This author has yet to write their bio.Meanwhile lets just say that we are proud Nik Ripken contributed a whooping 60 entries.
Many people have influenced our lives. People who have taught us life changing lessons, who have mentored us and invested in our lives. Al Crow was one of our teachers. This giant of a man went to his eternal home at 87 years of age and after 65 years of marriage. He and his wife […]
For over 35 years you have faithfully carried us through the most challenging situations with your prayers. As Nik Ripken Ministries launch into a period of great transition, we need you more than ever to remain a full-time partner through sacrificial prayer. Often readers of “The Insanity of God” book share with us their favorite […]
As followers of Jesus, we have chosen the side of good over evil. Nowhere is this clearer than in regions of the world where persecution is the costly price Christians pay for proclaiming the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ — places, for instance, where ISIS is ruthlessly executing our brothers and sisters in the […]
A Story from the African Church Jesus looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the offering box, and he saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins. And he said, “Truly, I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them. For they all contributed […]
Their words almost knocked me over. They hit me like a horse hoof to the gut. When I was a young boy, I helped my father train quarter horses. And we always felt the danger of being the recipient of a wayward hoof. One day, not paying close attention, I was kicked, leaving a […]
Let’s rewrite the biblical story found in Genesis 39–41. Let’s make it more Western. Let’s make the story fit the way most of us think about the church and the mission field. Imagine getting this newsletter from one of your overseas workers. The newsletter says this: Our brother, whom we love, has been arrested […]
When I read the Gospels for the first time, the repetition confused me. Why revisit the same story four times? Yet it was in and through that repetition that I fell deeply in love with Jesus. The Gospels invited me in, encouraging me to ask questions of God, to write myself into his story. […]
It is not a nice story but, sadly, it was a story all too common during the heyday of the Soviet Union. Understanding comes difficult at times. In Western cultures we generally believe that those in prison deserve to be in prison. But what if we lived for generations where many people in prison are […]
A leader in East Africa approached me, asking if we would provide training for about 35 Westerners who desired to share the Gospel with Muslim people. There was only one problem; none of them had ever met a Muslim before coming to the African continent! They offered to meet with us for one day so […]
Perhaps it’s not what you would expect from a faith-based person who had entered Somalia for the sake of the kingdom of God but I was severely tempted to put my hands around the throat of my Chief of Staff and do him bodily harm. Why such behavior? He almost got me killed. Our small […]