Adversity And Opportunity

I hope it doesn’t seem like I’m dwelling on a relatively minor incident, but this week’s handcycle theft provides an opportunity. Bouncing Back is, after all, partly about confronting and overcoming adversity. If we learn from small bumps, perhaps we’ll do a little better when something really big happens. Some  observations: “Why” would someone take a […]

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When Someone Steals

It’s a shock. I went to the garage yesterday morning and noticed an empty space. My first thought was, “Where’d I put my handcycle?” as though I might have simply misplaced the seven-foot-long, bright yellow machine. It took a moment to assimilate the fact that someone stole my handcycle. Then there’s some anger, that someone […]

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Comfortable Or Miserable Or …?

Last week (Are You Avoiding God?) I wrote about some guys who feared listening to God because He might ask them to do something they don’t want to do. I think they were afraid God would invite them out of their personal comfort zones. They were right. I thought about security as I watched some […]

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Service

Happy Monday! I’ve been thinking for a few days about today’s word-of-the-week… Service Last week I attended a dinner at which our church sent five families into full-time ministry. These were young families with small children. A couple of parents held babies as they spoke. They’re going to places like Guatemala, Mozambique, and Pakistan. Those […]

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Life And Justice

Yesterday (What’s Social About Justice?) I ended with an assertion that may have raised an eyebrow or two. Social justice issues are “pro-life.” Jesus said life was His whole purpose. “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10:10) In my view, anyone who attempts to follow Jesus […]

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What’s Social About Justice?

I recently talked to a man who adopted a child from an extremely deprived background. His story was simultaneously heartwarming and heartbreaking. I was struck by the convergence of so many “social justice” issues in a single life. This child and his families dealt with racial prejudice, abuse, neglect, starvation, lack of health care, abortion, […]

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Are You Avoiding God?

What’s stopping you from following your dream? That’s the question I asked as the guys at the retreat prepared for a day of mountain biking, hiking, 4-wheeling, and rock climbing. I challenged them to talk with their companions about the fears that get in the way. One particular response was particularly revealing. “I’m afraid if I […]

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Perfect

Happy Monday! A wonderfully relaxing weekend leads to today’s word-of-the-week… PERFECT I spent the past few days speaking at a retreat in Moab, Utah. It was a perfect weekend. I’m thinking about “perfect” because of a particular scripture passage: “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect”. (Matthew 5:48) That seems a bit unrealistic. […]

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Counting Hidden Costs

Yesterday I asked What’s It Cost? My basic conclusion was to count the cost (Luke 14:28) because following a dream is an all-in deal. After reflecting on my own words (dangerous activity) I’m wondering if I asked the wrong question. Maybe we ought to ask: What’s the cost of NOT following the dream? A dream offers […]

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What’s It Cost?

What’s the cost of following a dream? Dreams aren’t free. You pay to follow a dream. Costs are measured in dollars, time, effort, and emotion. How do you decide if following a dream is “worth it”? Frankly, I don’t know how you answer that question. I suppose you can weigh anticipated risk against predicted reward, […]

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Youth Group

I’m sharing some excerpts from my in-progress manuscript about Rich’s Ride. You can check out previous posts here. # # # # # After dinner we met in the parking lot of an old warehouse. Bruce and Becky unloaded the trailer while I watched the familiar commotion of teenagers entering the run-down building. Each time […]

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