How to avoid bias when arriving at conclusions in life…

How to avoid bias when arriving at conclusions in life… Short answer: YOU CAN’T! Sorry for the loud ALL CAPS but the gist of this post is that we can’t avoid our bias when we arrive at conclusions so feel free to skip reading and move on to more pressing matters. But… Long answer: Let …

Takeaways on Parenting and Ministry from the Massive College Cheating Scandal

If you haven’t heard (aka you are a hermit in a cave) there are over 50 people who are charged in a massive cheating scandal to leverage their money and influence to subvert the system and get their children into prestigious universities. Among them are Lori Loughlin (Aunt Becky from Full House) and Felicity Huffman …

Retreats, Lent, Mystics and God

“Union with God is not something that needs to be acquired but realized.”[1] Next Wednesday I plan on starting the season of Lent on a retreat with a friend at Penuel Ridge in Ashland City, TN. I have had the blessing of having a few personal retreats at this place and this will be my …

Strength in the Strain

“God does not give us overcoming life: He gives us life as we overcome. The strain is the strength. If there is no strain, there is no strength. Are you asking God to give you life and liberty and joy? He cannot, unless you will accept the strain. Immediately you face the strain, you will …

Sacred Moments and Social Media: A Lament of Sorts

If you will indulge me as I proceed to date myself with the details of this post. Also, I understand this post may land on some of you in a sort of cantankerous way. I picture myself akin to the old cartoon movie The Sword and the Stone’s owl named Archimedes who seems annoyed by …

“If I hear one more sermon on love I think I am going to explode!”

  That sentence was shared with me by a parishioner in a coffee shop in Nashville when the church I was working for was enduring a rough patch. Two distinct groups emerged and I will spare you the reasons we were divisive about, because if I share them it might make you leave the church or hate Jesus …

Rest areas and my spirituality…

I think the idea of “resting in God’ is analogous to my experience of how a rest area works when my family traveled to Canada in the 80s and 90s. The distance between where we lived in Marietta, Georgia and my maternal grandmother’s place in Toronto was about 950 miles. Typically, it took anywhere between …

That’s good enough

Movies are vehicles into an alternate world for me. My last post used The Lord of the Rings as a backdrop for my discussion. One of my favorite directors/producers/writers is the late John Hughes. He was involved with many of my favorite movies in the 80s and 90s: Planes, Trains and Automobiles, Uncle Buck, Home …

I’m back…

The wife and I were watching Lord of the Rings: Two Towers last night and there is a scene where Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli venture into Fangorn Forest (Yes I had to look all of this up) looking for Peragrin and Meriadoc (other hobbits in the Fellowship) when they happen upon what looks like a …

Youth Ministry and Background Checks…Help me out…

I have never done these but feel compelled to have ALL those who chaperone and volunteer to do this. But, I need some feedback... What is the best company to do this with? Cost-effective... Do you keep this stuff on file? How do you deal with the criticism of "Well I guess you don't trust …