it went out to over 5200 people, we have no idea how many will actually receive it because we continue to have problems getting it to the Inbox of all those people. AOL has been blocking the sermons for the last month. We are cautiously hopeful that we have a work...
“Like Streams in this Desert”
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, December 3, 2008
We received this email yesterday. I have removed all personal information for obvious reasons:Dear Rev. Ray,I am blessed by the messages given by you.I am living in Saudi Arabia, where it’s illegal to practice any other religion than Islam. Many good Christian websites are blocked from accessing. Your messages are like streams in this desert ...
Wednesday Odds and Ends
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, December 3, 2008
A few midweek items of interest . . .*If you are an AOL subscriber to the sermon list, you haven’t received the last two sermons because AOL has decided to block the sermons using their antispam software. This sort of thing happens routinely and those of us who don’t send out spam work hard to prevent it. We’re working on a soluti...
Shop Amazon.com and Help KBM
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, November 30, 2008
Did you know that you can help Keep Believing Ministries every time you shop at Amazon.com? Because we are part of the Amazon Affiliates program, we receive a small portion of every purchase you make on Amazon.com when you go through the Keep Believing website to get to Amazon.com. This applies to almost everything on the vast Amazon.com website&nd...
Video from the KBM Open House
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, November 28, 2008
Derek Taylor put together these video clips from the Keep Believing Open House on November 15. Before Marlene and I spoke, we showed a PowerPoint presentation along with a video message from Pastor Peter in China. These clips will give you a flavor of that meeting. We have also posted a slideshow from the Open House. ...
Happy Thanksgiving, Betty Lou
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, November 26, 2008
I think I got my first letter from her six or seven years ago. It came in response to my book An Anchor for the Soul. I’m not totally sure how she got her copy, but I think someone gave it to her, and after reading it, she wrote to say thank you. Over the years I have received a number of letters like that. Someone reads a book I wrote, write...
KBM Open House Slideshow
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Our first-ever KBM Open House turned out to be a grand success. Last Saturday night nearly 150 people gathered at Concordia University in River Forest, IL to hear what God is doing through Keep Believing Ministries. We are grateful to Frank and Lois Catrambone for making it possible for us to use the meeting room at Concordia. People came from all …
We’re Having a Party!
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, November 15, 2008
Tonight we’re having our first-ever Keep Believing Open House at Concordia University in River Forest, Illinois. If you live in the Chicago are, please join us at 7 PM in the Cougar’s Den in the Koehneke Community Center.We’re expecting 150-200 people for this festive occasion. It’s definitely not too late to join us f...
Our Last Big Trip of the Year
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, November 13, 2008
Right now–at this very moment–Marlene and I are both working fast and furious because we’re leaving soon for our last big trip of the year. Today we’re driving to Birmingham (2 1/2 hours) to catch a flight to Chicago for a weekend of important events. On Friday at 10 AM (Central Time) I am doing a live one-hour interview on …
Can I Borrow Your Codec, Please?
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Basically we are in full countdown mode for our final big trip of the year that starts on Thursday and takes us to Illinois, Florida and Chicago. First up is the Keep Believing Open House this Saturday night. Thanks to the kindness of some friends, we are able to use a beautiful meeting room at Concordia University in River Forest in suburban Chica...
A Few More Pictures
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, November 10, 2008
This morning Derek and Deneen along with Elijah and Joelle left for Chicago. Just before they left, we took a group picture using a new tripod that we bought over the weekend. Derek and I spent quite a bit of time working on video projects for the ministry. We now have a camcorder, a tripod, and some fancy editing software. We spent hours working o...
Thirteen Questions
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, November 3, 2008
Thirteen questions and answers . . .1) Where were you this weekend? Marlene and I spoke at Harvey Cedars Bible Conference in New Jersey.2) How did it go? We definitely enjoyed ourselves. One man came up at the end of the final session and said, “Every year this conference is special, but this year has been special times special.” ...
You’re Invited to the Open House on November 15
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, October 30, 2008
We’re in the middle of planning for our first-ever Keep Believing Open House in the Chicago area. On Saturday, November 15, we’re inviting all our Chicago-area friends to come to the Open House at Concordia University in River Forest, a suburb on the west side of Chicago. The evening starts at 7 PM and will include a ministry update and...
Notes to the Keep Believing Family
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, October 13, 2008
*Happy Thanksgiving to our Canadian friends. I don’t want to forget that since we’ll be traveling to Prince Edward Island on Wednesday.*Speaking of things not to forget, Marlene has already put our passports on the dining room table so we won’t forget them this time like we did during our trip to Montreal last November.*Here&rsquo...
A Note from Nagaland
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, September 18, 2008
Most of us don’t know where Nagaland is. The official government website calls it “a vibrant hill state Located in the extreme North Eastern End of India, bounded by Myanmar in the East; Assam in the West; Arunachal Pradesh and a part of Assam in the North with Manipur in the south.”...
Twenty-Nine Months—and Counting Our Blessings
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, September 12, 2008
Last weekend we made a very quick trip to Chicago for a Keep Believing board meeting. It turned out to be a most encouraging time as we considered what God has done starting with the beginning of the ministry in May 2008. Since then we have achieved tax-exempt status with the IRS, adopted a logo and a key statement ("Our Name Is Our Mission&qu…
Notes from a Quick Trip to Chicago
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, September 5, 2008
I am writing this note from Elmhurst, IL, a suburb of Chicago, where tomorrow morning we will have a Keep Believing board yesterday. This has been a whirlwind trip, even by our standards of constant travel. We drove here yesterday, fighting rain from the remnants of Hurricane Gustav most of the way so that we ended up spending almost 12 hours on th...
Keep Believing Northern Ireland
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, August 31, 2008
Yesterday we received a note from a pastor in Northern Ireland. Here’s what he said:Greetings my dear brother from Belfast Northern Ireland.May I please thank you for your Bible sermons and studies. They have been a real blessing to me as a Pastor, who also needs feeding.Would you please give my greetings to your people and please...
How You Can Support Keep Believing Ministries
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, August 12, 2008
If you order anything on Amazon.com, you can help Keep Believing Ministries—and it won’t cost you anything extra.We are an “Amazon Associate.” When you follow a link from the Keep Believing website to buy a book (or anything else) on Amazon.com, and then make a purchase, Amazon will pay Keep Believing a commission on everyth…
A Note from Uganda
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, June 15, 2008
This morning I received the following message from a young man in Uganda:To Dr. RayDear brother in Christ,I am so glad to tell you how much you have blessed and inspired me. I believe the lord is using you to reach to people in different situations, to people like me. I am 19 years old,I love the Lord, I first heard you preach on our local Ch...
Welcome to the “New” Keep Believing Website
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, June 6, 2008
Welcome to the “new” Keep Believing website. I put the word “new” in quotes because most of the site looks exactly as it did before. The weblog is the one page that looks different than before—we have rearranged things to give more prominence to comments from our readers. You now have the ability to sign in using ...
