Category: New Beginnings

One of my most profound childhood memories happened the night before my Grandpa’s funeral when I was twelve years old. A large collection of family and friends gathered in Grandma’s small apartment. There were enormous quantities of food and an endless supply of adult beverages. Elmer was a colorful character who lived a big, full, […]

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I’ve never really made internal sense of Lent. I get the symbolism, abstaining or fasting from something meaningful to honor Jesus’ forty-day wilderness temptation. I’ve tried the abstaining thing a few times, but honestly I’ve never noticed much change. I’ve talked to friends who observe Lent. It appears to mean a great deal to them, […]

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Yesterday I talked about visiting a church last Sunday and some lessons from a sermon titled The Still, Small Voice of God. In the story from 1 Kings 19:10-19, there’s an interaction between God and Elijah that begins when God asks, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” It’s sort of an odd question. God obviously […]

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Two months. A thousand miles of cycling—more or less. Twenty-nine speaking events. It’s been an amazing tour, an absolutely incredible experience. Who would have imagined that the very last question at the very last event would be perhaps the most challenging of the entire trip? I’m re-posting this from the RICH’S RIDE blog because I […]

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Note: I’m posting this on both blogs because, well, it fits and I really want to share it. I found myself thinking about our official theme song Thursday in the car. It’s a great song, and what’s the point of having a theme song if you don’t get it stuck in your head occasionally? If […]

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I’ve written about two particular scripture passages a lot over the past months. On a quiet Florida bike trail I had a thought that linked them. In the Old Testament, God speaks through Isaiah to the exiled Israelites. He assures them, and us, that He is at work in our lives. He tells us we’re […]

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We’ve heard a lot of discussion lately about rights. Our country’s debating gun rights and constitutional rights. I spent some time earlier this week at the National Civil Rights Museum. I met in Memphis with a group called ARC Mid-South that advocates for disability rights. Everybody’s all about their rights. In a recent article titled […]

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Don Miller wrote a penetrating reflection about how his faith has evolved in the past decade or so. I paused a long time over one simple heading: Jesus likes me I believe Jesus loves me. It’s in the words of the simplest children’s song. Jesus loves me This I know For the bible Tells me […]

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I’ve been thinking all week about our pastor’s weekend sermon. He talked about the story of Jesus and the woman caught in adultery. John 8:2-11 There’s so much to the story, but I can’t get past one fact: the Pharisees were willing to stone this woman—to death! Her life mattered less than their desire to […]

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In this season of new beginnings there seem to be two categories of people: those who avoid New Year’s Resolutions and those who fail to keep them. Actually, there’s a small third group. Something around 7-8% of people who make resolutions actually accomplish them. I’ve been thinking about why we struggle so much with new […]

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Happy New Year! I snapped this incredible scene beside the Mississippi River south of La Crosse, Wisconsin during our 1500-mile journey in 2011. I wanted to display the great view of the road over the front wheel of my handcycle, but when I looked at the photo I noticed the presence of the rear view […]

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I just realized I haven’t written much about Christmas…makes me wonder what’s going on. A few days ago I googled “Christmas” just to see what would appear. After the obligatory Wikipedia entry, nearly the entire first page of search results dealt with stuff for sale. I started shaking my head in self-righteous judgment of those […]

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