When Reality Comes Around…

Please forgive me for driving slowly down memory lane as I approach my 50th high school reunion this month. Soon after graduation I became a disc jockey at 1000 watt “powerhouse” WCHI in Chillicothe, Ohio. This was back in the days of turntables and actual vinyl records. I got to pick my own playlist that was mainly Top-40 pop. Unfortunately my playlist was often influenced by my emotional state. I didn’t realize I was doing that until a friend pointed out that I had thoroughly depressed them with my melancholy melodies that day. I would play “How Can You Mend A Broken Heart” from the Bee Gees followed by “She’s Gone” by Hall and Oates followed by the Carpenters singing “Goodbye to Love”.  Not sure the sponsors (except maybe antidepressant manufacturers and counseling centers) wanted me to be such a musical downer. Another one of my go to songs to bring the listeners down was a song by Irish singer Gilbert
Continue reading...

Rethinking Ministry

I can’t quit thinking about my friend Brad Johnson who passed away way too early (in my view) at the age of 57. What I can’t get out of my mind is the staggering impact he had in the lives of hundreds of people. God is using his homecoming to show how He can use a selfless and Christ-centered servant. Brad did not check off the typical boxes we have for big ministry success. He was not a well known preacher. No books or highly listened to podcasts. A modest social media presence. A lead pastor role that did not work out well. A period when he could not find a “ministry” job and worked at an ethanol production plant to support his family. Praise God he finally landed in a loving community at Hillcrest Evangelical Free Church that valued Brad Johnson’s remarkable relational skills. So how does this resume produce literally hundreds of stories of how Brad loved, encouraged,
Continue reading...

Opening the Gift of Grace

“Lord I crawled across the barrenness to you with my empty cup uncertain in asking any small drop of refreshment. If only I had known you better I’d have come running with a bucket.” -Nancy Spiegelberg  That quote may be the most indicting summary of my misunderstanding of grace for decades. I am indeed Waking Up Slowly to the mystery and majesty of Grace.  Grace. It is a word that has lost some of its power through misuse and overuse. We banter about the ridiculous concept of cheap grace as if we must be wary of receiving a gift from our Father in Heaven. Are you kidding me? If we view grace like a sales pitch for a time share resort we are listening to the wrong voices. There are no strings attached with grace. No fine print. No hidden costs. No promises to lure you in that cannot be delivered in reality. Grace gives you full title to the
Continue reading...

The Rearview Mirror Is For Occasional Glances Only

The rearview mirror is critical for safe driving. But if you spend all of your time looking in the rearview mirror the trip will almost always end badly. That is a reflective (rimshot) metaphor for life. You need to glance in the past occasionally for perspective and clarity. But the rearview mirror is designed for reference only. No obsessing please. The quest to live in the present is best lived by looking around and just ahead. I love E.L.Doctorow’s quote about writing. I think this principle applies to writing, living and especially to living a life of faith. “It is like driving at night in the fog. You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.” That is profoundly simple and true. Life is a fog. We wish we could see farther ahead on our journey but the truth is we cannot. You can only see as far at the light
Continue reading...

A House Divided Cannot Stand. Will We Let It Fall?

I used to joke that it is hard to find a good Evangelical math teacher because the only thing they completely understand is division. I am not sure I think that is humorous anymore as I watch the heartbreaking division in the body of believers that I love and call family. My head explodes when I allow myself to wade into the discourse between followers of Jesus Christ on Twitter and other social media. There are important cultural issues that Christians need to prayerfully and gracefully seek God’s wisdom to address. What I see is rarely graceful and that makes me wonder how prayerful the messengers have been before hitting the send button. Because of the nature of social media a topic that should be thoughtfully debated instead becomes an us versus them war. The discourse easily drifts toward broad brushing of large segments of the body of Christ with unfair assignation of motives. These judgements of motives and personal
Continue reading...

Ready for the Spiritual Battle? You can be.

This week I taught a lesson from Ephesians about spiritual battles. You likely know the passage about putting on the armor of God. A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. In addition to
Continue reading...

Reviewing the Jesus Contract

When Joni and I recently purchased a new house we visited the title company to sign the official documents. The person from the title company relentlessly pushed papers in front of us along with a brief description of what we were signing. My memory may not be exact but it was something like this. This one says that the builder is transferring the deed to you. And this one says that you have paid the taxes that you owe to Caesar. This one says that you agree to let the HOA control everything you think and do. This one says that you are paying us random fees that you have no idea what they are or why they are needed but you have no choice. This one says a lawyer gets a lot of money for cut and pasting into a standard document. It was a mind-numbing process and by the end I probably would have signed anything put in
Continue reading...