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"I've never seen you paint." … said the collector to the painter Jasper Johns. “Neither have I.” Watching is different than doing. Trying to do both at the same time is a challenge. – Seth Godin, February 11, 2024.] I have never once watched or listened to one of my sermons in nearly 15 years of full-time ministry. And I’ve never really stopped to ask myself why. I don’t mind the sound of myself on recordings like some people do. I don’t necessarily think my sermons are bad (although I’ve certainly thought that a few times). There is just somet...
I’m so tired. I don’t mean that I need a nap. I’m not really much of a nap taker. I don’t think it’s even physical tiredness. Today was just one of those long “mental” days. I know, I know: There are people who have it much harder than me. People work longer hours, with jobs that take much more of a physical toll on their bodies than mine does. But we’ve all been there. We’ve all had those days when we’re just “over it.” And it’s not even 2 p.m. yet. I read a news headline the other day about the election. The election… Now, I know I’m...
That seems like an offensive question, doesn’t it? It’s not meant to be, at least not in this instance. Who do you think you are? In other words, how do you visualize yourself? Or maybe while we’re still close to New Year’s Day, who do you want to be? The way we think about ourselves is complicated. Some people might be exactly who they think they are. If you asked your closest friends and family to describe you, would it match the person you project in your thoughts? Would it be someone you’re trying not to be? Maybe it is a combination of the...
What do you do as a part of the church? That’s a question that you’ve probably considered at some point, or if not, someone has considered it about you. I, on the other hand, haven’t considered that question in at least the last 20 years. I’ve worked in churches full-time since 2009. Before that I was in college for four years and my church attendance wasn’t great. In fact, it wasn’t anything at all. Before that I was in high school where I was a “Junior Deacon.” It’s not as cool as it sounds...
If you want something done right, just do it yourself. That’s how the saying goes. But sometimes I hear people say that phrase when they mean something else entirely. Sometimes what they actually mean is that if you want something done quickly, then just do it yourself. Sometimes what they mean is if you don’t want to go through the hassle of explaining or teaching someone else how to do it, then just do it yourself. Sometimes it’s a matter of convenience. Sometimes it’s a matter of priorit...
Do you know what is the hardest part of being a parent for me? It’s the constant “letting go” that must occur if a child is going to stand a chance in the world. First, you have to trust other people to hold your baby. That’s not too hard. But it only gets more and more difficult from there. They start walking and you need to trust them to take steps. You learn to accept that they’re going to get hurt at some point. It’s hard because if you just held them all day, they would never get hurt! B...
I grew up in the First Christian Church of Tonkawa, which at the time was part of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) denomination. The church I serve here in Alva is the same. The main thing most people know about our church is that we take communion every week. Some people think that’s too much and some like the idea. What is your relationship with communion? The first communion I ever remember was a special one. My best friend Seth and I were typical little church kids. We were restless and hyper and hungry for two hours straight o...
I want to share just a bit of my own experience dealing with a piece of worldwide news, one that seemed to impact everyone in their own way some time ago. That news being the tragic deaths of nine people in a helicopter crash, which included former NBA player Kobe Bryant. I consider myself a casual basketball fan. I watch the NBA enough to know the more popular players, but probably not enough to consider myself knowledgeable about the rest of the league. But I knew who Kobe Bryant was, and...
One of my favorite movies is the 2012 biopic Lincoln, starring Daniel-Day Lewis and directed by Steven Spielberg. In it, President Abraham Lincoln struggles to procure votes from both sides of the political aisle in the House of Representatives, the result of which would pass the Thirteenth Amendment, thereby ending slavery in the United States. In one of the movie’s most pivotal scenes, the president is having a late night conversation with two young men working in the telegraph cipher office....
Most of the discourse these days, especially on social media, pertains to things that happen in the world and whether these things are good or bad, right or wrong, or, in the case of Christian communities, sometimes Christian or non-Christian. Sometimes the debate goes on forever, while other times they can be a flash in the pan. That’s because some things, even in Christianity, are pretty clear, while other things seem to be stuck in a grey area. In short, some things are Christian things a...
There’s a famous song written by J.J. Cale and then performed by Eric Clapton, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Johnny Cash. You’d be hard pressed to find a better lineup than that to perform the classic rock song “Call Me the Breeze.” And within this particular song, there is a lyric that has always caught my attention and made me think. “Ain’t no change in the weather ... Ain’t no changes in me.” This is a common mindset, isn’t it? I’ve heard it put a few different ways. “I am who I am and I refuse to ap...
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a **future.” Jeremiah 29:11 is perhaps in the top five most quoted scriptures ever. You see it on t-shirts, bumper stickers, on notebooks and Facebook posts. So, why is it then, that hope can be so hard to find? All it takes is one scroll down the social media page of your choice to see that hope does not appear to be “out in the open.” If it were, wouldn’t th...
