How many things do you specifically remember from sermons, talks, and conversations more than 25 years ago? For the young... you'll have to get back to me! For those with enough miles on the road, the answer is usually "Honestly, not a ton!" That's the case for me. As a pastor, I think I've paid...

We lost power in Leachville for a day and a half in last month's storm. (This goes back to the power outage the SECOND week of August, not the flooding event the THIRD week of August. Quite a month!) We lost it overnight on a Monday and got it back at 7:00 pm on Wednesday. Hooray for AEP, but...

A couple of songs from the album Best of Fernando Ortega, Live in St. Paul are among my most-listened-to over the past few years. I listen on Spotify and sort of cherry-pick the ones I like, so I don’t really know the rest of the songs that well.  This month, I’ve played the...

My first paragraph (immediately below) is actually the last paragraph. I moved it up to make it the part that gets read. Maybe there’s a similar opportunity for someone else here too? One final note - what’s really struck me as I’ve listened to Ben Sasse’s...

Grace and Peace The most important words you may read this week are "hidden" in the opening of a set of 2,000-year-old letters! When the Apostle Paul sat down to write, he typically began with a version of this greeting: “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus...

O Lord, my heart is not lifted up; my eyes are not raised too high; I do not occupy myself with things too great and too marvelous for me.But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, hope in the Lord from...

Certain Bible stories get down into your bloodstream. For me, Exodus 13-17 contains a series of those stories because I see my occasionally problematic, complaining spirit in the Israelites' response to God’s deliverance. (Maybe it’s not just me?) God doesn’t just help Israel...

Ringing in the New Year this year, I’ve made no resolutions. Over the past few years, I have been working on a few resolution-worthy goals with differing levels of success and un-success. And I’ll continue to. But I did go looking for old-school wisdom in Proverbs this week to think...

Every December, a quiet miracle happens without much fanfare. Our playlists change along with our calendars. One moment we’re into our normal stuff. The next, it’s O Come, O Come, Emmanuel, Joy To The World, and O Come All Ye Faithful. This time of year, Christmas music takes over -...

I recently got my first pair of progressives (progressive-lens glasses). They tell you not to wear them when you drive or go up and down stairs for a while, because it takes time for your brain to process the new outlook your eyes are giving it. People swerve and fall down, apparently&hellip...