Thus, the problem with Bucket Lists. We think that to really experience things, we have to grasp everything this planet has to offer. So we eat to excess, slip into sensuality, travel without satisfaction, and buy with no regard. We act as if this is everything. We mark them off, one by one. But in the end, all we have is an empty list – and an empty heart. Read more
The problem with a Christian culture that is increasingly influenced by secular thoughts, we don’t measure our choices by God’s standard. His choice isn’t consulted, instead, we pick one of the two options and then ask for his blessing. Read more
In the final analysis, we are not partisan combatants, we are human beings, equally vulnerable and equally wonderful in the sight of God. We rise or fall together and we are determined to rise Read more
Joy is the that deep-rooted strength that doesn’t depend on circumstance. It’s a word that frustrates the worldly man or woman, who measures everything by a net sum/gain. But our view is deeper and longer and simply not a problem to solved by a set of variables. Joy is the secret ingredient to a resilient life. And no. I’m not giving that up. Read more
In times of crisis, we lean on our faith community and religious rituals to give us frame of meaning and a promise to be strong and to hold on to something greater. This is not a time for social or spiritual isolation. We need each other more than ever now. Read more
That family applause of achievement never really ends. We cheer our children as they grow. Education, jobs, promotions and then kids of their own. The refrigerator is never really empty. That’s what any kid deep down inside want to hear. “I’m proud of you. You’ve done well.”I wonder if when we get to heaven, God will have a refrigerator. What accomplishments will he hang? What matters to Him? Read more
Anger is a proper motivator to rid the world of evil or to right wrongs. Henry Beecher said “A man that does not how to angry does not how to be good. A man that does not know how to be shaken to his heart’s core with indignation over things evil is either a fungus, or a wicked man." But admittedly, I don't handle it well. Read more
So, it’s finally time to come clean. I worked at a restaurant once as a teenager. It was the Nugget, on the Nevada side of Lake Tahoe. It was a small casino with a few 21 tables, a row of slots, and lots of bleary-eyed people pulling nickel slot machines. The back of the casino had a small restaurant where we served $2.99 stacks of pancakes and a $7.99 prime rib. It was my first real job as I bussed... Read more
I was once a not-stopping-for-anything young man, ready to change the world. I did my share of shaking things up. But then life got in the way — Marriage. Kids. Jobs. Career. A mortgage. Soon, I had every excuse, every reason why I couldn’t change the world. Not much has changed, except now, I use my past as an excuse, littered with selfishness and broken relationships. I have proven inadequacies, personal chinks in my armor that I know leave me vulnerable.... Read more
As a kid, I watched with wide-eyed fascination the campy Lost in Space television series. The recent reboot on Netflix keeps the Robinson family structure, as they battle various challenges using the skills of their super-smart kids and savvy first-mate, only to be thwarted by the scheming Dr. Smith. And there’s Robot. Despite being a high-tech machine that can fix anything, fight anyone and even display human emotion, his verbal programmers designed his language to be at toddler level, uttering... Read more
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