Driving to work late one morning my head was filled with thoughts about church, about conversations, about seats that were empty that I wish were filled, about a finance email that detailed facts about lower income, about some challenging stuff happening. Some days I use the wrong measurements, and as a result feel ordinary, not…
Category: Encouragement
Declassified
On Tuesday, February 26th, the UMC made a decision to go with what was titled the “Traditional Plan” in regards to the ongoing conversation regarding the church’s approach to those among us who are LGBTQ+. The challenge has been for us, as an international denomination, to approach this question of ministry and ordination in a…
God’s “no one knew was there” Path
(Reprinted from David Beck’s blog)– I’ve shared thoughts from David previously. This dear brother and pastor from Bellevue battling pancreatic cancer is a witness to the faith from the “valley of the shadow.” His words struck home to me today. Sometimes when we are hitting tough situations it helps to hear from a fellow traveler…
Thank You, Cheryl
Some weeks just create a pile up. I suppose it depends on how a person responds. But sometimes things just get tough. That’s what last week was like for me. I was scheduled to be out of town three Sundays; I still had details to complete for each of those weeks. I’m in charge of…
David Beck
When I first heard his story, I was incredulous. A well-loved pastor, David Beck, takes another pastoral position at a church hundreds of miles from his current home. Within a month of arriving, he’s diagnosed with the worst form of pancreatic cancer. Most patients die within months, few live a year. Now a year since…
Mary Poppins
So, I don’t know all that was involved. But here is what I do know. The movie Mary Poppins which might have simply been some kind of fun adventure, the placing of the book on the screen by Disney, God used in my life. That’s what I know. I cannot tell you HOW that is possible….
There is Nothing Like A Friend
This week because of the gift of our daughter’s job working for the airline I could fly east to the state of Virginia for a week of vacation with my brother, fellow pastor, deep confidante, and good friend Mike. There’s nothing like a friend. Mike graduated from the same seminary as I did over a…
The Man In Red
“Hitting the Streets” has become vernacular for meeting, praying then seeking the folk laid on our hearts. We are going out to share Jesus’ love with people we meet. It’s really a rich challenge to the “trust barometer.” We had set the day for Thursday and I’d published the date and when on Saturday I…
2019 Resolutions…
Dear Friends, 2019 has begun Last night, I was sitting with a group of our Junior High boys talking about setting a word or intention for the year, and they were being normally goofy and yet profound at the same time. Sometimes I don’t think they know they are profound. One of them said his…
Getting to Why…
The thing about the last day of the year is that it is filled with possibilities. What will this next year hold? Who will I meet? What will be the biggest mountains and the smallest ones? How will I approach Scripture and prayer and silence and exercise? What will be my rhythm of rest and…
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