Life can be discouraging at times. A wise man once told me this during a particularly discouraging time in my life: “Son, don’t quit when life is tough. You don’t throw your ticket away just because the train goes through a dark tunnel!” I still remember that today. And yet, there are dark times when…
They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and I can really see that. The other day my daughter had the same reaction and facial expression I have when I’m frustrated. The moment made me smile, then cringe, then pray “Lord, help me be a better example to my children!”
The whole of the…
"Don't judge me!" That's the cry of modern man in a modern society that has come to see every desire as a right and every pleasure as a perfectly normal expectation. There's a new Hollywood movie coming out that illustrates my point. It's called "50 Shades of Grey." I won't bore you with the details, but…
Paul Tillich once said, “Doubt is not the opposite of faith; it is one element of faith.” Interesting!
Too many times, moments of doubt are used by the enemy of your soul to cause you to give up or hide in shame. But doubt has never been fatal if it's dealt with in wisdom and patience. On this…
Everybody seems to have the same dream at one time or another. For me, it was a dream where I had a big presentation in front of a large crowd, and in my dream, I forgot my pants! Embarrassed and humiliated, I ran off stage wondering how I could have made such a mistake!
All of…
Approaching Great Lent, the Church gives us the wisdom of the Story of the Prodigal Son. We are challenged to escape the spiritual slavery of either ignoring the brokenness of my life or being so obsessed with my mistakes that I am gripped by guilt and shame. We will escape these twin slaveries by being…
"By the time we got to Woodstock..." Sorry, in advance for putting that song in your head for the rest of the day. But there is one quote more from that famous Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young song I want to share: "We are stardust, we are golden, we are caught in the devil's bargain,…
It’s a paradox. A paradox is a concept that we humans, especially we humans shaped and formed by post-Enlightenment secularism, have a hard time grasping. Paradox makes us uncomfortable. It feels like a “problem” to be “solved.” That’s why we humans stumble over paradox. You know what I mean, don’t you? It’s like what Jesus said when…
“I wish I were older!” Those were my words to my mother when I was a teenager and longed for the “freedom” of being an adult! If I only knew then what I know now! Bills, taxes, responsibilities, ugh! Can I take it back and go back to being a teenager again, please?!?
Well, of…