Korean Version of “Why Did This Happen to Me?”
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, May 16, 2008
The Korean translation of Why Did This Happen to Me? has just been released. Copies are available from:Timothy Publishing HouseKwan-AKP.O. Box 16Seoul, KoreaIf you wonder whether we know in advance about foreign language translations, the answer almost always is no. I had no idea that this Korean language edition was comi ...
“Praying For Your Prodigal” Podcast
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, May 15, 2008
We have just uploaded a new podcast featuring a message called Praying for Your Prodigal. You can download the file from the KBM website, listen to it online, or listen to it on iTunes. If you have a loved one who is a prodigal, listen to this message. God may use it to give you hope to keep believing, to keep on praying, a ...
Forgiveness Messages to Air on Back to the Bible
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, May 9, 2008
Last week we received word that Back to the Bible will be airing five messages I taped on “The Healing Power of Forgiveness.” The broadcasts will air May 19-23. I am excited about this because Back to the Bible is one of the oldest and best-known Bible-teaching programs. I first met Wood Kroll, the regular Bible teacher for ...
William Blackstone and the 60th Birthday of Israel
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, May 9, 2008
Yesterday marked the 60th anniversary of the founding of the modern nation of Israel, an event that seemed unlikely and even impossible a century ago. Yet well before 1948, and long before the two great world wars that dominated the 20th-century, and long before the current geopolitical crises in the Middle East, there was ...
KBM Worldwide Outreach
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, April 21, 2008
Derek Taylor, our gifted web designer, just sent around a report showing that since we launched the new Keep Believing website on March 8, we have had visitors from 162 countries. Here are the top 15 countries in terms of visitors:1. United States2. Canada3. United Kingdom4. Philippines5. Australia6. India7. Singapore8. Sou ...
Sermon Delivery and Anti-Spam Software
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, April 21, 2008
Speaking of the sermon emails, we are still having problems getting the sermon through to certain subscribers. As far as we can tell, the sermons are being blocked by Hotmail and MSN. That means over 500 people on the list aren’t getting the sermons at all. It has to do with the anti-spam software that the big ISPs us ...
Two Saturday Meetings
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, April 13, 2008
The Keep Believing board met at 9:30 AM yesterday at the Hoy’s home in Elmhurst, Illinois. We spent most of our time with Derek Taylor talking about the new website and further features we hope to add in the next few months. We plan to focus on ways we can create a Keep Believing community so that people from around t ...
Pictures from the Keep Believing Home Meeting
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, April 12, 2008
Last night we held a home meeting in Oak Park for some friends of Keep Believing Ministries. Mark and Pam Compasio graciously opened their home and we had folks who braved the Friday evening traffic to join us for an evening of fellowship, laughter and encouragement. Here are a few pictures of the evening: We filled up the ...
Hello from Chicago
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, April 12, 2008
I am writing this note from the basement of Dave and Lynette Hoy’s home in Elmhurst, a western suburb of Chicago. We arrived here on Thursday afternoon in record time—10 hours and 15 minutes. The boys say they can make it in nine hours, but I can’t see how they do it. We ran into some serious rain in southern I ...
National Siblings Day
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, April 10, 2008
I just heard on the radio that today is National Siblings Day. In this spirit of this noble occasion, here is a picture of the four Pritchard brothers, taken in 2003 at my brother Andy’s home in Florence, Alabama. Left to right, that’s Ron, Alan, Ray, Andy. Ron lives in Little Rock, AR, Alan and I live in Tupelo ...
Check Out the Keep Believing Links
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, April 7, 2008
Today we have added a Links section to the website. You will find it on the Blog page in the left-hand column. Scroll down past the Archives and the Categories. We organized the links this way:Bible Study ResourcesHere you will find websites that offer Bible commentaries and encyclopedias, Bible translations, and several mu ...
News from China and Canada
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, April 7, 2008
1) This morning I received a note from ZDL Books in Beijing. They publish the Chinese translation of The ABCs of Wisdom. Here was the unexpected good news:"You will be glad to know that your book ’The ABC’s of Wisdom’ is now our best selling title! We have sold nearly 30,000 copies now and it is still go ...
How People Find Us
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, March 29, 2008
Earlier today Derek Taylor, our gifted web designer, sent a list of the keywords that people typed into a search engine that led them to the Keep Believing website. All of these searches happened in the last 48 hours. And many of them probably had never heard of this ministry. Here is the list:what about the the pigmy who n ...
Irritability—A Moral Sin
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, March 28, 2008
Yesterday I listened to a sermon on 1 Corinthians 13 by Haddon Robinson in which he dealt with the phrase in v. 5 that says “love . . . is not easily provoked” (KJV). Other translations say “it is not irritable” (NLT), “not easily angered” (NET), “does not take offence” (NJB), is “not quick tempered” (CEV), is “not quickly ...
Spreading the Word in Turkey
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Early this morning we received this note:Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ!!! I cannot thank you enough for the encouragement that I have found through reading your weekly sermons. I have even been able to print a few and pass them on to other English speakers in need of support/counsel/encouragement here in ...
What If
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, March 25, 2008
We have just posted a new sermon called What If. Here’s an excerpt:Sometimes I hear well-meaning Christians say something like, “Even if it’s not true, it’s still better to be a Christian. Think of all the things you gain by being a Christian. You have Jesus in your heart.” No, you don’t! ...
Special Note for Our Canadian Friends
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, March 20, 2008
This note is for the Canadian friends of Keep Believing Ministries. When we redesigned the website, we added a special field to the Donate button that allows you to make your gift in Canadian funds. We are grateful for all our supporters who love us and pray for us and give to help this ministry go forward. And we’re ...
Basset Hound Theology
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, March 20, 2008
{{{ALIGN:right;THUMBNAILWIDTH:290;CAPTION:Gary makes himself comfortable;}}}As I was getting dressed early this morning, I heard a scratching at the bedroom door. I knew instinctively that it was Gary, one of our two fine basset hounds. Whenever I get up, no matter how early, Gary knows it because he has finely-tuned hearin ...
Welcome!
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, March 6, 2008
Welcome to the new Keep Believing website. Please pardon our dust! This website represents a major expansion of our ministry in order to make our resources available to more people in more places. In designing this site, we kept two things in mind:1) Making this site easy to navigate.2) Making it easy for new people to find ...
Me and Kenny Rogers
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Yesterday during my morning message at the Pastors Conference in Oklahoma, I mentioned going “all in” for Jesus. Today the men gave me a CD from Kenny Rogers featuring his song “The Gambler."I have been to a number of pastors conferences, but I’ve never met a more lively bunch than those guys in Oklahoma. They really ...
