March 2015 Blog Posts (12)

Lately, God is stretching me. I resist when He starts…struggling to maintain my "sameness". I had just figured out how to manage it all..and He is adding one more thing?

But that is where I learn Christ…when I feel weak and inadequate the most. He is taking me here…and I can choose to trust the One who knows not only where I am now but how to lead me to the end, where I meet Him face to face. He sees it all with His…

Ok I know that this title might sound very funny and maybe not even relateable to this website, but if you all will hold on for a sec I will try explain myself. The title is based off a lot of responses I hear from people that have tried to desciple someone or have had someone try to disciple them. Me on the other hand made myself a promise to God that if He…

“If we let things terrify us, life will not be worth living.” (Seneca, Roman statesman; 4 B.C. – A.D. 65)

A review of current events does little to increase our optimism about the chances of world peace. It feels like “everything nailed down is coming loose” (the angel Gabriel in the musical Green Pastures).

Over the last year, fighting associated with Boko Haram in Nigeria has led to the deaths of over 6,000 civilians.

A…

“I believe in the sun, even when it is not shining; I believe in love, even when it is hidden; I believe in God, even when he is silent.” (Air-raid shelter; Cologne, France; WWII)

On this first day of spring, we look in vain for the sun; but we believe it is still shining beyond the clouds.

When we are gloomy, God overshadows us with invulnerable joy. Guardian angels spread their wings over us, surpassing angst with ecstasy. When life gets dreary,…

“‘In our world,’ said Eustace, ‘a star is a huge ball of flaming gas.’ ‘Even in your world, my son, that is not what a star is but only what it is made of.’” (C.S. Lewis, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader)

NASA has released a breathtaking video sampling of the 200 million images captured by the Solar Dynamics Observatory taken over 5 years in space. A kaleidoscope set to music, it provides unprecedentedly clear pictures of the sun’s activity. You can view it…

I love preaching even more than I like breathing, eating, or taking a walk on the beach. So it was very strange recently when I found myself having absolutely no desire to preach.

What could the problem be?

Of course, some pastors preach every Sunday and are simply burnt out. I could never keep that kind of schedule again. But since I haven’t preached in several months, burnout clearly isn’t my problem.

Another part of my melancholy over the issue is the fact that things…

A casual observance of society reveals loyalty is a lost art. In earlier days, sports fans could expect professional athletes to remain with one team for the life of their career.  Now loyalty yields to a "show me the money" mentality. My grandparents believed, to guarantee a long marriage they should leave the word "divorce" out of their vocabulary. Now loyalty gives way to no cause, easy access divorce. A recent survey showed 57% of workers are…

Recently I faced a number of situations where I was put on standby, and none of them were much fun.

At work everything was put on hold two days in a row because of the “possibility” of a very important meeting that never ended up happening. During that same week, a pastor asked me to be on standby to preach for him in case bad weather prevented him from getting back from a ministry trip on time—but he returned successfully.

Meanwhile, I was looking forward to a new initiative…

When our family moved from Florida to North Carolina, we realized after a few days that our blue Parakeet was being awfully quiet. Tweety, as we called him, had always been a joyful chirper while we lived in Florida—but now it seemed he had lost his song. For a whole month, Tweety’s silence continued, to the point that we wondered if he would ever be the same again.

I missed the cheery atmosphere that Tweety had previously provided, something I had taken for granted and not…

BLOG FOR JESUS

To whom it may concern, 

I presently volunteer as an an online missionary and have been doing international outreach through pen pal sites and social media since 2006. In 2009 I expanded my work by starting a non-commercial blog site which initially targeted a Jewish audience but has developed to include unreached people groups within the 10/40 window. My blog posts…

After the Lord gave me the privilege and joy of writing Gentle Whispers from Eternity and it was published in March 2013, I began praying that God would bless this book to change lives and glorify His name around the world. This prayer is being answered in amazing ways.

Gentle Whispers from Eternity has now been published in Urdu, the language spoken by millions in Pakistan, India, and Afghanistan. The book is currently being translated into Telugu, the primary…

A few months ago I had a horrifying epiphany that will impact me the rest of my days. In a moment of time, I caught a glimpse of all the teachings and insights God had poured into my life—most of which have never been shared with anyone.

I saw my large filing cabinet of sermons that have never been delivered…my books never completed or never published…my discipleship materials and leadership tools that few people have ever seen.

It was a sickening sight. What a tragic…