Blog
When I worked as a homicide detective one of the most unpleasant of all my duties was attending an autopsy. It is a brutal but necessary procedure to discover the cause of a person’s death. What was once a living and breathing human being with hopes and dreams was...
I’m noticing an increasing number of people are losing the strength of their original faith – a faith once vibrant and filled with hope. They don’t have enough belief left to power their faith or take a step of obedience because they feel disconnected and...
Paul stated in Ephesians 4 the evidence of our spiritual maturity is the ability to speak the truth in love. The ability to speak the truth without the restricting fear of censure and punishment is what freedom looks like. Those who attempt to silence the dissent of...
From my earliest memories, I can remember my father’s tattoos. He had one on each arm. On his right arm was a beautiful old style tattoo where he had inked my mother’s name, “Lavert.” On his left arm was another tattoo with the word, “Mother”. My father...
“The old system under the law of Moses was only a shadow, a dim preview of the good things to come, not the good things themselves.” Hebrews 10:1 Jesus cast His shadow from eternity into the history of the Old Testament. The festivals, feasts and observances...
As a pastor, I receive some of the latest information about what is taking place within the church world. A lot of what I read is the search for "The Next Big Thing" coming to the Church. Over the years I have seen this search take people on a quest...
When I started in full-time ministry over 30 years ago most of us wore jackets and ties to preach on Sunday morning. Recently, I looked at some old pictures of me back in the early 1980’s and according to the fashion standards of the day we looked just fine....
“And God chose me to be a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of this Good News.” II Timothy 1:11 When Paul wrote these words to his spiritual son, Timothy, it was the second letter Paul had written bearing Timothy’s name. There is a sense of urgency...
A couple of months ago Jan and I flew to Phoenix, Arizona. My flight was in the month of May so Phoenix was already getting hot. I decided to wear shorts, flip flops and a tee shirt for the flight anticipating a very warm arrival. The flight from Medford,...
When Jan and I lived in Berlin, Germany our ministry assignment during that time was to strengthen and encourage churches and leaders in Europe. As we traveled each week we were constantly crossing national borders. More importantly, we were also crossing...
About 20 years ago I changed how I counsel couples who come to me wanting to get married. I used to struggle with why I didn’t like the more academic approach of having couples read books and take tests to direct their new relationship. There is really nothing...
As I drove to my office this morning I turned on the CD player and a worship song began to declare these words, “Take me where I’ve never been. Take me where I’m scared to go.” Those words began to touch me and I found myself pressing the replay button...
This week, I am preparing to teach out of Mark 3 where two groups of people have expressed personal opinions about Jesus. His family thought He had lost His mind and they wanted to "rescue" Him from His ministry. The teachers of religious law declared that...
"A Choice within a Choice" is a short video excerpt from a message I shared during the Sunday morning service at New Hope in Salem, Oregon. It is about making personal decisions within the larger decisions God has already...
Most of us walk around with labels attached to our lives. Some of these labels were attached to us by our parents others were attached in seasons of personal failure or by unresolved fears that currently inhabit our lives. We will live out the false...