{"id":3560,"date":"2013-12-29T01:25:35","date_gmt":"2013-12-28T23:25:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/?p=3560"},"modified":"2013-12-29T01:35:41","modified_gmt":"2013-12-28T23:35:41","slug":"top-posts-of-2013","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/top-posts-of-2013\/","title":{"rendered":"Top Posts of 2013"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>2013 has come and now is almost gone. God blessed our family and ministry in many ways that I shared in this blog over the past year.<\/p>\n<p>I also used many of the lessons I learned in ministry and much of what God was teaching me through my study of the Bible as material for blog posts.<\/p>\n<p>Thanks for sticking with us in the journey as we seek to make God and the message of the gospel ring loud in and clear in Ukraine and beyond!<br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"3559\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/?attachment_id=3559\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/DSC06798.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"640,359\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;3.5&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;Picasa&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;NEX-3&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1387575808&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;18&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;6400&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.076923076923077&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;SONY DSC&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"SONY DSC\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/DSC06798.jpg\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-3559\" alt=\"SONY DSC\" src=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/DSC06798.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"359\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/DSC06798.jpg 640w, https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/DSC06798-300x168.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/DSC06798-600x336.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><br \/>\nWe have been serving the Lord full time in Odessa, Ukraine for just 7 years now and ironically my most popular post for 2013 was <a href=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/7-ways-to-fail-as-a-missionary\/\" target=\"_blank\">&#8220;7 ways to fail as a missionary&#8221;<\/a>\u00a0 I think there are a few reasons this post seemed to hit a nerve and was shared so widely on Facebook and Twitter.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>We all have a tendency to fail and to search for answers.<\/li>\n<li>Failure is one of our greatest teachers (if we approach it correctly).<\/li>\n<li>There can be high, too high of expectations put on those who are in ministry full time.<\/li>\n<li>For some reason failure is always more intriguing than success.<\/li>\n<li>I know that many other missionaries have experienced some of the failures I mentioned.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Here are the top ten posts for 2013!<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/7-ways-to-fail-as-a-missionary\/\" target=\"_blank\">7 Ways to Fail as a Missionary<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/5-reasons-you-need-to-read-jesus-religion-by-jefferson-bethke\/\" target=\"_blank\">5 Reasons You Need to Read Jesus &gt; Religion by Jefferson Bethke<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/?p=2901\" target=\"_blank\">How to Make Your Wife Submit to Your Authority -6 Tips<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/what-the-bible-says-about-kissing-might-surprise-you\/\" target=\"_blank\">What the Bible Says About Kissing Might Surprise You<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/are-you-a-fat-christian\/\" target=\"_blank\">Are You a Fat Christian?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/?p=2159\" target=\"_blank\">20 Benefits of Having a Bunch of Kids<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/?p=3099\" target=\"_blank\">Kissing Before Marriage and Other Questions Girls Ask<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/beards-why-you-should-have-one-men-only\/\" target=\"_blank\">Beards -Why You Should Have One (Men Only!)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/tensions-are-high-in-ukraine-prayers-needed\/\" target=\"_blank\">Tensions are high In Ukraine, Prayers Needed<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/15-demons-death-and-halloween-what-you-need-to-know\/\" target=\"_blank\">#15 Demons, Death and Halloween, What You Need to Know<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Here are a few other notable posts that didn&#8217;t make it into the top ten but did produce a lot of good discussion in the comments.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/stop-telling-your-child-to-behave\/\" target=\"_blank\">Stop Telling Your Child to Behave<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/why-are-our-youth-losing-the-faith\/\" target=\"_blank\">Why are Our Youth Losing the Faith?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/why-football-is-more-exciting-than-church\/\" target=\"_blank\">Why Football is More Exciting than Church<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/ministry-idols\/\" target=\"_blank\">Ministry Idols<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/why-american-christians-tend-to-be-fat-and-unhealthy\/\" target=\"_blank\">Why American Christians Tend to Be Fat and Unhealthy<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/the-problem-with-short-worship-services-in-the-church\/\" target=\"_blank\">The Problem with Short Worship Services in the Church<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The blog wouldn&#8217;t be what it is without all the great comments. Some comments have challenged me, encouraged me, helped me see something I missed and helped me to thinking deeper and in a new way about the content.<\/p>\n<p>I&#8217;m thankful for the significant input from some other great bloggers like \u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/tcavey.blogspot.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">TC Avey<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/theregoi.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Floyd Samons<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/danblackonleadership.info\/\" target=\"_blank\">Dan Black<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.lifeofasteward.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Loren Pinilis<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.reflectionsfromthealley.org\/\" target=\"_blank\">Dave Arnold<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/sparkvoice.wordpress.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">David Sparks<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/danerickson.net\" target=\"_blank\">Dan Erickson<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.struggletovictory.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Kari Scare<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/intentionaltoday.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Ngina Otiende<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/billgrandi.ovcf.org\/wordpress\/\" target=\"_blank\">Bill Grandi<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/barbraveling.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Barb Raveling<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/betty-wiseheartedwomen.blogspot.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Betty Draper<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.davidbartosik.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">David Bartosik<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/countingmyblessings.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Deb Wolf<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.larrypoolespeaks.