Category: Encouragement

Christian Leadership, Christianity, Culture, Devotion, Encouragement, Faith, Life, Sports

Loving the Weeds

Before entering ministry, I had the great joy and privilege of being a journalist. For 11 years starting in high school when I was a part-time stringer for the local paper I covered everything a young reporter could cover. I saw the inner workings of the legislative process, the fast-paced nature of NASCAR on a race weekend, the joy of a high school athlete who just won a state title, and the pain caused by the most obscure crimes.

Though I no longer cover a beat with my reporter’s notebook in hand I often find myself reflective of that time in my life. One of the things I have recognized about this time in my life was that it was season of preparation for this life in pastoral ministry. Not only did it give me the tools to communicate and express our mutual hope in Jesus Christ, but it also gave me the tools to look at our communities and world and to see what we often do not see at first glance. Continue reading “Loving the Weeds”

Christian Leadership, Christianity, Culture, Devotion, Encouragement, Faith, Life, Sermon

The Gardener Never Gives Up

I’m not much of a gardener. I do not have a green thumb. I do not have a good agricultural sense. In fact, if someone asked me how to produce a good fruit or vegetable my response would not be about how one would grow the desired plant. Instead, I would likely tell them to get up early on a Saturday morning, take some money out of the bank, and head to the nearest farmer’s market. The fruits and vegetables would be there for the picking!

To be honest, Abbi and I did try our hand at growing our own vegetables once. A couple of years ago, in the days before Noah, we decided we wanted a garden. We enlisted the help of some friends who helped us to prepare a plot of land. Now, what we had in mind was a small garden where we could plant a few things. Our friend had a different idea. We ended up with a 30-yard long and 10-yard deep garden.

It was probably too big for two amateur gardeners, but we did our best to produce what vegetables we could. We cleared the weeds and prepared the rows. We planted the seeds and watered the land. We sowed some seed in some good places and some, honestly, in some bad places. Before too long, to my own shock, we ended up with a good crop of three-foot long squash, some tomatoes, and a few beans. Continue reading “The Gardener Never Gives Up”

Christian Leadership, Christianity, Culture, Devotion, Encouragement, Faith, Life, Sermon

Laying Down Our Burdens

I think it has dawn on me with this most recent move that our family owns a small library of books. At the same time, I think most of our boxes were nothing but books, whether they were Abbi’s, Noah’s, or my own. Each box had its own collection within them. Books from various fiction authors. Books about the presidents. Books about books in the Bible. Books about Curious George. Books that, to be honest, I don’t think we have even started reading.

Each of these books were placed into boxes of various sizes. The worst of these boxes were these egg crate boxes that were two boxes merged into one. At first, I thought this was a great concept. I could fit more books into the boxes and reduce the number of boxes we would need. I thought this until I had to pick up a filled box. These egg crate boxes were among the heaviest we had, because they were overloaded with books that made it difficult to carry. Continue reading “Laying Down Our Burdens”

Christian Leadership, Christianity, Culture, Devotion, Encouragement, Faith, Life, Sermon

Nothing More Important

This is a familiar passage for us. Many of us might be able to recite these words, especially Matthew 28:19, from heart.

It is a “go to” passage for us Methodists. This is a passage we frequently turn to as one of our favorite passages. We Methodists like it so much we made it our mission statement. At the 2008 General Conference, delegates approved making a version of this passage the definitive statement about our mission and ministry. Look at the front of your bulletin and you will see this. Our desire is to “make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.”

These words, this mission, are to define our work. Everything about us as a church is to be centered on our hope of making disciples of Jesus Christ who are sent out to make a difference in our world by how they love others. We are called to make disciples of Jesus. Continue reading “Nothing More Important”

Christian Leadership, Christianity, Culture, Devotion, Encouragement, Faith, Life, Sermon

Never Thirst Again

When I make my way into the kitchen, every morning, to start the day one of the first things I do is to go to the refrigerator. It is there I begin my quest to find the energy to make it through the day by grabbing a nice, cold, refreshing Diet Coke. While some may need the warmth of a cup of coffee to get through the morning, I need the sweet and calorie free taste of a Diet Coke to get things going. It is “Just for the taste of it,” right?”

To be honest, it’s not just in the mornings when I grab a Diet Coke. It seems like I always have a Diet Coke by my side. Come to the office, see me on Sunday mornings before worship, or see me moments before a meeting and chances are I am sipping on a Diet Coke or Diet Dr Pepper. In my mind, I need the caffeine from Diet Coke to get through the day, which ultimately leads me to having more soft drinks than a person should consume in one 24-hour period.

If we were honest with ourselves we all have things that we turn to in order to provide energy or momentum through the day. It could be a morning cup of coffee. It might be a favorite snack in the middle of the day. It might even be a favorite song or album that we listen to through the day. All these things, and many others, we turn to in order to “get us through the day.” Continue reading “Never Thirst Again”