Anchored in the Eternal: How God Becomes Our Safe Harbor
Peace doesn’t rise from our efforts, or from searching our own hearts for something solid. It comes from knowing the God who has already moved toward us in love. At the cross, we see his heart laid bare — holiness without harshness, sovereignty without distance, justice wrapped in mercy. Let that glimpse of God steady you. Anchor yourself there, where his character becomes your calm.
Everything is Spiritual
There is no part of life untouched by the Spirit of God. Work and worship, rest and recreation, labor and laughter — it’s all his domain. The sacred doesn’t start when the music does on Sunday morning; it starts when you wake up, when you breathe, when you create, when you serve. You’re not living in two worlds, one holy and one not. You’re living in one — and it’s charged with the presence of God. Everything is spiritual.
Storytelling: The Power of Our Testimonies
Every one of us carries a story that only makes sense when seen through God’s eyes. The heartbreaks, failures and long detours — He’s been in all of it, redeeming, reworking, rebuilding. When we tell our stories truthfully, the light gets in. Others see him, not just us. And somehow, our scars start to heal. Because with God, every story turns toward glory.
From Wonderblind to Wonder-Full
Wonder begins when we stop assuming we already see. Jesus’ invitation — come and see — is a summons to wakefulness, to reimagine the world as shot through with divine beauty. Every moment, every face, every leaf in sunlight hums with his presence. Apprenticeship to Jesus restores our sight — turning us from wonderblind to wonder-full, alive again to the shimmering grace of all things.
Your Many Siblings: God Could Not Be Satisfied with One Child
God wanted more than one Son. The Word became flesh so that the only begotten might become the first among many. Love moved him — not to multiply servants, but to multiply sons. The cross was his way to family, his means to glory. Christ our Brother, God our Father, and we, his children — justified, glorified, gathered home together.
It Took Twelve Times
Windchimes whisper in our garden as kids next door call “Papa!” and I ask God for words. Silence settles; a hummingbird perches. Then the memory: our first argument, my ache to “love better,” and his answer — I love you. I pushed it away until, the twelfth time, something cracked open. Softened, I finally believed it. He keeps saying it still. Love is home. Love is how he speaks.
Church: The Case for & Against Community
We crave freedom from others — until isolation exposes our need for them. The myth of independence tells us we’ll find truth alone, but our souls were made for relationship.
Overly Careful to Wisely Careless: A Journey Back
When trust is broken, pain can echo through every new relationship. Healing means learning to decode the white noise — those whispers that say everyone will leave. God invites us into something different: to risk love again, to let safe people stay. Healing happens in community, through presence and grace, until we finally believe what’s always been true — we are loved and never alone.
Beaches and Dolphins and True Freedom
A dolphin stranded on the beach isn’t free — it’s dying. Freedom isn’t doing whatever we want; it’s living how we were made to live. We were created to thrive in the presence of God, not apart from him. In Jesus, we’re freed from sin and freed to live fully — to love, to serve and to breathe deep in the ocean of his grace.
Trouble Brings Me Back
Bad news hit like a cannonball: a massive, unexpected tax bill on top of triple tuition and soaring costs. Jenn and I spun scenarios, fear rising — until we realized we hadn’t prayed. Trouble exposed what I was trusting. When God is first, I’m steadied; when outcomes are first, I’m tossed. Trials can grow endurance (James 1:2–4). Today, I’m learning to wear the world loosely and run back to him.
Fences Fall, Grace Rises
When a fence came down between our yard and our neighbor’s, I felt the pull to protect what was mine. But God whispered, ‘You’ve already got everything you need.’ He reminded me that I’m not an orphan fighting for ground — I’m a son, loved and provided for. When fences fall, grace rises. And in that space, God teaches us to trust again.
Empty Pockets Meet an Infinite Provider
God isn’t distant or detached; he’s a good Father who delights in providing for his kids. But his power is released when our priorities align with his. Seek first his kingdom — his values, his ways.
Pulling Up Roots: How Unhealed Hurt Becomes the Offense We Carry
I kept telling myself the meeting didn’t matter, but the dismissal burrowed in. Unhealed hurt does that — it throws vines over the heart until everything feels gray. Offense becomes our armor; it also becomes our cage. Jesus invites another way: name the wound, pull the root, abide in Love. With him, we can trade resentment for release, guardedness for grace and grow green again.
Courage to Be True: Moving From Shame to Wholeness
For years I hid behind a practiced smile. I longed to be loved but feared being known. Rejection felt deadly, so I performed, pleased and pretended. Shame taught me to hide. But God doesn’t heal who we pretend to be. He meets the real us — wounded, afraid, still in process — and calls us his own. Courage begins there: trusting our identity isn’t defined by our past, but secured in Christ alone.
Fruit Wars: Reclaiming Your Spiritual Garden
The sweetest fruit grows slow — and it’s often stolen before it ripens. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness — they’re not gone, just stunted. The enemy can’t steal what God plants, but he can distract us from abiding. Stay close to the Vine. Guard your spiritual garden. What the Spirit grows in you, no thief can truly take.
Sacred Texts and ‘Little Bells’: Arvo Pärt’s Musical Masterpieces
Arvo Pärt’s music feels both ancient and startlingly new. His tintinnabuli style — “little bells” of melody and harmony — distills sound into simplicity, letting sacred texts breathe. Silence is never absence but presence, the space where God speaks. At ninety, Pärt still teaches us that less can carry more, and that even a single note can draw us into eternity.
Baptism: Understanding Death, Burial, & Resurrection
Baptism marks the end of one world and the beginning of another. The Cross wipes away everything born of Adam; the resurrection ushers in everything born of Christ. Going under the water, we consent to God’s verdict — that our old life is finished. Rising, we testify to his new life within us. The old creation buried; the new creation born. Christ’s life, now grafted into ours.
When the World Shakes
When the world trembles and my courage hides, I light a candle and ask my heart if it’s ready. I hear: surrender. I remember: idols won’t hold. So I breathe, unclench and let Love lower my center. Do what’s before you, he says. Fill your heart till it spills. Be loved, be loved, be loved. Hope descends like a rope ladder; I climb, eyes up, into his steady light.
Short-Term Missions: Their Value When Done Right
[Neil Holdway, metro news editor for the Chicago’s Daily Herald: “As the writer of teaser text, you’re an outlet's host, presenting to the readers what you have and why they should want it. Seize the opportunity! Write well and speak right to them: We want readers to view articles as relevant and beneficial to them. So, not 'The cost of postage stamps will increase next week,' but 'How much more will you have to pay for stamps starting Monday?' Yes, use 'you;' it’s OK.”] [60-70 words]
‘House Of David’ Season 2: The Bible Epic We All Need
With sweeping battles and heartfelt faith, “House of David” returns with a richer, bolder second season. It’s a rare biblical epic that captures both the grit of war and the grace of God. Saul’s fall and David’s rise unfold with cinematic power, reminding us that heroism under heaven isn’t about dominance — it’s about surrender.