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Larry Poole<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/thoughthouse.org\/author\/\" target=\"_blank\">Micah Yongo<\/a> and <a href=\"www.lisanotes.com\" target=\"_blank\">Lisa Burgess<\/a>. Everyone one of theses guys has a blog worth checking out!<\/p>\n<h4>Question: What did God teach you in 2013?<\/h4>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>2013 has come and now is almost gone. God blessed our family and ministry in many ways that I shared in this blog over the past year.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3559,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[310],"class_list":["post-3560","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-updates","tag-top-posts"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/DSC06798.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3izZc-Vq","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":424,"url":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/this-is-why\/","url_meta":{"origin":3560,"position":0},"title":"This is Why","author":"Caleb Suko","date":"September 20, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"We decided to move back to Ukraine in 2005 and were finally able to make that step in 2007. \u00a0We believe the work God has called us to do is important and we want you to know exactly why we are here and what we are doing. Here are a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Family&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Family","link":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/category\/family\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":430,"url":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/training-the-trainers\/","url_meta":{"origin":3560,"position":1},"title":"Training the Trainers","author":"Caleb Suko","date":"October 18, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"About 15 men gathered last week at the CMI's international training center for our annual Bible school directors and teachers conference.President John Taylor started the conference off with thought provoking questions on \u00a0our \u00a0philosophy of teaching. Chris Hindal, director of international ministries for GARBC was our guest this year. He\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Ministry&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Ministry","link":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/category\/ministry\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/3.bp.blogspot.com\/-lhPnGl3yJ7Q\/Tp6McmE-VcI\/AAAAAAAAHX0\/P0B0S-BKLNs\/s400\/DSC03984.JPG?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":23798,"url":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/from-america-to-ukraine\/","url_meta":{"origin":3560,"position":2},"title":"From America To Ukraine","author":"Caleb Suko","date":"October 10, 2025","format":"video","excerpt":"What leads a pastor\u2019s son from a small church in Washington State to the war-torn city of Odesa, Ukraine? In this interview, Caleb Suko shares how God shaped his calling, guided his family through decades of ministry, and taught him to trust Him \u2014 from seminary classrooms to air raid\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Ministry&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Ministry","link":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/category\/ministry\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":17883,"url":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/russian-aggression-and-the-church-of-god-in-ukraine\/","url_meta":{"origin":3560,"position":3},"title":"Russian Aggression and The Church of God in Ukraine","author":"Caleb Suko","date":"May 13, 2024","format":"video","excerpt":"https:\/\/vimeo.com\/945373996?share=copy Over 2 years ago Russia launched a full scale invasion of Ukraine, brutally murdering 10s of thousands of Ukrainians and destroying towns and cities. Unfortunately, Russia\u2019s aggression against Ukraine has only increased in the past few months. Civilians in cities on the front lines like Kherson are constantly being\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Ministry&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Ministry","link":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/category\/ministry\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Copy-of-Sukofamily-december-2023-update-1.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Copy-of-Sukofamily-december-2023-update-1.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Copy-of-Sukofamily-december-2023-update-1.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Copy-of-Sukofamily-december-2023-update-1.png?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Copy-of-Sukofamily-december-2023-update-1.png?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":23432,"url":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/introducing-the-gospel-today\/","url_meta":{"origin":3560,"position":4},"title":"Introducing The Gospel Today","author":"Caleb Suko","date":"August 20, 2025","format":"video","excerpt":"For the past twenty years, Christina and I have had the joy of serving in Ukraine through our partnership with ABWE (Association of Baptists for World Evangelism). Together with ABWE, we have seen God bless our ministry in remarkable ways: churches planted, believers discipled, leaders trained, and the gospel proclaimed\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;General Updates&quot;","block_context":{"text":"General Updates","link":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/category\/updates\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Screenshot-2025-08-16-at-10.08.23-AM.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Screenshot-2025-08-16-at-10.08.23-AM.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Screenshot-2025-08-16-at-10.08.23-AM.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Screenshot-2025-08-16-at-10.08.23-AM.png?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Screenshot-2025-08-16-at-10.08.23-AM.png?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Screenshot-2025-08-16-at-10.08.23-AM.png?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":11977,"url":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/too-much-to-tell\/","url_meta":{"origin":3560,"position":5},"title":"22 Years of Marriage, Church Leaders Conference, Update on Kids Schooling, and a Few More Things!","author":"Caleb Suko","date":"June 18, 2019","format":"video","excerpt":"First off, sorry for the long title, we probably put a few too many things into this update but here we go! 22 Years Later We must start by praising God for giving us a strong christian marriage. Christina and I met 22 years and 9 months ago on the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Ministry&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Ministry","link":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/category\/ministry\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/IMG_2984.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/IMG_2984.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/IMG_2984.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/IMG_2984.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/IMG_2984.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/IMG_2984.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3560","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3560"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3560\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3563,"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3560\/revisions\/3563"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3559"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3560"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3560"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3560"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}