Blogposts
Practical Tips for Surviving Christmas Eve at Church
Listen, I get it, there are a lot of things that happen around the holidays. Some of them are tradition, some of them are fun, some of them are even fun traditions. As a pastor, one of the things I’ve learned that there is a large portion of the community who will come to church on Christmas Eve.
It Was a Strange Feeling: My Aunt Died and I Wasn’t Sad
It was a weird moment in my life. My mom had just told me that I had lost my aunt (her sister). She let me know that Peggy had passed peacefully in her sleep.
Throughout the course of my life I have had to deal with a significant amount of death, bothin my own life and through the church. I lay in bed, processing the moment and, surprisingly, I felt better.
We Are In This Together: Bow Ties and Dresses
I really like wearing jeans and a T-shirt. Actually, I’d wear sweats and a T-shirt if I thought I could get away with it. All that is to say: I value being comfortable. So, you can imagine the look on my face when my wife challenged me to wear a bow tie every day in December.
An Open Letter to All the Driven People Out There
Productivity and creativity aren’t natural enemies, but in a purpose-driven world they can feel like oppositional forces.
As a Veteran, THIS is the Best Way to Thank Me
Being a Veteran on Veteran’s Day is like having another birthday. Dozens of people will post messages on Facebook, a host of dining establishments will give away free food, and there are even a couple places that give away free haircuts (c’mon, who doesn’t love a free haircut!).
5 Things the Church Can Learn From Pee Wee Football
In my last blog I talked about how football became family. I described how the community around us became something more than just football, and how that support developed into something much bigger.
When Football Became Family
Earlier this week my 10-year-old walked into the room and said, “Dad, I really want to hit someone.” The forlorn look on his face said it all. He missed football, he missed the contact, he missed his football family. He missed hanging out with the guys, and to make matters worse he knew we were going to miss the end of the year banquet. In many ways the season felt like it ended too soon, and yet the season had run its course
Three Years of Blogging: The Most Important Lesson I’ve Learned
This week is always a weird week for me. The celebration of the birth of this blog is something I could have never imagined. Three years ago I set out to blog on a consistent basis, and I still could not have ever dreamed it would have this much impact.
Give Yourself a "Rule of Life"
One of the things they ask us to do in seminary is to create something called a “Rule of Life.” The Rule of Life consists of things you are committing to in order to stay healthy, balanced (or as balanced as possible), and emotionally/spiritually fit.
Teamwork Makes the Dream Work
Lately, I have been touting this as our new family mantra. Actually, if you’ve spent any time around me you’ve probably heard me say this mantra; there is just something about it that is so simple and yet so profound.