Follow Jesus. Lead the church. Change the world.
A few weeks ago, hours after preaching on persistence, interestingly enough, I read a great story about the diligence of Steve Martin. In it, the author begins with a quote of a 2007 interview of Martin … I remember getting my first banjo, and reading the book saying ‘this is how you play the C … Read more
Last month, Joleen and I celebrated 18 years of marriage (Really?!). It’s been quite an adventure. Everyone has challenges, and we’ve certainly had ours! The first 9 years of our marriage were intense enough—married in 1994, graduated from seminary and moved to PA to co-pastor a small, dying church in 1995, moved to Williamsburg to … Read more
I just signed up for an online event that will take place on Thursday, March 15 at 1:00 p.m. EST. It’s a FREE online preaching event With Andy Stanley, Perry Noble, Louie Giglio, Dr. Charles Stanley, Jeff Foxworthy, Jud Wilhite, and Vanable Moody. Learn more and sign up at preachbettersermons.com. The event will focus on … Read more
Four years ago, Joleen and I were in Seoul, Korea to pick up Ethan. It’s one of the real highlights of our lives, a day for which we are very grateful to God! These four photos put the hours surrounding the pick-up of Ethan in a nutshell, from the meeting on February 11 to the … Read more
Last month, I mentioned some words from the prophet Isaiah, slamming idols. Since then, I’ve read a couple places in the Psalms that also take a low view of idols. Here are some excerpts from Psalms 115 and 135 (with similar words) … Psalm 115.4-8 (CEB) 4 Their idols are just silver and gold— things … Read more
Recently, I’ve written multiple posts on Mike Slaughter’s presentations at the Bishop’s Retreat (here and here) as well as a couple of his books (“Change the World” and “Momentum for Life”). Here’s one more post with some final reflections and a list of personal commitments. 5 specific commitments I’m making … Dream daily. I’ve always … Read more
At the recent Bishop’s Retreat, with guest Mike Slaughter, I picked up Mike’s book, Momentum for Life: Biblical Practices for Sustaining Physical Health, Personal Integrity, and Strategic Focus. I love that the book sprinkles references to the Psalms of Ascent (Psalms 120-134) throughout the book. And, using the acronym D.R.I.V.E., the book focuses on five … Read more
As I wrote here and here, Mike Slaughter (chief dreamer and lead pastor of Ginghamsburg Church) was the guest speaker at the Bishop’s Clergy Retreat in Lancaster, PA, a couple of weeks ago. Mike’s topic was the same as his recent book, Change the World: Recovering the Message and Mission of Jesus. I enjoyed reading … Read more
I’ve read the Psalms more than any other book in the Bible (at least, more consistently). I love the Psalms. And I’ve been enjoying reading the Psalms in the newest translation, the Common English Bible. This morning, I read Psalm 119, the longest chapter in the Bible at 176 verses. The psalm was written in … Read more
One of the nice things about going to the Bishop’s Retreat each January is that it’s an opportunity to go as a family. This was the fourth retreat that Joleen and I have attended. Amazingly, this was also 4.5 year-old Ethan’s fourth retreat and almost-3 year-old Sarah’s third retreat! The retreat begins on Monday and … Read more