We can talk about all kinds of issues facing our culture. The news outlets will spew forth a steady stream of political problems, military conflicts, fallen leaders, murderous rampages, weather-related disasters, and dumb things our leadership says! But my heart is heavy this morning with one thing that has been in front of me through…
How can I celebrate a national title for my favorite basketball team when the world is at war? I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but there are heavy things going on in the world. It would be reasonable (and maybe even seem very spiritual) to give in to the notion that a believer in Christ…
People have been talking a lot about Israel. For obvious reasons they have been in the news, and opinions swirl. And everyone is ready with an opinion. But as a pastor, I find that Christians seem to be the most easily roped into extreme opinions when it comes to the nation of Israel. Some will…
This past week I spent over six hours listening to podcasts that different people wanted me to check out. They were fairly popular podcasts by men I had heard of before. But I had never listened. The reason they wanted me to listen had to do with their guest, and indeed the guest speaker was…
I was suddenly made aware from multiple directions that there is a new solution to children’s discipleship that is going to fix the next generation and be sure to keep them in the faith. While other kids are growing up to question their faith and leave the church in their 20s, your kids or grandkids…
Remember the joy of a snow day. When I was a kid, a snow day was a double blessing. NO SCHOOL. AND enough snow to sled, build a snow fort, and have snowball fights in the neighborhood. When I was a child, it was fun. When my kids were young, it was fun to watch…
As I get older, I have increasingly adopted Benjamin Franklin’s advice to read “much, but not too many books”. There was a time when I was concerned about how many books I read in a year. But this year, I read more repeat books than ever in a calendar year. Reading good books for understanding…
I don’t even know when it happened. Sometime in my youth, I decided to cheer for the University of Michigan. I didn’t know anyone that attended there when I was young. I had never set foot on the campus, and yet I went all in with my support. The years piled up, and the ups…
I have often joked that my taste in music doesn’t suddenly change because it is Christmas. I’ve never been a Christmas music person, and to be honest, some of the songs I enjoy the LEAST are Christmas songs. ‘Wonderful Christmastime’ by Paul McCartney ranks right up there with ‘Hippopotamus for Christmas’ and ‘The Little Drummer…
I am preaching on a passage in the gospel of Luke this week, where it is recorded that Jesus cast a demon out of a man in the synagogue in Capernaum. It doesn’t happen in the Upside-Down. It doesn’t happen in the ‘spiritual realm’. It happens on planet Earth. In Galilee, in the town of…
I have songs. Now let me back up for a minute and identify that I am absolutely one of the LEAST musical people that I know. I have never produced anything that comes close to music. I enjoy singing. I enjoy listening. I even enjoy trying to dance if the moment is right. But I…
I listen to a handful of podcasts most weeks, and two of them highlighted the problems of ai (you may note that this is not in all caps as usual, keep reading to see why) within the past 24 hours. Both of them spoke to the same issue, and this got me thinking. In one…
