One of my favorite novelists is John Irving. He's the author of books that are both critically acclaimed and wildly popular, such as The Word According To Garp, A Prayer For Owen Meany, and The Cider House Rules. Most Irving novels blend high hilarity, deep pathos,...

I found this ornament on my desk this week. And I thought:  "There's someone who understands what makes me tick." It's an ornament based on the Wait For It Series. And it has my Sunday morning Breakfast Of Champions. What more could I want?  

When I went to college, ministry was not on my mind.  I had headed up north for school, recognizing that pro tennis was likely not going to work out, and therefore I should get a top notch education.  After that? Law school is what I figured.  My father had been a law...

Yesterday's message was ORIGINALLY supposed to be delivered last Sunday, December 9, but we of course were snowed out. Yet I knew we HAD to present this one.  Why?  Well, I liked the exegetical work on Jeremiah 33.  I liked the metaphor of wood.  I liked the bottom...

Many years ago while I was pastoring in Monroe, I had a UMC preacher friend who chose the most interesting time to pump her fist and say "Yeah!" When there was a snow-out. In those days, that meant that the sermon you prepared for this Sunday could be delivered next...

This was us in 2002.     Wonder what the card will be like sixteen years later?

Some dear friends from Good Shepherd handed me this cassette tape on a recent Sunday morning.   When I was a young preacher in Monroe, North Carolina, the ministry of Lenny Stadler at Weddington United Methodist Church almost defied belief. Throughout the decade...

Winter Storm Diego made an unwelcome appearance in Western North Carolina this past weekend, and so we didn't have church on Sunday. That doesn't mean the weekend was without high drama and poignant moments, all of which are worthy of some reflections below. 1. An...

That's a loaded question, isn't it? Is it ever appropriate for a preacher -- regardless of his or her level of experience -- to preach sermons that have for all practical purposes been prepared by someone else? It's not only a loaded question, it's a relevant one....

This week, I received a note and photo from a Good Shepherd friend who is also a new mom. Here's the photo:     The note said, "Thanks to Good Shepherd for the Bible stories book!  I love reading these to our daughter!" Because inviting all people into a...