My life has been lived up and down the West Coast. If you blindfold me and leave me anywhere in western Washington, Oregon, or California, I’ll probably know where I am and how to get to where I want to be in less than 60 seconds. The Willamette valley in […]

“Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else, for each one should carry their own load.” (Galatians 6:4-5) We consider pride sin, and we know that pride can lead to a fall, so how is it that […]

Jesus replied, “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God. (Matthew 22:29) it’s pretty simple: Both the Scriptures and the power of God are necessary to understand the ways of the Lord. I know some folks who seek the power but who play […]

In Exodus 33, we find that Moses set up a tent outside of the Hebrew camp where anyone who wanted to could go inquire of the Lord. It was outside of the camp—away from all the hustle and bustle of daily life. A place to quiet down and sit down […]

Jesus. Period. That was the heart-cry of a youth movement started over a decade ago by Andy Gilbert, youth pastor at Faith Center in Eugene Oregon. I like it. No, actually, I love it. I long to stop complicating everything and return to simple obedience and simple devotion to Jesus. […]

For I am going to raise up a shepherd over the land who will not care for the lost, or seek the young, or heal the injured, or feed the healthy, but will eat the meat of the choice sheep, tearing off their hoofs. “Woe to the worthless shepherd, who deserts the […]

Sometimes you’ve got to just stop! Yesterday I got my very long to-do list done at 4pm. And then I kept thinking of more I needed to do. Next thing I knew, I was sitting on my couch at 8 looking for more to get done. Yeah, I know. Sick! […]

I’ve got a big idea that I’m getting ready to communicate. The idea isn’t important (to you), but the way I want to pitch it should be. A while back I was spending a few hours in Barnes and Noble skimming books. I do that regularly. If a book I’m […]

Obedience will always make room for blessing, but the blessing may look quite different than we thought. When we have surrendered our whole lives to God, it opens up the potential for His blessing to flow through us. But I’d be lying if I said that the blessing always looked […]

Let me tell you a secret: I don’t really always fit in very well. Moving around all my early life (20 houses by the time I was 18), I got used to quickly figuring out a situation and finding people to hang out with, but rarely totally fitting in. The thing […]

“Where is God?” Pastor and Author Jerry Cook repeatedly asks the question to congregations. Hearing that he recently asked that in a friend’s church made me start to think… Diests are content to leave God in heaven. He’s “up there” somewhere, but probably unconcerned with what’s happening on earth. Some […]

“When the people of the land come before the LORD at the appointed feasts, whoever enters by the north gate to worship is to go out the south gate; and whoever enters by the south gate is to go out the north gate. No one is to return through the […]

I’ve been thinking about an analogy that Christian leaders like to use. We often talk about passing the baton. Like in a relay race. I’ve heard (and preached) sermons on it, seen videos specifically designed for the illustration, read books about how to pass the baton better, and even been […]

I love an uncluttered room. A boutique with few well-placed items to draw my attention is much more inviting to me than an messy, overstuffed superstore (I’ve been know to just walk out). A simple ad with lots of white space makes me look at what is there—marketing with too […]

Simplicity is not as easy as it seems. In fact, it’s very difficult to communicate simply. It’s an art. Remember the day you discovered it was much easier to write a slightly long, rambling paper than a fairly short, excellent one? We live in a world of increasing information and […]