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 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 …

The Dude Abides: Day 3 ~ Right and Righteous

“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” 2 Corinthians 5:21 I'm reading a book by C.S. Lewis called Reflections on the Psalms and chapter one is entitled "On Judgment".  He compares the two types of court in the Bible. …

The Dude Abides: Day 1 ~ Follow Me

“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations... and I will be with you, always, even to the end of the age” Matthew 28:19a-20b   These last recorded statements of Jesus make it plain and obvious what God’s agenda is for the church is until Christ returns.  An abiding dude’s due diligence is to be …

Getting Started in Leadership

I had a friend ask mine if I would put together a list of the most important things that developing leaders should do in order to grow. Below is just a brief snapshot of a few ideas. Here's the list. 1. Spend time with leaders. At least once a month ask a leader to lunch …

Isolation vs. Solitude

Isolation vs. solitude. One is idle separation & soul impoverishment, while the other is intentional spiritual renewal. Get alone with God this morning and be still in His presence. Ephesians 3:16 (HCSB) - "I pray that He may grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power in the inner …

A River Ran Through It

Beka and I were talking yesterday on the way out to Rifle Falls with her family that lives in Grand Junction Colorado. I had asked her dad earlier if he'd ever gotten tired of looking at mountain ranges, to which his happy reply was "No way!" One range of mountains that caught me off guard …

Man Caves

A man cave by definition is a place where the sacred act of manning it up happens.  Manning it up just means you're watching TV in your favorite chair while throwing dietary caution to the wind.  The wind is broken on multiple counts in a man cave and no one cares.  Unsuspecting feet won't step …

A Primer on Disciple-Making

I remember listening to one of the pastors preach on a Sunday evening at Cherry Street Baptist Church, in Springfield Missouri during my second Senior year at Baptist Bible College. Yes, I said my second Senior year. It was the only year they offered the program and haven't offered it since:) Okay, I crammed four …

3 People Everyone Needs in Life: Coaches, Counselors, and Comrades

There are three types of people you would benefit from in reference to professional life: a coach, a counselor, and comrades. The Coach A coach is someone who is in a similar line of work, but ahead of you. Not necessarily WAY ahead, but enough to know the road you're on and aware of possible …