The Murderer In All of Us

Two recent news items have drawn my attention to thoughts about murder. The first was the pastor’s wife who shot her husband and the second was the largest mass murder in US history, the tragedy at Virginia Tech. In many ways they were the typical American family. All smiles… and matching outfits… and horror that […]

Baseball and the Resurrection

My two favorite events happen every springtime: celebrating the opening of another season of baseball and celebrating the resurrection of Christ (not necessarily in that order). In fact, they are definitely not in that order. What could baseball possibly have in common with the most important event in history? You might be surprised. Both events […]

Stopping By Would's On A Snowy Evening

Whose would’s these are, I think I know… They’re mine. Would today’s school cancellations be another laughingstock? Would the weather turn and make the superintendents look intelligent? Would we inevitably cancel our church activities? Indeed the answers (in order) are… YES-NO-YES. Thankfully snowy evenings give us pause. A chance to be with family and reflect […]

My First Dance

Sadly or interestingly enough (depending on your perspective) I attended my first dance ever this month. Thankfully I was not the one doing the dancing… it was in fact, my daughter’s first dance. And while the dreamer in me would love to focus on the part that we were experiencing a first together, the realist […]

Born Again to A Living Hope

Today we were blessed to see the Hungarian premier of a drama entitled Born Again to A Living Hope that tells the life story of two Argentine young people who for years were enslaved to a life of drug abuse. The couple’s life is altered when they choose to follow Christ, yet the effects of […]

Bringin’ It

Thankfully Pastor Phil’s virus was only of the 24-hour variety and he is – as they say – fine as a frog hair. Better than that really… if that is possible. Wait a minute! Frogs don’t have hair. But he is feeling better and his teaching is going well and the students all love him […]

It’s Time to Surrender

Enough’s enough. For weeks I have carried on an embarrassing charade… inside my head! One week passed then another and soon it was 7 (this week makes 8) weeks that I had failed to blog about the book I read. The charade was that I would actually return at some point and blog about all […]

Week #32: The Spirit to Serve by J.W. Marriott & Kathi Ann Brown

Admittedly (intentionally) most of the books I read fall squarely into the realm of Christian thought. I am, after all, a pastor who is trying to better himself and deepen his craft. However I see much value in learning from people who have been successful in the eyes of the world. I enjoy studying their […]

Week #31: Future Grace by John Piper

This book challenged me at MANY levels. At the shallow end I was challenged to finish it – over 400 pages worth. The deeper stuff took me to places of connecting the reality of God’s grace with the reality of my sin. I know that is the essence of the message of Jesus, but sometimes […]

A Little Behind… Again

OK I guess it’s not a little behind. The only thing that remains on schedule is my reading. I have been HORRIBLE about blogging in the last few weeks. With several speaking engagements and a new school year starting, I have been unable to get to the “book reports”. They will return soon… I promise.

Week #30: Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell

Now I think I understand what all of the fuss is about. I’ll start with the positive. Much of this book resonated with me. One of the most powerful statements in the book (for me) had to do with the way we use the word “Christian”. Bell reminds us that it makes a great noun […]

Week #29: The Heavenly Man by Brother Yun w/ Paul Hattaway

May this text be proof to Cessationists that spiritual gifts are indeed an all or nothing proposition! Legitimate stories of visions and miracles abound in the life of this modern-day prophet and teacher Brother Yun. Over and over the truths of this man’s story demonstrate the fact that God was using his life to carry […]