I have a recurring dilemma with my own faith as a Christian. It’s a specific dilemma, but it often happens in different ways. The predicament is that of unlimited grace. A pastor friend of mine had a term he used every now and then. After spending time around someone who was known for testing his patience, he would say, “Some people are E.G.R.,” which stands for “Extra Grace Required.” You know the people in your life. We all do. In fact, we’re all probably E.G.R. for someone else whether we...
Yes, I am one of those annoying people who play Christmas music and decorate my house in early November. And by “early November” I mean we’re getting boxes out and decorating inside the house on Oct. 31. So, let’s get this out of the way first: Yes, I love Christmas, but no, I don’t hate Thanksgiving. The question posed in the title of this column is sincere. What good is Thanksgiving? Turkey Day always seems to get overshadowed by Christmas, and people often remind us that we need to be thankfu...
I teach a class at NWOSU called Philosophy in Life. In it, we talk about several of the early Western philosophers, including an Irish philosopher named George Berkeley, who coined the famous philosophical phrase, esse est percipi (aut percipere), or “to be is to be perceived.” It reminds me of the question regarding the tree falling in the woods and whether or not it makes a sound. I imagine Berkeley would argue it didn’t. After all, if it cannot be perceived, then it doesn’t exist. So, how...
The ticking clock above the door in my office is louder than normal today. Of course, that’s not true, as much as my awareness of its ticking has been raised. I have a short to-do list to conquer before I can leave and mentally prepare for the Red Sox-Yankees baseball games, scheduled to be played tonight, tomorrow, Saturday, and Sunday. Yes, my favorite team, the Boston Red Sox, is hanging onto first place by a thread and they face their greatest rival four times in four days starting today. I...
I heard a comedian recently talking about how much he enjoys free time. While performing a stand-up routine onstage (pre-pandemic), he spoke about the pure joy that comes from plans being canceled, as if time that was not supposed to be “free” but became free is better than a planned day off. Maybe a simpler way of putting it is that unexpected freedom is better than expected freedom. A snow day is better than the average Saturday or observed holiday. Why is that? Because it’s a gift. We’re...
As Christians begin the Lenten season on our journey to Easter, we find ourselves at a familiar point in time. One in which we are used to “giving up” something for 40 days and 40 nights as a way of returning to and depending on God. However, this year I can’t help but feel like I’m being ripped off. Like I’m at a pawn shop that is offering me much less that my items are worth. Because as this week approached, I asked a question that we’ve already been asking ourselves for a year. How much mo...
There has been a lot of talk about light and dark this year. People have described this as a dark year when it comes to the pandemic. I hear the phrase “light at the end of the tunnel” from those referencing the vaccine and the return to “normal” life. This is not uncommon. In fact, the Biblical writers often reference light and darkness. But there is one set of scriptures that I think we could apply in our lives that has nothing to do with this year being light or dark. It has to do with us...
As of the writing of this column, the election for the next president of the United States is not officially over. And as many of you are probably aware, they kept reminding us on election night, “It’s not over.” And I’m sure when the moment comes that this election is officially over, there will be a collective sigh (either from relief or disappointment) and we’ll all say together, “It’s over.” That sounds tempting right now. It sounds refreshing for this feeling of anxiety to be over. Except...
I watched an interesting video the other night on YouTube called “Ascension” starring the magician David Blaine. He is known for his magnificent and unbelievable stunts and magic tricks (seriously, you could spend hours watching his videos online and it blows your mind). But just recently, he performed a stunt he called “Ascension.” He planned on taking a handful of balloons (of course it was a little more complicated than that) and floating out of sight into the atmosphere, then skydivi...
I think going to the movie theater is the one thing I miss the most about pre-pandemic life. I definitely miss everyone being able to come to worship services in person, but we are still able to worship. I certainly miss the days when I didn’t have to think about a deadly virus at least five times a day. I also miss going into a crowded restaurant without giving it a second thought. And on our vacation last week, I missed going to White Water. Now, that is just the spoiled side of me. I u...
I hope that title caught your eye. That was the point. I have listened to arguments for two months, both in person and online, about how we as Christians, as well as Americans, should respond to the current pandemic. Do we shut things down and stay inside longer than we’re comfortable being socially distant? Or do we open everything back up and take our chances? The first problem with the debate is that both sides have valid points about health and economic issues, while the second problem is t...
As people of the Christian faith, we sometimes feel like we’re at war with someone or something. We face challenges in our faith almost every day, but it can be tempting to assume that our only enemy is someone who disagrees with our way of thinking. However, in recent weeks, it has become clear that more often than not, we are our own worst enemy. And no, I’m not talking about the nationwide panic that has ensued over the coronavirus, but a battle raging from within people’s very own heart...
Doesn’t this time of year just make you feel like a kid again? Between the music, the lights, people filling the stores to buy presents, and all the holiday dinners, this always feels like the most familiar time of year to me. It’s also the most imaginative time of year, and not just for children. Think about all the ways we open our minds and use our imaginations during the holidays. I mean, some of us go through quite a bit of effort dealing with that pesky Elf on the Shelf every day, don...
