A smattering of things whimsical and things weighty that I am always a fan of .... A one-handed backhand; SMU sports; A well designed sermon that teaches me something about the bible and then makes me cry; "The Boys Of Summer"; The fiction of Ann Patchett; Inductive...
We all have impulses. And many of those impulses are not necessarily healthy. Impulses to speak when silence is the better option. Impulses to spend when saving is the wiser choice. Impulses to sex when either abstinence or faithfulness is the path of life. Impulses...
The rhythm of a seven day week is so foundational to most of us that you'd think it was wired into creation from the very beginning. Oh, it was ... ? Anyway, as a person who values ... no, lives by ... no, is radically dependent upon ROUTINE, I have realized there are...
Yesterday's message ... Gave me a chance to call the congregation "gullible" as they re-enacted Moses, Aaron, and Hur on the mountaintop in Exodus 17; Gave me another opportunity to help households realize how relentlessly their children are under attack by 21st...
Not to be melodramatic, but can I get a bit melodramatic? I believe that what we'll share on Sunday morning has the ability to change the trajectory of lives and families and households throughout our region. There. I said it. It's a big deal. And it's called The WE...
How's that for a post title? But I'll tell you what else it is: the key to me living up to whatever leadership potential I have. If you've spent anytime following my posts or even listening to my sermons, you know that I don't regard leadership as one of my primary...
A few years ago, I went through a season where I read Paul's letter to the Colossians every morning. Since the New Testament epistles were designed to be heard/read/experienced in one sitting, I thought we'd give it try that way. It proves to be much more fruitful...
I have a confession: earlier in my ministerial career I treated any conversation about church mission statements with the dreaded eye roll. “Not again,” I thought. “There goes someone pontificating about mission and vision, which if you ask me is just a lot of talk...
Yesterday's message ... Dealt with Bezalel and Oholiab, two of the bible's movers & shakers who no one has ever heard of; Gave the analogy that the tabernacle is to the temple as a food truck is to a restaurant (original!); Had the people in the sound & AV...
Yesterday's post included some thoughts on my bromance with Aaron Mansfield, pastor of Morehead UMC in Morehead, Kentucky. It also linked to our recent podcast, which you can access at the bottom of this post as well. A good chunk of our conversation was devoted to...