There’s a well-known story about a famous violinist who took his $3.5 million Stradivarius onto a platform of a Washington DC subway and started playing music. He was dressed in a T-shirt and a ball cap. Joshua Bell was accustomed to playing for packed concert halls and getting paid $1,000 a minute. During his 43-minute solo concert in the subway a total of 1097 people passed by. But only seven people stopped to listen. He earned $32 in change. J.T. Tillman, a computer specialist, was one of the people who walked by. He said, “I didn’t think nothing of it, just a guy trying to make a couple of ..read more

My wife Suzi loves puzzles and is a master at putting them together. Me on the other hand, when I look at a pile of jigsaw puzzle pieces, immediately thinks, "Chaos!" This is why I'm so amazed at how Suzi opens a puzzle box, and immediately employs her meticulous strategy, and within a handful of hours, has assembled a beautiful picture...with every piece in it's place! The Bible opens with these words: "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering ..read more

So many of us do it: You get into bed, turn off the lights, and look at your phone to check social media one more time. Before you know it, you've spent hours incessantly scrolling through X, Tik-tok or Reels...a bottomless doom-and-gloom of negative information, thoughtless antics and cheap entertainment.    This habit has become known as doomscrolling--the act of consuming an endless procession of negative or meaningless online content. According to a recent survey from the Pew Research Center, 66% of Americans feel worn out by the amount of news available. Other articles ..read more

We've all had those moments when we've been misunderstood. Maybe because of appearance, language barrier or simply using the wrong word, there can be confusion about what is really going on. When it comes to Christianity, I have found that there is a huge misunderstanding about what it's all about. Over the years I've had people say, "Well, I could never be a Christian because I find parts of the Bible offensive." In my ministry I've had people be offended about what the Bible says about money, women, creation, marriage, sexual ethics and many other things. My response typically goes some ..read more

On Saturday, May 6th 2023 the coronation of King Charles III and his wife, Camilla, as king and queen of the United Kingdom and the Common wealth realms took place at Westminster Abbey, London. The coronation itself is an intricate service lasting just over two hours and follows a traditional template that has stayed much the same for more than 1,00 years. For example there is great symbolism in the royal scepters that are used, the intricate details of the throne and the crowns. Every part of the coronation is marking the transition of Charles from prince to king. If you are interested i ..read more

One of the hardest places to be angry with a person is at the supper table. It's nearly impossible to share a meal with someone with whom you are at odds with. Either you won't enjoy the food you are eating or you will be forced to leave the table and eat somewhere else. The flip side of this is when you are in a healthy relationship with another, sharing a meal is the best place to be; the conversation flows freely, the laughter is effortless and even the food tastes better! Here's the truth: To share a meal with someone you are at odds with requires reconciliation. For the Christia ..read more

The story is told of a man who was on a business trip and stayed in a hotel that had a bug problem. There were bugs all over his room. He complained about this to the management and later wrote a letter of complaint to the main office of the hotel chain.  Sometime later he received a letter signed by the President of the company. It said:   “We are humiliated that a man of your integrity, a man of your reputation, a man of your importance in the community should have had this experience in one of our hotels. We are deeply sorry.”  This made the man feel somewhat better abou ..read more

I'm not very familiar with figs or fig trees. My only connection might be that I enjoy a Fig Newton every once in a while, that's about it. However, a fig tree becomes a central point of emphasis for what Jesus teaches in chapter 11 of Mark's gospel. Jesus and his disciples are heading into Jerusalem, and Jesus is hungry. Up ahead he sees a fig tree, mature and full of leaves. Even though it's a little early for the fig harvest he's hoping to score some figs. However, when he gets to the tree he discovers there is no sign of fruit, not even a little bud. Here is what he says: "M ..read more

"Father Damien was a priest who became famous for his willingness to serve lepers. He moved to Kalawao—a village on the island of Molokai, in Hawaii, that had been quarantined to serve as a leper colony. For 16 years, he lived in their midst. He learned to speak their language. He bandaged their wounds, embraced the bodies no one else would touch, preached to hearts that would otherwise have been left alone. He organized schools, bands, and choirs. He built homes so that the lepers could have shelter. He built 2,000 coffins by hand so that, when they died, they could be buried with dignity. Sl ..read more

In August of 2003, the Church of the Holy Cross in New York City was broken into twice. In the first break-in, thieves made away with a metal moneybox that had been resting next to a votive candle rack. Three weeks later, vandals escaped with something much more valuable: they unbolted a 4-foot long, 200-pound plaster Jesus from a meditation area, taking the statue of Christ, but leaving behind his wooden cross on the wall. The church caretaker, David St. James, confessed his bewilderment at this: "They just decided, 'We're going to leave the cross and take Jesus.' We don't know why they took ..read more