Follow Jesus. Lead the church. Change the world.
The Thanksgiving holiday is a good reminder to be thankful, but we need to practice the discipline of giving thanks everyday. 1 Thessalonians 5.18 says, “Give thanks in every situation because this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (CEB). I’m glad it says “in every situation” rather than “for every situation.” While we … Read more
On Sunday, I handed out cards with an outline of a red heart. At the end of the sermon, I asked people to write in the percentage of their heart they wanted to give God. Of course, the hope is everyone wrote 100%! In reality, I’m sure the percentage fluctuates and it may not even … Read more
Health and well-being has been a focus of mine over the last several months (most recently, Hitting the Wall). Today, I read that three United Methodist general agencies joined forces to focus on clergy health. The result is a report on 13 Factors That Influence Clergy Health. The intro paragraph from the PDF states … … Read more
For a while now, I’ve been casually reading American Saint: Francis Asbury and the Methodists by John Wigger. I’m enjoying it, but I also recently began reading Asbury’s three-volume journal (Volume 1, Volume 2, Volume 3). Asbury begins his journal talking about a conference that took place on August 7, 1771 where he made himself … Read more
Earlier this week, I blogged about the The Pain of Discipline vs. the Pain of Regret. The pain of discipline is future-oriented, while the pain of regret is past-oriented. Another way to think about it is with the two terms “next time” and if only” (this idea isn’t original with me; I just don’t remember … Read more
Yesterday, Joleen and I attended the Catalyst One Day event in Lancaster, PA. It was a great event in which Andy Stanley and Craig Groeschel talked about creating healthy organizational cultures. Here are some my favorite quotes from the day, most of which I posted on Twitter … “Healthy people are problem solvers, not problem … Read more
Yesterday, Gary Thompson posted on Twitter … The pain of discipline is not as great as the pain of regret. The statement both resonates with me and challenges me. In terms of taking care of your health, a similar idea is expressed in the statement, “Prevention is the best medicine.” Better to be disciplined on … Read more
Recently, I wrote a post on Wayne Cordeiro’s book, Leading on Empty. Cordeiro writes, “Sooner or later every long-distance runner encounters the wall. Regardless of how well-trained the athlete, he will meet it one day, and he will meet it head on (34).” Well, I believe I hit the wall five months ago, on June … Read more
With apologies to non-sports/football fans, but this is my annual fantasy football post. Previous posts included: Fantasy Football (2008), Life Lessons from Fantasy Football (2009), Fantasy Football 2010 Underway, and Getting Ready for Fantasy Football 2011. This is my fifth season playing fantasy football (all in our church league at Centre Grove). My strategy has … Read more
Now that the election has come and gone (thanks be to God!), we need to turn our attention to praying for the nation and the leaders that have been elected for the next term. 1 Timothy 2.1-2 says … First of all, then, I ask that requests, prayers, petitions, and thanksgiving be made for all … Read more