KBM Website Update
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, March 1, 2008
For over a year we have been working on a major overhaul of the Keep Believing website. We started talking about it in February 2007, discussed it in detail last July and again in September, and in November we hired Derek Taylor of Taylor Design Studios to rebuild the KBM website from the ground up. I am glad to report th ...
The Biggest Number in the World
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, February 29, 2008
I heard about a Chinese pastor who said he often asks his congregation, “What is the biggest number in the world?” People usually say something like a trillion times a trillion times a trillion. The largest number anyone has ever given a name to is the googolplex. The pastor then points out that the biggest number in the wo ...
Photos from the Florida State Fair
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, February 10, 2008
Tonight Marlene and I went with Scott and Doreen Mahlstedt to visit the Florida State Fair in Tampa. Incredible weather—mid-70s, blue sky, light breeze plus vast crowds of people, music, rides, lights, cotton candy, corn dogs, deep-fried peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and funnel cakes. We had a blast. I’m going t ...
From Tupelo to Florida to China—and My New Favorite Soft Drink
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, February 9, 2008
At the moment it is 5:36 AM and I am (mostly) wide awake. In 24 minutes we leave for the Tupelo airport where we will fly to Memphis and then on to Tampa for a week of ministry at Word of Life Florida in Hudson, about 40 minutes north of Tampa. I have lost track of how many times we’ve made this trip, but I know I&rsq ...
Anchor in Iraq
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, December 8, 2007
A few years ago we sent 5000 copies of An Anchor for the Soul to Word of Life in New York where they were bundled with a New Testament and a Quiet Time Diary. These Solider Quiet Time Packs were then sent to our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. We just received this report (via Wayne Lewis) from a soldier serving in Iraq:I j ...
Happy Birthday, Mark!
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, December 8, 2007
Today Mark celebrates his 26th birthday. Back in 1981 I was pastoring Redeemer Covenant Church in Downey, California (a Los Angeles suburb). Mark was born in nearby Whittier. Two years later we moved to Garland, Texas (a Dallas suburb) where I became the pastor of Northeast Bible Church. Soon thereafter we enrolled Mark in ...
Bangkok Women’s Prison Slideshow
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, December 6, 2007
In late September Marlene and I traveled to Thailand for ten days. We were joined in Thailand by Bill and Mary Jo Price of Columbus, Ohio. During our time there we met missionaries Charles and Lourdes Holmes. Lourdes has served in Thailand for forty years. A large part of their very effective ministry involves reaching out ...
Twenty-Five Christmas Sermons
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Here are twenty-five Christmas sermons. You are welcome to use this material in any way that might be helpful to you as you prepare your heart for the celebration of our Lord’s birth. When Was Jesus Born? Overcoming LonelinessDoes Jesus Know My Name?Out of EgyptThe King Has Come!Dear Sarah: A Letter About Forgiveness ...
KBM Board Meeting Last Friday Night
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, November 5, 2007
Last Friday night the Keep Believing board met in Elmhurst, IL. We had two special visitors that evening. Ernie Schulz joined us to talk about the Anchor Book Depot, and Derek Taylor presented a plan for the brand-new Keep Believing website that will be introduced in January. Pictured from left to right around the table are ...
Wet Chilly This Morning
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, November 4, 2007
I saw what looked like frost on the windows when I woke up this morning. When I stepped outside, it was colder than I expected. Laura just walked by and we decided that it is “wet chilly” this morning, which means the temperature is in the mid-30s with cloudy skies and high humidity. Of course, this is only a harbinger of t ...
Welcome, KLFC Listeners
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, October 23, 2007
This morning I did an interview with Charlie Engram & Keith O’Neil on KLFC in Branson, Missouri. The program is called “Good Morning, Ozarks.” We were talking about my book Stealth Attack. We started by discussing spiritual warfare in an age of terror and the importance of Christians being ready for the attacks of the ...
A Blurry-eyed, Foggy-headed Itch Mite—That’s Me
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, October 22, 2007
10:39 AM Albany (NY) AirportIt’s Monday morning and we’re on our way home to Tupelo after a fantastic couples conference at Word of Life. Marlene and I were both nervous going into it—no, that’s not true—I was nervous, she wasn’t, she told me it would go fine, and it did. As we were preparing, it o ...
Five Down, Five to Go
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, October 9, 2007
A few random thoughts on why we do what we do . . .1) We are the middle of ten straight Sundays when I will be away from Tupelo. So far on consecutive Sundays I’ve been in Chicago, Normal, IL, Durango, CO, Thailand (two Sundays), and Los Angeles. Starting this Sunday it will be Reno, NV, Schroon Lake, NY, Grand Ledge, ...
Men As Trees Walking
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, October 7, 2007
We have justed a new sermon on the website: Men As Trees Walking. Here’s an excerpt:We don’t get better at the same rate or in the same way.This is a good word for all of us who are praying for our loved ones who are away from the Lord. How often have we done what these neighbors and friends did for this blind m ...
Podcasting in a Closet
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, September 13, 2007
Today I’ve been working on recording the introduction and the closing segments for our brand-new Keep Believing podcast. Even though the total recording time is only 30 seconds for the opening and a little over a minute for the closing, it hasn’t gone as smoothly as you might think.For one thing, I’ve been ...
French Edition of “The Healing Power of Forgiveness
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, September 12, 2007
The French edition of The Healing Power of Forgiveness has just been released. It is available fromEditions VidaChemin du Moulin VedelR.N. 113Mas des Rosiers30900 NIMESFrance
Anchor Updates
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, September 9, 2007
Here are two quick updates:1) An Anchor for the Soul has just been published in French by a publisher in Montreal. We received our copy a few days ago. Originally the book was published to coincide with a conference where I’m speaking in Montreal in November but now the book has been released for the general public.2) ...
Is It Hard to Keep Believing?
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, September 8, 2007
I’m writing this note at the end of a very exciting day at the Keep Believing board retreat in McHenry, Illinois. This morning Peter Faulkner led us in a brain-stretching exercise that started with a discussion of intentionality and ended up with the walls covered with erasable sheets of thin while plastic filled with ...
Let’s Bring Back the Holy Kiss
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, September 7, 2007
We have just posted a new sermon called Let’s Bring Back the Holy Kiss. Here’s an excerpt:There are still cultures where the holy kiss is practiced today. I’ll never forget my first trip to St. Petersburg, Russia with John and Helen Sergey. When the men of the Temple of the Gospel greeted John, one after a ...
KBM Board Retreat
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, September 6, 2007
This morning Marlene and I on the road again, driving to Chicago for the Keep Believing board retreat this weekend. Starting tomorrow night our board is meeting in McHenry (located on the Fox River northwest of Chicago, not far from the Wisconsin border). Here is part of an email I sent to the board a few days ago in prepar ...
