What does it feel like to age? I have heard it said that the days are long and the years are short and that has made more and more sense to me. I feel like I can look back on the past three decades and see how small decisions have created a life that defines…
Although many will recognize the acronym in the title as standing for Vacation Bible School anyone who has actually worked a VBS knows it could very well stand for Very Busy Schedule. Last week we wrapped up our annual VBS. We combine forces with another Mattawan Church. They have a facility and we have a…
We have a saying around my house that is often said and little applied, “if you don’t have anything good to say, don’t say anything.” We say that a lot. My family is verbal and loud and I’m not sure where they got it because my wife wasn’t raised that way . . . After…
This week I will be preaching on 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8. In this text God calls his people to a theological sexual ethic that is meant to be a stable call to holiness for his church in a world with a sexual ethic that is always shifting. The apostle Paul is clear in this text that…
Prayer can be tough. I have not yet met a person who would tell me that they are totally nailing prayer, have it all figured out, and are on top of their prayer game. So I set out to make this year a personal journey into prayer and it has been challenging. Several years ago…
I have been away this week in Chicago at a Pastor’s Conference. There is something refreshing about getting away and hearing from speakers instead of being the speaker. It is doubly encouraging to hear from men who understand the office, understand the stresses, and understand the temptations that come with the territory of leading a…
There was a time when I had not lived long enough to know that life is not a straight line. A younger me, assumed that life was defined by setting a dream and then striving for it. I really believed that things pretty much progressed in that direction with some hurdles to overcome and a…
Have you ever noticed how quickly we give God credit for the timing of something that works out to our advantage? Don’t get me wrong, I would always encourage giving God credit for good things in our lives, but over and opposed to ONLY ever giving him credit when it goes well is something I…