“Everything’s changed.” Maybe you’ve heard it, or said it. When suddenly it seems like we can’t depend on anything, it’s good to remember an eternal truth: Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. “Everything” has not changed. Our plans changed, because plans are based on what we knew when we made them. […]
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Noisemakers
Principles written on paper aren’t worth much. Unless, of course, they’re backed up with action. High-sounding honor codes mean nothing if they’re not reflected in tough choices. It’s the behavior that’s matters. I’ve told you before that in later years my classroom operated on a single principle: Everyone (including the teacher) gets treated with dignity […]
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Will It Be Okay?
Yes, it is going to be okay. I know that, because I know who holds my future in His hands. I absolutely, positively know it is going to be okay. What I don’t know is when it will be okay, or exactly what okay will look like. I believe in science and math. I’m a […]
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What If It’s An Opportunity?
Of course, it’s always an opportunity. Schools are closed, but school doesn’t equal learning. Let’s be honest – the school structure of strict timelines bell schedules and worksheets and homework is more about crowd control. What if parents and kids read a good historical novel *together* about slavery? What if they discussed as they read, […]
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You Can’t Cram For The Test
A test paints a picture. Good teachers craft tests to provide a carefully-targeted picture of what students have learned. Great teaching is the process of helping students prepare to do as well as possible on the test. The ultimate job of a great teacher is to anticipate, as much as possible, the difficult, inescapable, real-world […]
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About Panic
Seems like we have some extra time to watch videos these days. I don’t have a cat, so here are some thoughts from Jesus about facing fear. Can’t see the video? Click here.
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I Don’t Know
I thought I’d talk to you about all the things I don’t know, and a few things I’m sure about. Can’t see the video? Click here.
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Helpless?
No, we’re not. But maybe that’s how it feels. When we’re confronted with big numbers, when the message isn’t clear, when an invisible boogeyman lurks around every corner, it’s easy to default to helpless. Helpless happens when we feel like we’ve lost control. Of course, what we really lose is the illusion that we were […]
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About Going Viral
Most people don’t really understand the math of exponential growth. Right now there’s a lot of talk about a virus spreading “exponentially.” I don’t want to talk about illness, but lots of other things spread exponentially. Generosity, for example. Let’s imagine ten people committed to a cause like a bike ride to support kids rescued […]
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It’s Not Fair!
If life’s a baseball game, I was born on second base. A white male with a stable two-parent family in middle-class America, access to quality public K-12 education and very low-cost, world-class university. I got an undeniable head start in a culture that’s allowed me to maintain and amplify my lead with less effort than […]
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Priceless
We spend a lot of time taking pictures. Posed group pictures. Action photos. Scenery. Video. On our Photo Site you can see hundreds of pictures and videos from our rides. If you didn’t know better you’d think capturing images was the whole point. Memories matter. Joshua placed an alter of 12 stones at the place […]
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“Real” Belief
Do you really believe what you believe? If you think it’s an odd question, here’s a story. A man stretched a cable about 6 feet off the ground between two tall buildings on opposite sides of the street. As a small crowd of curious onlookers gathered, the man walked from one end to the other […]
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