Blog
I just took a truckload of debris to the dump. It reminded me of walking through my social media accounts of late. In those accounts are so many varied opinions about so much. After I paid my bill, I was directed to a large disposal center where huge tractors were...
I just checked out our local news cycle. It seems the battles in Israel and the incursion into Gaza are getting less and less attention. It’s not unusual. We need to rise higher in our understanding of what is happening to discern the heart of God. It is always about...
Yesterday, I was looking at the remaining coffee filters sitting in our kitchen drawer. I asked myself, “Where will I be when all of these are gone?” I did the same thing a few weeks ago when I got my recent oil change. Then again with our anticipated annual cleaning...
(“Thoughts I Want To Leave Behind” is a collection of thoughts and impressions I want to leave behind as I begin to make my final pastoral transition.) #5 Outwitting Your Imposter Inside each of us lives an imposter. This imposter wants to ruin your life by...
(“Thoughts I Want To Leave Behind” is a collection of thoughts and impressions I want to leave behind as I begin to make my final pastoral transition.) #4 Trust Your Team Every church, every family and every business is a team. If you have done your job well your team...
(“Thoughts I Want To Leave Behind” is a collection of thoughts and impressions I want to leave behind as I begin to make my final pastoral transition.) #3 Choose To Believe The Best Choose to believe the best even when it seems a worst-case scenario is developing....
(“Thoughts I Want To Leave Behind” is a collection of thoughts and impressions I want to leave behind as I begin to make my final pastoral transition.) #2 Follow The Presence There will be times in the coming years when you will run out of road. You will come to...
In one month, I will hand our church over to a new generation of leaders. These are trusted men and women who know God and His heart. They will serve God and His people with honor and integrity. As I travel and minister in a widening circle of...
As I write this, I am in a hotel room north of New Orleans grabbing a few hours of down time between ministry sessions. My host church has put me up in a nice hotel where I can relax, think and write. The first thing I do when I travel and enter an...
This week a small town in Northern California was devastated by fire. Many homes in the city were lost and hundreds of people displaced. Video footage of the fire’s aftermath looked like a warzone. In the days following the fire, I would discover what gave the small...
When I came to Medford, Oregon 15 years ago to pastor what would become Living Waters Church, I remember one particular day shortly after my arrival when the Lord gave me a distinct assignment for our church. I remember the day well. I was driving on an...
Your unique ethnicity, gender or social status does not provide you with superior insight into the issues of life. Your humanity is what makes your contribution valuable. Paul told the church in Ephesus that God created “one new people” in Christ to become a...
When I was thirteen years old, I traveled with my family into the Deep South where my mother grew up. This was in December of 1963 just weeks after President Kennedy was assassinated. We flew to our destination, picked up a car and then drove back home to the...
Twenty-five years ago, I asked a wise pastor his opinion about the battles he fought over issues of faith. As a younger pastor he was known to have had a history of picking verbal fights with anyone with whom he disagreed. He had thankfully mellowed over...
Jan and I live on a quiet street nestled in the foothills of Southern Oregon. We are shielded from much of the noise generated by the communities in valley below. There are times when it is completely silent. This morning in the stillness, I heard the distant and...