Do you think God punishes? I don’t. I know people will likely disagree, and that’s okay. Let’s talk. I recently heard a preacher declare with absolute certainty that God is punishing a particular group for a particular action. He offered Old Testament scriptural examples and the opinion of “every major Christian leader” as evidence. Ever […]
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Happy Monday! I’m thinking we focus too much on today’s word-of-the-week… DIFFERENCES Do you notice how invested our culture is in highlighting our differences? Of course it’s election season, so we’re buried in ads promoting difference. But I think the election rhetoric only ramps up what’s become our “normal” environment. We’re literally inundated with messages […]
Continue readingMore TagA Bigger Picture
Ever forget you’re not the center of the universe? My discussion with a spinal injury support group left me pondering the whole notion of An Able-Bodied World. The audience was folks who are relatively new at figuring out how to navigate life with some level of paralysis—and their spouses. Becky pointed out afterward that the […]
Continue readingMore TagA Lesson In Humility
Sometimes I wonder what in the world I’m doing. Tuesday evening I was invited to speak to a spinal cord injury support group. I wasn’t quite sure until I arrived exactly how the invitation originated. I was absolutely not prepared for the explanation. “A counselor gave me a copy of your book after my husband […]
Continue readingMore TagIn Search Of The Next Thrill
Have you ever battled an addiction? We all know about addictions to drugs, alcohol, pornography, gambling, food…maybe you’ve struggled with similar demons. This weekend our pastor mentioned an addiction I’d never considered. Do you think we can become addicted to excitement? It’s an interesting notion. I’m no expert on addiction, and I’m not sure Jeff […]
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Happy Monday! I’m a little fired up about today’s word-of-the-week… ENABLED This is Oz Sanchez. He’s a former Reconnaissance Marine who served multiple deployments. He volunteered to become a Navy SEAL before a hit-and-run driver ended his military career. Oz is a multiple world champion and multiple Paralympic gold medalist. He set the course record […]
Continue readingMore TagWhen Habits Become Ruts
Ever notice that growth tends to be uncomfortable? Yeah…me, too. A while back I wrote a post titled Just Okay about my struggles with training for my recent tour. At the end I said God’s about second (and third and fourth and…) chances. But what do I do with those additional chances? I’ve noticed that […]
Continue readingMore TagA Foggy Mirror
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. 1 Corinthians 13:13 is one of those great feel-good Bible verses. What’s better than faith, hope, and love, right? Toss that chapter around and a wedding’s likely to spring up right before your eyes. But…am I the only one […]
Continue readingMore TagThen, Later, Or Now?
I often sense that I stumble through life almost completely oblivious to the incredible story taking place around me. When I occasionally manage to trip over something miraculous, I feel a bit like a blind squirrel finding a nut. I don’t believe those are accidents (No Coincidences) but I can’t help wondering how frequently God […]
Continue readingMore TagNo Coincidences
Nobody’s here by accident. My friend Al used to say that often. It confused me, because I thought Al was saying we should understand why we were there. I figured everyone else knew their purpose, and I had no clue. Besides, we’re all free, right? The fact that a particular group happened to show up […]
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Happy Monday! Since today’s Labor Day in the US, I’ll make the obvious choice for word-of-the-week… WORK I learn a lot from my dog. While we cranked along the Mississippi River last year he wrote a blog post called Play Or Work. He made the important point that it’s okay to be tired if you’re […]
Continue readingMore TagFaith, Hope, And Courage
For me, following Jesus is mostly a process of learning what I already know. I think I’m a perpetual beginner when it comes to integrating what I know into what I do. Yesterday I asked a question: Ever Feel Discouraged? As so often happens, one of those daily, ordinary, almost unnoticed events reminded me of […]
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