Radio Interview with Kim Jeffries today at 1 PM
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, September 5, 2007
I am doing a live radio interview with Kim Jeffries on KTIS in Minneapolis (and on the Northwestern radio network) from 1:10-45 PM today. Thursday update: The interview went great. We talked about Fire and Rain, my new book on the life of Elijah. At the end Kim asked me to pray for the listeners who were struggling with dis ...
A New Eye Chart in Ecuador
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Last week a team from Harrisburg Baptist Church in Tupelo, Mississippi traveled to the mountains of Ecuador for a medical missions trip. They stayed at a hotel located at 7000 feet above sea level, and during they day they ran a free clinic for a village at 10,500 feet. Several area doctors and nurses went on the trip along ...
Mark and Vanessa—and Parker!
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Last night we had dinner with Mark and Vanessa and Parker, their nine-month-old Maltese they brought with them from California. After the meal Mark pointed out that this was their one-month anniversary. Since getting married on July 28, they have been to Puerto Vallarta for their honeymoon, back to California for a few days ...
Cover Art for French Version of An Anchor for the Soul
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, August 14, 2007
This morning we received a copy of the cover art for the French version of An Anchor for the Soul. The book will be released on August 27. It didn’t work to literally translate the title from English so the French version comes out as “A Refuge for the Soul.” The graphic artist totally changed the cover to give it a v ...
BevReview.com
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, August 13, 2007
Since 2001 Steve and Amy Tanner have been reviewing soft drinks on their personal weblog. Recently their decided to take all those reviews and create a spin-off website called BevReview.com. Here you can find candid comments about such drinks as . . .Boylan Bottleworks Root BeerJones Naturals Berry WhiteCoke ZeroPepsi Twist ...
An Atheist Finds Christ in New Zealand
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Robin Brooks, a missionary serving in New Zealand, sent me the following story:Tracey is a university student in New Zealand. She claimed to be an atheist, but had some very unusual life goals. One of them was to attend a church sometime in her life. In February, a week before university started, Tracey advertised for a &ld ...
All You Need is Love
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, July 30, 2007
Things are winding down in California. Most of the people who flew in for the wedding have left already. We’re hitting the road ourselves in another hour or two. Late last night as I crawled into bed, dead tired, I thought about how impossibly crammed the last four days have been. Our wedding trip has been an unqualif ...
God Did It!
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, July 24, 2007
A few days ago I posted some pictures from the Anchor Book Depot in Chicago. That day we were shipping books to Dr. Bob Cosby in Logansport, Indiana. Here is an email we received from him this morning:Got the Anchor books the other day and have already had an inmate relate his testimony of having been saved as a result of h ...
Wedding Week
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, July 23, 2007
This is Monday of wedding week. By this Saturday our entire family will be in Atwater, California (in central California, in the San Joaquin Valley, between Modesto and Fresno, more or less due east and over the mountains from San Jose) for the wedding of our son Mark and Vanessa Friesen. Already the westward migration has ...
Pictures from the Anchor Book Depot
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, July 16, 2007
This morning I visited the Anchor Book Depot in Chicago for the first time. I traveled to the storage facility with Cliff Raad and Skip Olson. Ernie Schulz met us at Hall’s Self-Storage Facility where we rent a locker. Ernie is amazingly organized. He came with UPS shipping labels already filled out. But best of all, ...
Breaking Points
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, July 14, 2007
We have just posted a new sermon called Breaking Points. Here’s an excerpt:I have a friend who is going through a crisis regarding his newborn grandchildren who are having serious medical issues. He spoke of being on a roller coaster of emotions as the doctors first gave bad news, then good news, then news that is som ...
Anchor Books Being Sent Out
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, July 7, 2007
Now that the Anchor Book Depot in Chicago is operational, we have started sending out shipments to the following ministries:Pacific Garden Mission (Chicago)Pontiac (IL) Bible ChurchThe Mailbox Club (Valdosta, GA)A church in Kansas City, MOA jail in Santa Rita, CAAnd there are othe requests pending.
China Clippings
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, July 7, 2007
Anthony Bollback has just posted the latest edition of China Clippings. Here’s an excerpt:University students in China are showing signs that they will be the next great wave of evangelism in China. In the last issue of CHINA CLIPPINGS it was reported that evangelism is leaping forward among China’s university s ...
Keep Believing Granted 501c3 Status
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, July 2, 2007
I have some very good news to share with you regarding Keep Believing Ministries. Today we received our official notification from the IRS that we have been granted 501c3 status as a tax-exempt non-profit organization. This means that contributions to Keep Believing are considered charitable contributions and are deductible ...
Camp Nathanael
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, July 2, 2007
This week Marlene and I are at Camp Nathanael in Emmalena, Kentucky. If you don’t know where that is, we’re in far southeastern Kentucky, a few miles east of Hazard, not far from Pigeonroost, Topmost, Dwarf, and a few miles from a community named Rowdy. Emmalena is not a large town. It’s a store, a school ...
Anchor Books Delivered to Chicago
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Earlier today 50,000 copies of An Anchor for the Soul were delivered to our storage facility in Chicago. This means the Anchor Book Depot has officially been reopened. You can read more about it here. We plan to donate the books for the following four purposes:Prison MinistryMilitary MinistryDisaster ReliefMissionary Outrea ...
Mission to Amish People
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Tonight I ate dinner with John Bouquet who is also teaching here at Word of Life this week. Because his church is located in an area with many Amish people, they support a ministry called Mission to Amish People. John said there are 60-70 former Amish who have come to Christ and now attend the church he pastors. Joe Keim wh ...
Global Proclamation Academy
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Today I taught at the Global Proclamation Academy (GPA) in Dallas, a unique training opportunity for younger leaders from emerging countries. The requirements for attending GPA state that you must be under 35, already an active Christian leader in your country, and you must be recommended to attend GPA. Only one person is c ...
Book Depot Update
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, June 20, 2007
A few weeks ago I announced that we are reopening the Anchor Book Depot in Chicago. Last month the board of Keep Believing Ministries approved an initial order of 50,000 copies of An Anchor for the Soul that will be given away for:Prison MinistryMilitary MinistryDisaster ReliefMissionary OutreachWe just learned that the boo ...
Bits and Pieces
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, June 20, 2007
*Here are three blogs worth checking out:The Normal Christian BlogBiblicalStudies.org.ukDigiTrail Blaze*Good News from China. There has been a Christian explosion among Chinese intellectuals. Read the whole article and you’ll discover that the term explosion is not an exaggeration. The church is China continues to gro ...
Prison Poetry
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Last week I mentioned that we are reprinting An Anchor for the Soul and reestablishing the Book Depot. We plan to donate the books to prison ministries, military ministries, disaster relief, and for direct missionary outreach. Yesterday I answered a big stack of prisoner letters that had accumulated over the last several mo ...
Alaska!
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, May 28, 2007
Although it took us 19 hours of travel, we finally made it to our hotel room in Fairbanks, Alaska about 10:30 PM last night. We immediately noticed that the sun had not yet gone down. In fact, sunset was listed at 11:50 PM and sunrise was set for 3:18 AM. That’s less that four hours of darkness, which is a misnomer be ...
