Hide and Seek

I've never really understood Romans 10:6-7 ("Do not say in your heart, 'Who will ascend into heaven' (that is to bring Christ down') or, 'Who will descend into the abyss?' (that is to bring Christ up from the dead)." until today. Paul's point is that faith doesn't require what John MacArthur calls "some impossible odyssey" …

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 …

How to Give a Better Dinner Speech

I love my job. I'm a pastor on staff at a church outside of Kansas City Missouri. Once a month we host newer attendees at an informal gathering which is a strategic part of our next steps process. It works well in connecting people that want to get involved at our church. Our pastors all sit …

I “Love” you Man.

That person at the office who "loves" you but frequently drops your name in a sideways jab doesn't really love you. That doesn't mean you can't "love" them back though. Don't confuse "loving" someone with not pushing back. Be kind, but be firm and tell them how it makes you feel. There's no guarantee it …

Faith and Trust

Luke 17:5 “The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!" We ask God to increase our FAITH but what we need is to TRUST that the faith he's already given us is sufficient to cover our needs. Think about it like this. If our life in Christ were a bank account, FAITH would be …

You Don’t Need the New iPhone

Jesus has rocked my world. If you think you know Him well there’s more. Better men and women than us in 2000 years of historical Christian witness have tried to sound the depths of Christ’s love and have all come back wanting. In humility go to the well and ask Him to reveal Himself to …

Help me see me.

In 2010, my family and I were in north central Ohio where I was pastoring a small church. We didn't have a copy machine so I was going to Office Depot weekly to have the bulletins printed for our Sunday services. I was in the van with my daughter, who at that time was around …

7 Habits for the Aspiring Writer

You have something to say to the world. I wrote this post last year and am posting again. I don't do this with all of my posts but some are worthy of it. I hope you enjoy! What you have to tell the world may sound similar to what others are saying, or what has …

It’s been a while…

Call it summer break or writers block. The fact that I've not been submitting content really boils down to the point that I've had nothing to say. I tried reposting stuff but I felt that God has been telling me to not post anything. I don't know how long this will take but I sincerely …

The Stones in the Shoes of the Gospel of Peace

OK, I've heard a false statement over and over in reference to evangelism, that when someone rejects the gospel, "...they're not rejecting you. They're rejecting Jesus." There's one BIG problem with that. I believe that the people who say it are well-intentioned and that they're not bad people - they're just wrong. Philippians 3:17 "...that …