This was originally drafted as a sermon for Redemption Church on July 27, 2014. I rely heavily on a chapter from the book What the Dog Saw by Malcolm Gladwell, Reshaping National Intelligence for an Age of Information by Gregory Treverton, and The Seeds of Heaven by Barbara Brown Taylor (who is savant-like at sermon writing). If you are a pastor, feel free to copy and steal everything (w/attribution). 2014.07.27 Parables & Mysteries Matthew 31-33; 44-52 There’s a man named... Read more
There’s a certain private prayer I find myself saying a lot these days. It’s a prayer of lament, a one-line joke cribbed from the movie Idiocracy. I utter this prayer under my breath when I hear a song, see a movie trailer, stumble upon TMZ, or overhear conversations in supermarkets, restaurants and public spaces–pretty much anytime I bump up against all manner of unavoidable evidence that our culture is making us dumber. “Welcome to Costco. I love you.” It’s my... Read more
I confess that I love pop-tarts despite the fact that they have to be just about the worst food you could possibly put into your body. I can’t help it. I love them. My favorite pop-tarts in order would be Chocolate, Strawberry, Smores, and Cherry. I try to only let myself eat them 3-4 times a year–usually when I’m on vacation or a retreat. I confess that I’m having one right now, s’mores flavored, and it’s really good. It’s a... Read more
This is my sermon from last week. If you are a pastor, feel free to copy and steal everything. 2014.07.13 – Discipleship Matt. 13 – Sower & Seeds, Soil & Weeds During a sabbatical a few years back, Kristin and I took a trip to Ireland. We rented a tiny car, drove south along the coast all the way to the southern tip of the island, then up along the Western side. In hindsight I think it’s possible we were... Read more
I confess that my alarm went off at 5:30 this morning & I turned it off and went back to sleep. I woke up at 8:30. I went to bed at 10:30 last night. I don’t think I’ve slept ten straight hours in years, except maybe when I’ve been sick. I must have really needed some sleep. I confess that I’ve had the MacBook Air for awhile now and I still don’t have everything completely shifted over. The final problem has... Read more
I confess that I’ve been neglectful of the blog as of late. It’s not that I’ve developed a disdain for blogging, I’ve just developed a penchant for time management and priorities… family mostly. I am acutely aware of my children’s ages right now. They are 8 and 10. 8 more years and the oldest goes to college. 10 more years for the younger. 8 and 10. A decade-long window of opportunity during which I can do one of two things:... Read more
This is my sermon from last Sunday at Redemption Church. If you are pastor, feel free to copy and steal everything. You guys remember this? This is January, 2009; US Air Flight 1549 out of LaGuardia headed for Charlotte. A normal day, weather was fine, crew was experienced, but about 90 seconds into the flight they ran into an enormous flock of Canada Geese. Airports do all kinds of things to try & keep birds out of the flight path,... Read more
Caught this great list from Paul Raushenbush today, writing to his 25 year-old self on the occasion of his 50th birthday. There are some powerful words of advice in this list. I picked out my top five (plus one) and listed them below. There are so many here that I wish I would heed even now at age 44. I hope you’ll take a moment & read through these. Could be something among them that will be meaningful to you... Read more
This is my sermon from last week at Redemption Church. If you are a pastor feel free to copy and steal anything that might help you as you prepare to lead your own congregation in worship. I have to acknowledge up front that I got the knowing/doing v. being/relating rubric from my friend Tim Keel. 2014.06.15 – Trinity Sunday Matthew 28:19-20 – Make Disciples VIDEO: Steve martin Evangelism How many of you at some point went to a service, conference,... Read more
I confess that I left work early last Wednesday to go work in my yard. I never do this, well hardly ever. I was trying to prepare for a sermon, but nothing was clicking. So I figured I’d head out, use the church pickup truck to go get a load of mulch and dirt for my house, and then mow my lawn. If I couldn’t get on track studying & reading, maybe some physical labor would help. Back when our... Read more
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