Anchor Book Depot Update
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, May 23, 2007
When we started Keep Believing Ministries a year ago, our first goal was to restart the Book Depot that allowed us to distribute over 300,000 of copies of An Anchor for the Soul for use in prison ministry, military ministry, disaster relief ministry, and for general missionary outreach. It has taken most of this first year ...
On the Road to Birmingham
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, May 23, 2007
This morning we are packing for the start of another long trip. In a few hours we’re leaving for Birmingham for Nick’s graduation this Saturday from Samford University. We’re going early because I’m speaking tonight at 6:30 PM at CrossPoint Church in Trussville, a suburb on the NE side of Birmingham. ...
Online Interviews for Stealth Attack
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, May 15, 2007
In the last several weeks I’ve done a number of radio interviews relating to Stealth Attack, my new book on spiritual warfare. Here are three that you can hear online:Open Line with Chris FabryThe Don Kroah ShowToday’s Issues on American Family Radio
Cleaning House or Redecorating?
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, May 14, 2007
Recently I met someone who is a bit discouraged because his church has gone through several staff changes. Pastors who had been in that church for years have announced that they will soon be moving to other ministries. The person said, “I think God is cleaning house."To which I replied, “Perhaps he’s just redecorating ...
God’s Multicultural Church
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, May 13, 2007
We have just posted a new sermon called God’s Multicultural Church. Here’s an excerpt:We have some young friends in their early 20s who serve as pioneer missionaries to an unreached people group on the other side of the world. When I say “unreached,” I mean that in the literal sense. They are so far away from Am ...
Grumblers Anonymous
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, May 6, 2007
We have just posted a new sermon called Grumblers Anonymous. I preached this sermon at the Spring Bible Conference at New Brunswick Bible Institute, April 26-29, 2007. The conference ended with the graduation ceremonies. This message was part of my series on the parables of Jesus. Here’s an excerpt:I want to make a fe ...
Woodward Avenue Baptist Church
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, April 16, 2007
Yesterday Marlene and I had a wonderful time at Woodward Avenue Baptist Church in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. I grew up in that area so it was a sort of homecoming for me even though I didn’t know most of the people in the congregation. Pastor Ron Ethridge is a personal friend so we felt enormously welcomed from the momen ...
Exciting Days
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, April 12, 2007
These are exciting days at Keep Believing Ministries . . .* We recently completed the first phase of our Anchor for China project that will allow us to equip 50,000 Chinese pastors and house church leaders will copies of the Chinese version of An Anchor for the Soul.*We received permission to post the Chinese version of An ...
Don Imus and Us
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Don Imus, the hugely popular radio shock jock, made headlines last week for using a racial epithet to describe the Rutgers University women’s basketball team. There is no need to repeat what he said here. Everyone has read it and heard it numerous times. And there is no need to attempt a defense for the indefensible. ...
Leah’s New Sermon CD Covers
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, April 5, 2007
Check out the brand-new sermon CD covers Leah designed for the five CD sets we plan to offer. Click on the Stealth Attack cover and a slide show will come up on your screen. It will take you through the CD covers and the individual CD labels for all five sets. Leah did the designs and Josh helped post them on the Internet.O ...
The Preacher and the Atheist
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, April 4, 2007
Check out the Newsweek-sponsored discussion/debate between Rick Warren and Sam Harris. Rick is the pastor of one of America’s largest churches and author of the mega-bestseller, the Purpose-Driven Life. Sam is a noted author and an atheist who recently wrote a provocative column called God’s Dupes.Newsweek intro ...
Hell and Holy Week
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, April 2, 2007
Last week the Pope made headlines when he said that hell is a real place. Addressing a parish gathering in a suburb of Rome, he said noted that hell “really exists and is eternal, even if nobody talks about it much any more.” He’s definitely right that we don’t talk about it very much, even in church.When was th ...
Begin to Weave and God Will Give the Thread
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, March 31, 2007
Years ago I ran across a German proverb that says, “Begin to weave and God will give the thread.” I always thought that was an extremely good way to look at life. Hebrews 11:1 reminds us that faith is the “evidence of things not seen.” Faith sees what others can’t and acts accordingly. Faith thus is not a feeling but ...
Father, Forgive Them
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, March 30, 2007
We have just posted a new sermon called Father, Forgive Them. Here is an excerpt:In order to come to grips with the healing power of forgiveness, we need two things: soft hearts and courage. Some of us have been deeply hurt by the things others have done to us. People have attacked us, maligned us, mistreated us, abused us, ...
Would You Like a Free Copy of Stealth Attack?
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, March 26, 2007
Would you like a free copy of my newest book, Stealth Attack: Protecting Yourself Against Satan’s Plan to Destroy Your Life?I would like to give you a free copy if you will help us get the word out. Before I explain how you can get a copy, let me tell you about the book.Stealth Attack contains clear teaching about spi ...
Pontiac Bible Church
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, March 25, 2007
Here are some pictures from our visit to Pontiac (IL) Bible Church. I first met Brian Bill in May 1989 when I was a visiting preacher at Calvary Memorial Church in Oak Park. After I became the senior pastor, we served together on staff for three years and developed a friendship that has continued to this day. Seven-and-a-ha ...
Latest News from the KBM World Headquarters
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, March 20, 2007
This Sunday I’m speaking at Pontiac (IL) Bible Church in both morning services. This is a treat for me on several levels. When we moved to Oak Park in 1989, Brian Bill was one of the pastors on staff at Calvary Memorial Church. I knew immediately that he was a gifted leader. I can remember telling him early on that pa ...
A Note to Bellsouth Customers
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, March 19, 2007
Several weeks ago I wrote about the problems that some people have receiving the weekly email sermons. In almost every case it happens because various companies use anti-spam filters that mistakenly regard the sermons as spam. Over the weekend we learned that Bellsouth has flagged the sermons as spam and has placed them in ...
Why We Don’t Have to Win Every Argument
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, March 19, 2007
We have just posted a new sermon on the website:Why We Don’t Have to Win Every ArgumentHere’s an excerpt:When I lived in Dallas in the 80s, I became friends with Oliver Price, director of the Bible Prayer Fellowship. He wrote a document called Forgotten Secrets to a Live Prayer Meeting. The subtitle tells you wh ...
Skip and Dudley
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, March 17, 2007
Yesterday Skip Olson drove down from Chicago to spend the weekend with us. When I sent him email instructions, they included 41 specific steps, starting with “Take I-57 south until it hits I-55 in Missouri,” which covers six hours of driving, and then “Stop at Lambert’s Café (home of “throwed rolls”) in Si ...
