Friday Frame: Lightning and the Lightning bug

I wish I could take the play button out of this shot but it was a clip from a video I took a few years ago. This was a split second of lightning that lit up the flat black night. Images like this remind me I’ve really lived. I don’t want to look back at …

The Other Cross

There is a difference in claiming belief in the cross of Jesus and actually following Jesus. If you follow Him, he will bring you back to another cross somewhere down the road. It is not the cross but it is a cross. This cross is a rite of passage for the Christian and also a …

A River Ran Through It

My wife and kids and I were visiting her parents in Grand Junction Colorado a couple years ago and took a short drive together to a place called Rifle Falls during our visit. The view of the mountains was breathtaking and I couldn't stop commenting on it the entire way. I had asked her dad …

My Bible

I bought this Bible at the bookstore of my college 20 years ago. I'd love to say it was a purchase based on need, but it was mostly out of envy. All the cool guys from Kansas City had a wide margin Cambridge KJV. It is a Cambridge but I didn't have the $150 to …

The Dude Abides: Ambition

I'm reading a book right now by Dave Harvey called Rescuing Ambition. The main point of the book is that ambition by itself is not sinful but ambition that leads to idolatry is. The difference between selfish ambition and selfless ambition is whether the Goal is behind God, or if God is behind the goal. …

B-side Myself

Grew up in pastors home (check) Went to Christian school (check) Only missed church a handful of times in whole life (check) Went to Bible College (check) Married another pastor's kid (check) Begat 5 pastor's kids of my own (check) Have only ever been in ministry vocationally (check) Finally received assurance of salvation (check) It …

Begotten vs. Double-Minded

Here are some devotional thoughts on James 1:5-8 and John 3:16.

The Dude Abides: Day 5 – Neighbors

Do you love your neighbor? Do you really love them? "Who is my neighbor?", the young man asked Jesus hoping to sidestep the broad category of having to love all people. "A man must not choose his neighbor. He must take the neighbor that God sends him. The neighbor is just the man who is …

The Groan Man

"Blood is blue." "The whole world gets along." "An expensive education is sure to make you wildly successful." "Your new smartphone won't seem outdated next year when the new one comes out." "The Browns won again!" "Real men don't cry." We've all said things that aren't true.  I had a teacher in elementary school that …

The Dude Abides Day 4: Discernment

We've all had some dude give us bad advise a time or two. My wife and I were and youth ministry for 10 years and one thing I'd heard from a friend of mine got repeated many times over to my students. "Show me your friends and I'll show you your future." I'd love to …