The other day my son sent me a video of my granddaughter mumbling as she was playing house. It was so cute to hear her babbling sounds she thought made sense (some are starting to!). Apparently she isn’t waiting for a class in English. She has no manual. No tutor. Instead she is mumbling her…
Hold Your Breadth
Most pastors and church leaders would agree they are simply too busy. Often we are stretched and stressed by all the spinning plates we must keep going. Part of the problem is that we don’t take the measure of our capacity; we say yes and yes and yes without considering the bandwidth we’ve committed. But…
It Ain’t Church…
It’s kind of funny how we “do” church. Many have relegated church to an hour meeting each week, singing a few songs and listening to a sermon. That’s a far cry from the early church who longed to be together every day (Acts says they met daily (Acts 2:46).) Today, sadly, even the committed are…
5 Indicators You’re an Isolated Leader
Healthy leadership never happens is isolation. In fact, by definition leadership involves others. We only lead as others respond and follow us. However, there is a tendency for many of us to isolate ourselves. Sometimes it’s subtle as we withdraw from others we should be spending time with. Other times it’s more overt as we…
Three Healthy Relationships
Lately I’ve been reflecting how important people are in my life. How we relate to others will make or break us. Paul wrote that “bad company corrupts good character” (1 Corinthians 15:33). The opposite is also true: Good company corrects bad character.” In many ways, we become who we hang with. Someone said, “Your key relationships either move…
Three Things to Commence
I love commencement season with its dual meaning. It marks both the completion and the beginning, simultaneously making a giant check on the list and creating a new checklist. With that in mind, I offer my congratulations to this year’s graduates of PESM (Pacific Evangelical School of Ministry)! Just the other Sunday we had graduation…
Sustaining Ministry
Have you ever thought of quitting ministry? Every Monday! Right? Seriously, all of us have wondered if we can or even should continue in the pastorate. This past week I turned 60! Yes, I’m getting old. As I look back on 38 years of ministry, it is only because of God’s sustaining grace that I’ve…
On Vacation…
This week Linda and I are on vacation, so I’m not writing a blog. I take my time-off seriously: I unplug from my office email and text messages to focus instead on family, rest, and restoration. Taking time off is important for all of us! In the meantime, here are a few of my past…
3 Things I’m Praying for Our Trip
Hello from Israel! We just completed our first full day in Israel. We started at 7:30 AM in Netanya and got to our hotel here in Tiberius at 6:30 PM. It’s amazing how much you can see, learn, and experience in 11 hours. If you haven’t been following you can go to holylandtripblog and catch our…
Easter in One Word
This weekend, billions of people around the world will celebrate this one event in history—Jesus’ death and resurrection! So what is the significance of Easter? Easter shows us what God is really like. The Bible tells us that “God is gracious and compassionate; slow to anger and rich in love” (Psalm 145:8). The Apostle Peter…
The Best Life is the Christian Life
“The best life is the Christian life!” I really believe that. Jesus said, “I’ve come to give you life and give it more abundantly” (John 10:10). It isn’t the easiest life. It isn’t the most glamorous life. But it is the best life.
Our History in Three Words
Next year our Denomination celebrates its 50th anniversary. In 1968, at our Oregon City Evangelical Church, we became the Evangelical Church of North America (long name and I’m not sure why we limited ourselves to this continent). LET’S TALK… Three words could describe our history as a Conference and Denomination: Dependent, Independent and Interdependent. DEPENDENT….