Mid-Afternoon Ramblings
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, March 14, 2007
It’s time to go for a bike ride. But first a few items on my desk . . . 1) Doug Bandow offers an up-to-date look on the struggle for religious liberty in China. Here is the money quote:Yet even as the PRC grows in international confidence, its Communist party remains paranoid, fearful of the very diversity encouraged ...
The Million-Dollar Infant Baptism
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, March 8, 2007
Several weeks ago I had the unique experience of witnessing my first infant baptism. I suppose that one statement says a lot about my own spiritual background in that I managed to live 54 years without ever seeing an infant baptism in person. I was raised Baptist and have spent my ministerial career serving in churches that ...
O’Hare Airport, 4:52 AM
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, February 20, 2007
I am writing these words at 4:52 AM at Gate L9 in Terminal 3 of O’Hare Airport in Chicago. Last night, which really hasn’t ended yet, we had a Keep Believing Ministries board meeting that finally wrapped up sometime after 11 PM. We did our final packing and got to bed about 12:30 AM. That was OK except that we c ...
Early Morning Wake-Up Call
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, February 16, 2007
Our day started unexpectedly at 3:14 AM with a phone call that jarred me out of a very deep sleep. Looking back, I was so fast asleep that when I woke up, I couldn’t quite figure out what was happening. It turned out to be Delta Airlines telling us that our 11 AM flight to Atlanta had been cancelled for mechanical rea ...
Podcast on “He Descended Into Hell”
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, February 15, 2007
On Tuesday I did an interview with Kevin McCullough on WMCA in New York. Each month we take a chapter of my book Credo and discuss it on the air. Since the book is based on the Apostles’ Creed, this is an amazing opportunity to discuss the Christian faith on the number one Christian station in America’s largest ...
Do Pastors Exaggerate Attendance Figures?
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, February 12, 2007
A recent survey on One News Now asks, “Do Evangelical Pastors exaggerate attendance and conversion numbers?” According to 63% of those who responded to the online survey, the answer is yes, pastors do sometimes exaggerate attendance figures. The non-scientific survey was occasioned by an article called Body-Count Evangelism ...
Moving Day
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, January 5, 2007
For the last few months we have been working on a redesign of the KBM website. Part of that process involves moving all our files to a new server. Like any large project, it takes time and must be done in a series of steps. We begin that process today. One of our goals is not to lose any of your comments during this transit ...
Sandy Spisiak
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, January 4, 2007
When word came that Sandy Spisiak died last night, succumbing finally to the cancer that had dogged her steps for the last seven years, I was sad but not surprised. Nor, I suppose, was anyone surprised who knew her during the long years when she fought as hard as anyone could ever fight to stay alive. She was around 40 when ...
KBM and the Internet
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, December 13, 2006
Last month I wrote about how the Internet is changing ministry. This week I received two emails that illustrate the point:1) From Malaysia Dr Pritchard, I wish to request for your permission to print 2 of your articles for our church bulletin. 1) The Agape Factor (16/11/2006) 2) How To Be A Godly Rebel (8/12/2006) My church ...
Four More Christmas Sermons
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, December 13, 2006
As you can tell, I’ve been ransacking my sermon archives to pull up all the Christmas sermons. This is part of our commitment at KBM to provide a wide range of free biblical resources via the Internet to people around the world. In the process, I discovered four sermons that had never been posted on the website. I jus ...
What’s a Shout Out?
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, December 9, 2006
Last night Duane Follman asked me to explain a “shout out.” It’s means to shout out “hello” to a friend. It’s like when you’re walking down a crowded street and see a friend on the other side so you raise your voice and shout out, “Hello!” to him. A shout out is a heartfelt Hello! to friends across the dis ...
It’s Beginning to Feel a Lot Like Chicago
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, December 7, 2006
After wrapping up the conference at Word of Life yesterday morning, we made our way to the Albany airport. From there we flew to New York and then on to Chicago. Our plane came in over Lake Michigan after sundown, giving us a spectacular view of the lights of downtown Chicago. The whole region is blanketed with six inches o ...
New KBM Brochure
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, November 30, 2006
Check out the new brochure for Keep Believing Ministries .
Steve Tanner’s 25 Days of Christmas Music
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, November 29, 2006
Check out Steve Tanner’s 25 Days of Christmas Music. Here is his explanation: Starting December 1 through December 25, I’ll be posting a new song each day that you can download, no strings attached. It’s all FREE, FREE, FREE! Songs will be in MP3 format — so you can listen via any media player or your iPo ...
Don’t You Believe in Miracles?
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, November 24, 2006
Here is the sermon I preached last Sunday at Calvary Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan:Don’t You Believe in Miracles?
Questions from the Weekend
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, October 29, 2006
During the Q&A times at the conference, we answered common questions about prayer plus we took specific questions from the audience. Here are some of the questions with my comments in bold type:1) If God is sovereign, why pray? We pray to express our complete dependence on our Heavenly Father. We pray because God comman ...
Swimming Upstream
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, October 15, 2006
Here is the newest sermon in the series The Transformed Life:Swimming Upstream
Switching to the ESV
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, October 4, 2006
Starting this week, I am switching to the English Standard Version in my preaching ministry. I’m making the move partly out of the necessity to get a new Bible. For almost ten years, I’ve used a large-print NIV, but it is so worn and torn that it needs to be replaced. I had been thinking about making the switch ...
Faith Bible Church
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, September 19, 2006
I have returned home from a weekend trip to New Jersey to speak at Faith Bible Church in Vineland, in south Jersey about 45 minutes east of Philadelphia. I was pleased to discover that there are many Word of Life connections at the church. Pastor Paul Barreca and his wife Kim met at Word of Life Bible Institute and many of ...
123 Days, 2 Hours, 50 Minutes, 5 Seconds
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, September 16, 2006
Mark has a MySpace China blog. His counter says that there are 123 days, 2 hours, 50 minutes, 5 seconds until the Holy Land tour, January 17-26, 2007. By the way, we now have 15 people signed up for the tour. We expect to have a group of 25-30 people. If you are thinking about going with us, now is the time to sign up.
Wash For Life
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, September 16, 2006
Today is Wash for Life . I hope this great idea spreads to thousands of youth groups next year.
A Life Founded on a Doctrine
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, September 15, 2006
In 1923, J. Gresham Machen wrote a groundbreaking book called Christianity and Liberalism. A leader in the conservative movement within the Presbyterian Church, Machen wrote the book to demonstrate the fundamental difference between biblical Christianity and liberal Christianity. Looking back on the controversy his book pro ...
Anchor for China Project Nears Completion
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, September 13, 2006
In June we announced the Anchor for China project. We asked the Lord to help us equip 25,000 Chinese pastors and church leaders will free copies of Anchor for the Soul, a simple presentation of the gospel. Even though the book has only been in print since March, it has already been widely distributed. Several bookstores hav ...
