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Shame on your shame
Jesus was not even supposed to be there. It was the middle of the day. He was a Jew (in Samaria). And he was an important rabbi who could have easily delegated the task of getting water to one of his...
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Freedom is not a choice
Menus are terrifying. To be sure they are little more than lists of options—often in languages I do not understand and laced with unfamiliar insider language. However words are the least of my...
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Commitment feels like death because it is death
We had only known each other six months. But on the shore of Lake Michigan … Laura said “yes”. To be sure the popularly publicized passion of engagement immediately hit me. However something else hit...
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The possibility in being served
A young couple brought my family of four a meal the other night. No one was sick. No one was hurt. We weren’t celebrating a special occasion. We didn’t have a new kid—yet. We just had friends who...
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Mister Rogers and my tragic habit of filling in blanks and connecting dots
Rumor has it Mister Rogers kept a quote in his back pocket. (Literally.) It was hand-written on a small piece of paper. It read, “Frankly there isn’t anyone you couldn’t learn to love once you’ve...
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Tis' the season for waiting ...
Advent is about arrival. It’s a season when we remember, commemorate, and celebrate the coming of Jesus. But within the larger context of history it’s important to keep in mind that the arrival of...
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The light shines brightest when it is unified in Jesus.
So let your name, illuminate the dark As we proclaim, the love that wakens hearts Shine your light on us These lyrics became central to our morning conversation. Somewhere between our cups of...
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Do not add a filter to your story
Stories are canvases. On stretched displays we are invited to reveal our dreams and pain and joy and perspectives. Even when the composition of our story doesn’t say much about who we are our tone,...
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Why I'm teaching my children to be Christians
“Here’s my heart Lord, take and seal it, seal it for thy courts above.” Every night before we put our children to sleep my wife and I sing a song. Then we pray. Then I recite specific blessings for...
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Salvation is an event and an invitation
Popularly salvation within Christian ranks is seen as a moment. For me it was a moment kneeling at my parent’s bedside with my dad. It was a small collection of minutes and sentences in which I agreed...
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What you are really telling the world isn’t really what you’re saying
Speaking tells the world who you are. Speaking is self-discloser. But what we disclose is not found simply in what we say. Rather, the message we’re really telling the world is found in our words'...
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The strange thing about living a strange life
My earliest memories are filled with church services, prayers before meals, and lessons from Jesus and the Bible. By the time I hit my late teens my playlists were filled with Christian songs, my...
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God stands between us and the waves
I stood between my daughter and the waves. She can’t swim, but she found her happy place walking her hands along the sands as the waves lapped over her and then onto the shore. We’ve been on vacation...
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Five things to do everyday.
Read a book. Every time you open a book it’s like saying, “I don’t know and I want to learn.” This simple act combats a slippery tendency within our souls which tells us we are fully wise, fully...
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A right view of God changes our view of everything else
A few days ago I had a bad day. Nothing really significant or earth-shattering … I just wasn’t a fan. In the middle of my frustration I thought about God. I wondered why he wasn’t making sure my day...
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Community is always uncomfortable, but always comforting
I’ll never forget walking down a dark alley with my wife and one-year-old daughter. I didn’t want to be there. I was anxious. But just a week prior I had agreed to relocate our small group to our new...
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Rest everyday
On the seventh day God rested. But he also rested on the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth day. I like to think of it as the cadence of creation. We find it stuck on repeat at the start of...
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Questions to ask when reading the Bible
The Bible is amazing. But it can be pretty tricky to unpack. And as my wife, Laura and I have tried to navigate the Scriptures for our own development and lead others to do the same, we've realized...
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It's 5:00 PM. Go home.
It’s 5:00 PM. For most of the Western working world it’s the end of the day. It’s time to go home. It’s time to rest. It’s time for dinner. It’s time to reflect on the day. It’s time to stop working....
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You have been sent to serve
In my short term as a pastor I’ve been asked a lot of questions … Is God a being or a feeling? How do you harmonize God and science? What’s the difference between Christians and hipster-Christians?...
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