September 11th, 2011 is the tenth anniversary of my eldest daughter Kysa’s first day of preschool. Ten years ago, Kysa was a very thoughtful, but somewhat shy little four-year old girl. Today she is still extremely thoughtful. Her shyness disappeared shortly after entering school. So far it shows no signs of returning. Being the first […]
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The Power of a River Baptism
There’s nothing like a good old river water baptism. Tradition dictates that our church does at least one river baptism service a year. We’ve got an indoor baptismal tank as well, but there’s nothing quite like a frigid river dunk to give you some old-time religion. Our baptism choice is the Stuck River. The Stuck […]
I’m an Anxious Man
My anxiety abides within my gut, within my skin, within countless compromises and desperate attempts to be accepted. My anxiety abides. My anxiety abides within my biology, within my earliest memories, within restless sleep and twisted dreams, within racing thoughts, shifting eyes, fidgeting legs, and perpetual foreboding anticipations. My anxiety abides. My anxiety is a […]
Ways to Save Your LIfe
1. Stop following your own lead. Follow God instead. We were made to worship and serve God. When we serve and worship the created instead of the creator, we find emptiness and hopelessness become the fruit of our lives. We certainly can be fruitful without following God’s lead. He has made us so wonderfully fruitful […]
Cars 2: The Most Commercially Crass Movie of the Decade
So far, Cars 2 is leading the pack as the most commercially crass movie of the decade. Although up to this point I’ve been a big fan of the Pixar/Disney John Lassester magic, I just can’t swallow the Cars sequel. Simply put, Cars 2 appears to be more about stock holders than stock cars. It’s […]
A Declaration of Freedom!
On July 2nd, 1776 the Second Continental Congress adopted the Lee Resolution declaring the Thirteen Colonies to be independent of the British Empire. Two days later, an explanation and justification of the Lee Resolution was indelibly sealed and signed into parchment as the United States Declaration of Independence. This foundational document concludes with the following […]
When We Were Young We Used to Play Together.
When I was a child, slip-n-slides were fastened to lawns with large boulders. Consequently, the definition of summer fun was sliding headfirst between 10 pound rocks, at breakneck speeds, on a moistened strip of plastic runway. Currently, this activity is more commonly categorized as child endangerment. The use of boulders built a natural time limit […]
Investing in Servants, not Systems (Foursquare Convention 2011, Final Thoughts)
The International Church of the Foursquare Gospel was birthed through the obedience of Sister Aimee Semple McPherson. Sister Aimee had a rich, complex life and calling. Trying to describe her calling and the impact of her life is a daunting task. This is primarily because Sister Aimee’s ministry was rooted in Spirit-led obedience that frequently […]
Foursquare 2011, Tuesday. . . Repenting of Bitterness
Today Pastor A.J. Swoboda spoke about being willing to embrace dead things, with the faith to believe God will bring about a resurrection. He called us to embrace spiritually dead people, spiritually dead cities, spiritually dead situations. He called us to make room for resurrected life. During our business meeting I was once again encouraged […]
I Do Not Have the Spiritual Gift of Attending Foursquare Business Meetings.
Enduring prolonged business meeting is not within my spiritual gift set. I understand that prolonged business meetings are necessary for the survival of most organizations, however, I am less certain that my presence at such meetings is beneficial to my survival. Each year I convince myself that the Foursquare business meeting will be something I […]