Korean Version of “Beyond All You Could Ask or Think”
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Several years ago I wrote a book based on the prayers of Paul called Beyond All you Could Ask or Think. The Korean version has just been released by DMI Press in Seoul, Korea.
Manhood in Action
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, September 11, 2006
It’s been a whirlwind day that really started last night in Columbus when Bill and Mary Jo Price hosted a get-together to introduce some of their friends to Keep Believing Ministries. Duke Heller went out of his way to invite people so we had around 45 people who came for food and fellowship and stayed to learn about ...
A Scene Out of the Waltons
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, September 10, 2006
After I finished my final session of the Word of Life conference in Kokomo, Bob Cosby picked me up and we drove to Logansport, about 35 minutes away. He and Cathy live out in the country along with six of their eight children and Bob’s parents in a old farmhouse they are restoring. To call it a farmhouse is a bit of a ...
Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, September 7, 2006
Tomorrow morning starts a very busy period for us. I’m flying to Indianapolis and then driving to Kokomo for a two-day Word of Life leadership conference. I speak once tomorrow night and three times on Saturday. Then on Sunday morning I fly from Indianapolis to Columbus, OH by way of Chicago. At the same time Marlene ...
More Good News From China
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, September 7, 2006
Anthony Bollback has just posted the September edition of China Clippings. As always, the news from the Middle Kingdom is a mixed bag. Along with open doors, repression seems to be on the increase. (See Behind China’s Big Chill for details.) But here’s some good news about reaching Chinese students who have come ...
KBM Update—August 25
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, August 25, 2006
It’s been a while since I’ve passed along news about Keep Believing Ministries (KBM). A lot has happened over the summer, much of it behind the scenes work related to getting this new ministry established on a firm foundation. 1) Go to the About page if you’d like to know our vision in more detail. You&rsq ...
KBM Board of Reference
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, August 25, 2006
Early in June we began assembling the KBM Board of Reference. These are key Christian leaders from around the country who believe in this ministry and are willing to lend their names to help us as we get started. We are grateful for their support and encouragement. I hope you will visit their websites and get to know them a ...
100 Things Learned the Hard Way
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, August 25, 2006
Jim Jackson has written 100 Things I’ve Learned the Hard Way as a Senior Pastor That I’ve Never Read in a Book. Pastors who read this list will nod in agreement. Church members will understand their pastor better. The following items caught my attention4. Choose your battles carefully; ask yourself, “Is th ...
One-Sentence Prayers
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, August 23, 2006
Recently I have been thinking about the prayers I pray, especially the one-sentence prayers that come so often to mind. These are “arrow prayers” that shoot from earth to heaven and reach the heart of God. If it seems odd to pray one-sentence prayers, I remind you that the Lord’s Prayer is essentially six short petiti ...
Thousands Are Asking
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, August 9, 2006
1) When are you going to start blogging again?Today! 2) What did you do on your summer vacation?Preached for a week in Oregon, then for most of a week in New York, then Josh and Leah got married in Vermont, then we traveled back to Tupelo where we spent a few days with Mark before he flew back to China. I preached at Harris ...
MY TURN
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, July 11, 2006
Guest blog by Peter R. Faulkner, Director of North American Ministries, the Mailbox Club, Valdosta, GA As a friend of Ray Pritchard for 34 years and a Board Member of Keep Believing Ministries, I am excited with the prospects about what the Lord can do through this ministry. To sense Ray’s keen desire to be of help ...
MEF Conference Messages
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, June 25, 2006
Here are the four messages I preached at the MEF Bible Conference in Colorado Springs last week:Monday seminar: Praying For Your Prodigal Tuesday night: God’s Freedom Thursday night: If I Believe, Why Do I Doubt? Friday morning: How to Help a CavemanOn Thursday afternoon Marlene and I led a seminar on forgiveness. You ...
KBM Anchor for China Project
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, June 17, 2006
At the recent Keep Believing Ministries (KBM) board retreat, we unanimously approved making China our first major project. Despite decades of Communist oppression, the church in China has not only survived—it has thrived. Here are three articles that explain the amazing growth of the church in the world’s most populo ...
Seeking Help for the KBM Logo
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, June 16, 2006
At the KBM board retreat two weeks ago, we discussed the need for a logo that could be used on our website and on all of our printed material. Here is a quote taken verbatim from the minutes of the retreat: KBM LOGO: By general consensus, it was determined that Ray would issue a general appeal via the “blog” as ...
Singing Through the Lord’s Prayer, Part 1
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, June 12, 2006
A few years ago I wrote a book on the Lord’s Prayer called And When You Pray. Shortly after I turned in the manuscript but before the book was published, I spent a week speaking at Word of Life in Schroon Lake, New York. I spent several afternoons walking the streets of that quaint village, praying the Lord’s Pr ...
“You Must Not Fear Them”
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, June 7, 2006
I taught three sessions at the GPA today. In the first hour, we covered the importance of the Apostles’ Creed and the fact that Christianity is a doctrinal faith. G. A. Studdert Kennedy put the matter in perspective: All men act upon their real creed. It may not be the creed that they profess, because they may be liar ...
Rummaging Through the Internet
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, June 1, 2006
Useful things I’ve found while rummaging through the Internet . . .Bill Hull points out four ways we do the right thing in the wrong way.Mark Dever explains the relationship between biblical authority and the complementarian view of gender roles. Big Orange Truck has a lot on his mind these days. He has some excellent ...
Credo Interview on Prime Time America Today
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, May 31, 2006
Yesterday I learned that Credo: Believing in Something to Die For has been nominated for an ECPA Christian Book Award in the Christian Living category. The news came as a nice surprise to me. I had no idea Credo was being considered until I heard from the publisher (Crossway Books) that it had been named a finalist for the ...
Keep Believing Ministries
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, May 15, 2006
A few days ago I announced the formation of Keep Believing Ministries (KBM). Over the weekend we obtained a mailing address and opened a bank account.The new address is:Keep Believing Ministries P.O. Box 257 Elmhurst, IL 60126The effect of this is that KBM is now immediately in a position to receive tax deductible donation ...
Green and Greener
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, May 11, 2006
We drove all the way back from Chicago to our cabin in the woods in exactly 12 hours. Leaving Oak Park at 6:30 AM, we zipped down I-57, stopping for lunch at Lambert’s Cafe in Sikeston, MO, home of “throwed rolls”. Several years ago the Food Network voted Lambert’s one of the top ten home cooking restaurants in ...
Chinese Translation of ABCs of Wisdom
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, April 9, 2006
We just received word three days ago that the Chinese translation of the ABCs of Wisdom has been officially approved for publication in China. The book contains 100 character studies based on the book of Proverbs. Here are two pictures of the book: Here is the special introduction to the Chinese version:It is an honor f ...
