Many years ago, on a whim, I bought a gold ring that was inset with diamonds for just $19!  “Jerry, I’m shocked that you would trade in stolen goods.”  No, I didn’t.  It was cheap knock-off, obviously not real gold,… Continue reading

It is as subtle as a developing cancer and every bit as deadly if left untreated. It grows in the soul, feeding on good intentions and high goals that are misfocused. I am talking about ‘burn out.’ Is your life… Continue reading

Over lunch yesterday, a much younger pastor and I talked about our calling, about the future of the Church.  I’m getting ready to take a seat on the sidelines; he’s coming into his prime years of productivity but both of… Continue reading

When I was in the third grade our family moved from rural Iowa to Staten Island, NY into an Italian neighborhood where most everybody was Roman Catholic.  I heard my new friends talking about what they were going to ‘give… Continue reading

It was confirmed again yesterday – Jerry is aging. The eye exam yesterday that while I am a long way from losing my sight (hopefully!) I do need stronger lens. And yes, I struggle to hear speech clearly. My friends… Continue reading

There is a strategy often used in football by a winning team who takes possession of the ball with 2 minutes or less on the game clock. They ‘run out the clock.’  The quarterback lets the maximum time pass, takes… Continue reading

As I sat to reflect and pray, the phone buzzed signaling a text message.  I picked it up thinking it was a notification from a repair tech scheduled to visit the church.  My eyes took in words that instantly made… Continue reading

I really dislike life’s ‘loose ends.’  I like to finish the job. I try to resolve problems, fix what’s broken, clean up the mess. Even as I write these words, in the back of my mind, I am thinking about… Continue reading

There is a document in my files, an agreement with a company that I hope I never have to use. My homeowner’s policy  would pay for reconstruction in the event of fire or flood. It would protect me in the… Continue reading

Words are a wonderful gift, aren’t they?  Words can soothe, excite, inform, comfort, motivate …  and more.  Tragically, in our time, words are cheap, multiplied and amplified. Today a trial will start in the United States Senate that is mostly… Continue reading