Studies repeatedly show that kids who regularly get to pull up to a family dinner table do better in school, stay out of trouble, and form more lasting relationships. Kids who regularly have supper with Mom and Dad are significantly… Continue reading

With each passing year, we accumulate memories in our mental attic; some carefully tended as treasures, others locked away like classified documents! When my adult children come home to visit inevitably around the table the phrase is heard, “I remember… Continue reading

By nature and experience, I am deeply suspicious of institutional power!  In almost every instance that I can remember, when a group of people is handed authority without a system of checks and balances in place, that power is soon… Continue reading

Recently I re-discovered a book, The Jesus I Never Knew, originally published by Philip Yancey in 1995. Yancey writes about how we re-make Jesus into our own image which steals His majesty and diminishes our faith!  “The more I studied… Continue reading

Eugene Peterson writes of visiting a Benedictine monastery in New Mexico’s desert. As he walked by the cemetery to lunch, he noted an empty grave.  “Did one of the brothers just die?” he asked one of the monks. “No, that’s… Continue reading

Compared to really ‘knowing Christ,’ being religious is easy.  Fulfilling a set of obligatory rituals, attending meetings, and giving contributions to our church can soothe our minds, making feel as though we are ‘all right’ with the Lord.  There will… Continue reading

/* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:”Table Normal”; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:””; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:”Calibri”,”sans-serif”; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:”Times New Roman”; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:”Times New Roman”; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} Yesterday I spoke with my uncle… Continue reading

/* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:”Table Normal”; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:””; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:”Calibri”,”sans-serif”; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:”Times New Roman”; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} My faith is battered, bruised, and bloodied today. I openly… Continue reading

/* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:”Table Normal”; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:””; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:”Calibri”,”sans-serif”; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:”Times New Roman”; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} When Irene blew through on Sunday at 4 am the… Continue reading

When I was a young preacher, long on zeal and short on experience, the Lord arranged through circumstances too detailed to talk about now, for me to meet another seasoned Pastor. He lovingly accepted me – for who I was.… Continue reading