Many historians believe that 1968 was one of the most turbulent years in American history. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Bobby Kennedy were assassinated. Race riots and Vietnam war protests created massive unrest. International peace was unsettled as the USSR invaded Czechoslovakia. A bestselling book by entomologist Paul Ehrlich called the Population Bomb predicted that overpopulation would lead to hundreds of millions of people starving and there was nothing we could do about it. In the Christian world a movie called Thief in the Night came out with a frightening story about the rapture and tribulation. I didn’t sleep well for weeks because I did not want to get left behind. My parents thought the end was near. I was 15 years old. The news was terrifying. I was a new Christian and I had virtually no discipling for what faith in God meant when confronting fears. I didn’t know if I would get a chance to drive, vote, get
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We all go through hard seasons in life. Recently I have had to walk with some very dear friends through dark valleys. I had to say goodbye to one close friend. Actually, I had to say “see you later”. I rejoice in the hope of our heavenly reunion someday. I love when God sends an unexpected blessing when you are crushed by the weight of this world. My sweet wife Joni calls them “Postcards from God”. I received an electronic post card recently. Regular readers of these humble ramblings know that I have become a fan of bluegrass singer, songwriter, and producer Jerry Salley. His song about our mutual hometown of Chillicothe, Ohio still fills my heart with warm memories of my small town upbringing. I absolutely fell in love with his lyrical storytelling. We connected on a professional level and I sent him a couple of my books. In late June I received my postcard. Jerry began reading my
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My book Waking Up Slowly is based on a beautiful Psalm of David. Psalm 139 is one of the most inspiring writings in Scripture. We don’t know when David wrote this stirring account of God’s indescribable attributes. Some believe he wrote it as a shepherd while gazing at the stars and the enormity of the heavens. Some feel he wrote it when he became king over Israel. As a more experienced human being myself (that is PC for old) it certainly feels like David had to have lived a little more life in order to write such a majestic dialog with God. But the truth is we just don’t know. David made three observations about the greatness of God. God knows everything about us. God is everywhere we are. God ordains everything about you. I think and do a lot of things that I would prefer to keep in Las Vegas mode. But David is saying the idea of a
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Somehow the normal promise of a new year seems muted by the ongoing negative news. The sadness, division, and fear of the past couple of years feels like it will be here forever. How can you navigate the broken roads of this world? A song titled Bless the Broken Road was made popular by Rascal Flatts and the lyrics describe how difficulties are often teaching moments for future blessings. I set out on a narrow way, many years agoHoping I would find true love, along the broken roadBut I got lost a time or two, wiped my brow and kept pushing through It is so interesting to look back over the landscape of over four decades (yikes) of my journey with Jesus. I can see God’s hand in so many events and even heartbreak in my life. My early church experience was a broken road of legalistic and judgmental Christians who crushed the spirit of a young and fumbling Christian. That
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Psalm 139 is one of the most inspiring Psalms in Scripture and it was the inspiration for my book Waking Up Slowly. We don’t know when David wrote this stirring account of God’s indescribable attributes. Some believe he wrote it as a shepherd while gazing at the stars and the enormity of the heavens. Some feel he wrote it when he became king over Israel. As a more experienced human being myself it certainly feels like David had to have lived a little more life in order to write such a majestic dialog with God. But the truth is we just don’t know. In this amazing Psalm David made three observations about the greatness of God. God knows everything about us. God is everywhere we are. God ordains everything about you. The Psalmist clearly proclaims that we are not accidents and there is a purpose for you and me. You know me inside and out, you know every bone in my
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I remember reading Chicken Little when I was a child. The story goes that a young chick was walking along when an acorn hit him on the head. With no further investigation Chicken Little came to the kind of well reasoned conclusion that floods our internet today. The sky is falling! Today Chicken Little would be an excellent anchor for a cable network. Every time I violate my own personal mental health policy and turn on a news network I am plunged into despair and fear. The sky is falling! Look! There is an expert with an important title displaying a colorful chart to prove it! Hear me out. I know there is an important role in communicating information for our safety. But the tone, choice of graphic descriptors, and sheer volume of fear mongering is depressing. When I really fall into the abyss and survey social media I see overwhelming fear, anger, gloom, and apocalyptic doom. Again, I understand
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