The Couples Retreat
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, April 8, 2006
9:58 PM The couples retreat seemed to go very well. I spoke three times, on “Respect: The Foundation of a Strong Marriage,” “A Judgmental Spirit: The Enemy of a Happy Marriage,” and “Commitment: The Key to a Lasting Marriage.” There was lots of chatter and laughter before and after the sessions, and a good bit of give-and-t ...
Another Atheist Goes to Church
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, March 31, 2006
Cedric Stratton is an atheist. He is also a regular attender at St. Luke’s Lutheran Church in Savannah, Georgia. In the eleven years he has attended the church, he has become a beloved part of the congregation. According to this article, Stratton attends nearly every worship service and church event. He volunteers for ...
Mark and His Team in China
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, March 27, 2006
Here is a picture of Mark and his team in China. Scroll down to see a picture of Mark by himself.
Resignation Fever
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, March 22, 2006
Earlier today I received word regarding a friend who serves on the staff of a local church. After only a few months on the job, he resigned yesterday. While there were various factors involved, it came down to the fact that he and the senior pastor did not see eye to eye on some important issues. He plans to stay on the job ...
Cold and Rainy
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, March 20, 2006
8:53 AM We have just posted two new sermons on the website:Who Do Men Say That I Am? Singing Your Way to Victory8:48 AM This weekend another team from Pontiac (IL) Bible Church is heading to Biloxi to help with Hurricane Katrina relief efforts. I’m planning on driving from Tupelo to Batesville on Saturday to deliver ...
Quick Notes from Camp Wonderland
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Tuesday, March 14, 2006
Odds and Ends . . .1) My picture showed up on a friend’s weblog. Scroll down to see if you agree with comparison. I think this is some guy on American Idol. I’ll like it better if he wins the whole thing. 2) I’m writing this note from Camp Wonderland in southern Wisconsin. I’ve here as the Bible teac ...
Corinth, Jacinto, Shiloh
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, March 10, 2006
10:53 AM On Tuesday we received this note from ZDL Books in Beijing: “The first print run (of the Chinese version of An Anchor for the Soul) started today.” This is wonderful news, and the printing would not have been possible without the generous giving of many people in many places. Thanks again to everyone who supported ...
Flying to Dallas
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, February 18, 2006
My trip to Dallas for the NRB convention started in the Tupelo airport when Marvin Sanders from American Family Radio came up and said hello. He was heading to NRB also. During the flight from Memphis to Dallas, I noticed a young man sitting across the aisle who looked vaguely familiar. Marvin (who was sitting behind me) le ...
I’m Glad It’s Friday—Are You?
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, February 17, 2006
4:18 PM Cliff Raad has just informed me that earlier today, we wired $22,550 to our publisher in Beijing for the printing of An Anchor for the Soul in Chinese. People from across America contributed to the project. Special thanks to everyone who made a gift to the China Book Fund.8:52 AM Winter has returned with a vengeance ...
Evolution or God
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, December 22, 2005
12:44 PM Each year Steve and Amy Tanner rate the Christmas decorations on State Street in Chicago. They have just posted the winners of the State Street Showdown. 12:44 PM Each year Steve and Amy Tanner rate the Christmas decorations on State Street in Chicago. They have just posted the winners of the State Street Showdown ...
Saturday, June 12, 2004
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, June 12, 2004
2:15 PM Today's entry in the Crosswalk weblog is called Notes From the Funeral 2:12 PM The Faith and Freedom Concert starts in 4 hours, 48 minutes. 2:11 PM The following people are being baptized tomorrow:8:30 AM Millie Bensen 10:00 AM Amanda Byrne Anthony Trader Jacob Trader Evan Trader Scott Hall 11:30 AM Pam Bartlett Luk...
Saturday, May 22, 2004
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Saturday, May 22, 2004
9:31 PM Craig Hammond called a few minutes ago with wonderful news. Megan delivered a baby boy at 7:08 PM. His name is Kyler Craig Hammond. Vital stats: 8 pounds, 6 ounces, 21 inches long. Mother is tired but happy, Kyler is doing great, Craig is delighted, and we're all celebrating the good news. 5:57 PM The rain held off ...
Monday, May 10, 2004
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, May 10, 2004
8:32 PM A bit of Serendipity … On Friday night after we finished our meal at La Piazza restaurant in Forest Park, Marlene and I were walking back to our car on Madison Street when we saw a teenager sitting on some steps next to the sidewalk. As we walked past, he called out, "Pastor Ray." It was John Stoffer who ...
Thursday, January 1, 2004
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Thursday, January 1, 2004
10:22 PM I just calculated that I wrote over 300,000 words in 2003. That counts sermons, back pages, articles, weblog entries, and one book manuscript. John Derbyshire did a similar calculation and concluded that he "beat the King James Bible" in 2003. He adds this insight: "The depressing thing about writing columns ...
Wednesday, December 31, 2003
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, December 31, 2003
11:37 PM Cotton Bowl countdown: 37 hours, 23 minutes. 11:35 PM The house is empty again. Nick and John Mark and Caleb are at a party in Elmhurst. Josh and Mark and Dave McKee went bowling and then downtown. So it’s Marlene and me. We had some some sparkling cranberry juice that curled my hair. She went to bed and I’m going ...
Sunday, November 2, 2003
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Sunday, November 2, 2003
9:23 AM Steve Chapman says a good word in favor of silence and introspection and blasts the incessant use of cell phones in all public places—he doesn't mention church services, but he could have. And I agree 100% with his comments. Nice excerpt:Hard as it may be to believe, people once managed to fill these idle mome...
Friday, October 31, 2003
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, October 31, 2003
12:41 PM This comes from the Heidelburg Catecism of 1563. Luther didn't write it (he was in heaven by then), but it truly reflects his sentiments.What is your only comfort in life and death? That I am not my own, but belong with body and soul, both in life and in death, to my faithful Saviour Jesus Christ. He has fully paid...
October 29, 2003, 2003
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Wednesday, October 29, 2003
10:01 PM Here's another example. I received a letter from Paul in prison in Charlotte, NC. He enclosed a greeting card signed by himself and other prisoners. It is addresed to "Dr. Ray and Mrs. Marlene and Calvary Members" Dr. Ray, we just wanted to show you our gratitude and thank you for all your support. We were the ...
Monday, October 20, 2003
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Monday, October 20, 2003
8:54 PM Bruce Thorn called tonight and we talked for 25 minutes. Our friendship goes back almost forty years, to the days when we grew up together in Russellville, Alabama. He and Anna and Elliot live in Sheffield, Alabama. Every time Bruce calls, he shares insights about the Lord that I don't get anywhere else. We talked a...
Friday, September 19, 2003
Posted by Ray Pritchard on Friday, September 19, 2003
10:47 PM Tonight Marlene and I did something unusual for us: We went to see a movie. I don't think we actually go to a movie theater more than once a year (although that may change a bit now that we are nearly empty-nesters). We saw the movie "Matchstick Men" at the Lake Theater in Oak Park. The movie has received rave ...
